Streamlined Sales and Use Tax:

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Streamlined Sales Tax Agreement - FAQ's

Can I register only in those SST states where I have nexus? No. To participate in SST, you must register in and report in all member states.

How do I register for SST? SST Registration can be accomplished via a Certified Service Provider like the CCH or through the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board website

Which states are the member states? The 21 Full Member States are Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming. The 3 Associate Member States are Ohio, Tennessee and Utah.

What is a Full Member State? A Full Member State is a state that is in compliance with the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement through its laws, rules, regulations, and policies.

What is an Associate Member State? An Associate Member State is either (a) a state that is in compliance with the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement except that its laws, rules, regulations and policies to bring the state into compliance are not in effect but are scheduled to take effect on or before July 1, 2009, or (b) a State that has achieved substantial compliance with the terms of the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement taken as a whole, but not necessarily each provision, and there is an expectation that the state will achieve compliance by July 1, 2009.

What is a Certified Service Provider (CSP)? An agent certified under the SSUTA to perform all the seller's sales and use tax functions other than the seller's obligation to remit tax on its own purchases. CCH is a fully compliant and sanctioned CSP, as are Avalara, ADP Taxware, Exactor, AccurateTax and Fed-Tax.

What is a Certified Automated System (CAS)? Software certified under the SSUTA to perform part of the seller's sales and use tax functions. The CAS includes the ability to calculate the tax imposed by each jurisdiction on a transaction, determine the amount of tax to remit to the appropriate state, and maintain a record of the transaction. The seller is responsible for the maintenance of the seller's data, the security of the system, and remitting taxes collected. CCH provides a fully compliant and sanctioned CAS, as does ADP Taxware.

What is a Simplified Electronic Return? A Simplified Electronic Return (SER) is the uniform electronic sales tax return used by sellers registered with SST and CSPs acting on behalf of registered sellers to file and pay sales taxes to member and selected associate states.

What are the key provisions of the SST agreement? A summary of the key provisions of the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement (as of October 2008) follows:

Changes that impact the administration of sales tax

Section 302 - Tax Bases: This section requires local jurisdictions to be identical to the state tax base. These means that items that are exempt at the state level must also be exempt in the local jurisdictions within that state.

Section 305 - Local Rates and Boundaries: This section creates rules regarding frequency and timing of local rate changes for all member states.

Section 308 - State and Local Tax Rates:

1. Requires states to eliminate multiple state sales and use tax rates on most items of personal property.
2. Limits the number of local sales tax rates per jurisdiction and requires that sales and use tax rates be equal.

Section 310 - Sourcing Rules:

Retail sales

• If an item is received by the purchaser at seller's location, it is taxed at the rate applicable to that location.
• If it is not received at the seller's location, it is taxed at the location where it is received by the purchaser.
• There are additional rules covering a myriad of variations of the second option.

Other

• Section 310.1 provides an election effective in 2010 for using origin-based sourcing.

Do you have questions regarding SST? Send them to us and we'll have responses posted here.

Note: This document incorporates research based on source and reference materials published by the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, Inc. promoting a streamlined sales tax system for the 21st Century.