Blog

Louisiana Supreme Court Strikes Down Marketplace Facilitator Collection Requirement

In an interesting (but not earth shattering) development, on January 29, 2020 the Louisiana Supreme Court held that Jefferson Parrish could not hold Walmart.com liable to collect and remit sales tax on transactions made by third party sellers through their online platform. In short, Walmart.com is not a “dealer” as that term is defined under […]

Read More
Upward Trends in Sales Tax Calculation Volume Continued During Black Friday, Cyber Monday 2019.

In a post-Wayfair world, with evolving economic nexus thresholds and a squishier ‘undue burden’ replacing the bright-line “physical presence” rule as the standard for nexus, it’s no surprise that the upward trend in tax calculation volume for ecommerce from Black Friday through Cyber Monday has continued.  As evident by the total number of tax calculation […]

Read More
Managing Indirect Tax Compliance in Accounts Payable

Tax compliance is not just an issue that accounts receivable (AR) handles. With regulatory changes becoming more and more complex, the responsibility also lies with accounts payable (AP) to minimize a company’s risk. AP plays an important role in indirect tax compliance. States and the IRS continue to digitize efforts with tax collection and enforcement, […]

Read More
SAP Central Finance Drives Move to S/4HANA, Making Tax Compliance a Priority
How the Wayfair Ruling Will Impact Your SAP S/4HANA® Journey

A recent joint webinar with ASUG, “How the Wayfair Ruling Will Impact Your SAP S/4HANA® Journey,” covered the effects of Wayfair, including changing economic nexus thresholds, challenges for sellers and buyers brought on by the ruling, and how to plan for SAP S/4 HANA. Impact of Wayfair and economic nexus Since the Wayfair decision, when […]

Read More
5 Predictions for Sales Tax in 2020

As we sit on the cusp of 2020, we find ourselves living in a world where almost every state imposes tax collection and remittance obligations on remote sellers (an increase of 50 percent from last year) and where a majority of states have enacted rules that impose new tax collection and remittance responsibilities on third […]

Read More
alaska economic nexus
Alaska is Not Out in The Cold for Economic Nexus

When people think of sales and use tax, Alaska is generally not top of mind. Alaska is the “A” in “NOMAD,” an acronym typically used to describe the states that do not impose sales tax. While it’s true that Alaska is one of the few states without a state-level sales tax, many of the state’s […]

Read More
Economic Nexus: Enforcement is Coming

We are now more than 16 months removed from the groundbreaking Supreme Court decision of South Dakota v. Wayfair. This decision unlocked the ability for U.S. states to impose a sales tax collection and remittance responsibility on remote sellers based solely on their economic connection to that state. Within that time, virtually every state imposing […]

Read More
Improving Sales Tax Automation in Manufacturing
Improving Sales Tax Automation in Manufacturing

Managing manufacturing sales tax is complex for a number of reasons. You may have thousands of SKUs with taxability rules that differ across states, as well as hundreds, if not thousands, of exemption certificates to track and keep up to date for your customers. Additionally, tracking your own inventory for materials used internally that are […]

Read More
This Week in Sales Tax News

According to the October 29 Worcester Business Journal, a group of legislators and policy advocates is looking for ways to modernize Massachusetts state tax code, potentially taxing digital goods and services like music downloads or Spotify. Gov. Michael Dukakis attempted to tax services in the early 1990s, only to see his successor, Gov. William Weld, […]

Read More
Kansas AG Invalidates DOR Economic Nexus Pronouncement
Showdown on the Prairie – Kansas AG Invalidates DOR Economic Nexus Pronouncement

In a startling development that appears intertwined with local Kansas politics, Attorney General Derek Schmidt issued an opinion that attempts to place a temporary halt to the Department of Revenue’s (DOR) plan to extend its sales tax compliance requirements to remote sellers as of October 1, 2019 – leaving taxpayers in a state of limbo. […]

Read More
Safeguarding Your SAP S/4HANA Transition from Sales Tax
Safeguarding Your SAP S/4HANA Transition from Sales Tax

On September 26, Sovos held a webinar, “How a Modern Approach to Sales and Use Tax Safeguards Your SAP S/4HANA Transition.” You may now view a recording and download the slides. VP of Regulatory Analysis & Design Chuck Maniace and Sales Engineering Manager Tim Roden shared reasons why tax compliance needs to play a role […]

Read More
Meeting the New Indirect Tax Challenges of Accounts Payable Automation
Meeting the New Indirect Tax Challenges of Accounts Payable Automation

A substantial number of companies are unaware of the full challenges around tax compliance and their procurement processes. Part of the challenge is that tax compliance must functionally sit with procurement and other business functions in the enterprise that own the data interchange, while the ultimate responsibility for tax compliance remains with the tax department. […]

Read More
Indirect Tax Compliance Challenges in Accounts Payable Automation
Indirect Tax Compliance Challenges in Accounts Payable Automation

AP automation is supposed to save SAP customers money, but developments in digital tax could derail its benefits and actually create further liabilities. With tax authorities all over the world seeking to increase revenues and close tax gaps, IT professionals and AP system administrators face new challenges in indirect tax compliance. Among those challenges are […]

Read More
5 steps ecommerce retailers should take to prepare for Cyber Monday 2019
E-commerce Retailers Step up Cyber Monday Preparations

Retailers with e-commerce channels have a lot to gain during Cyber Monday or Cyber Week. According to BlackFriday.com, Cyber Monday spending is anticipated to grow 20% this year, with consumers spending nearly $9.5 billion online. Cyber Monday also falls on December 2 this year, one week later than last, giving consumers fewer weeks before Christmas […]

Read More
New York city at night
Benefits of Sales Tax Automation Software and Deployment Options

You operate a lean tax compliance and reporting team. Maybe your company has reduced staff over the past 5-10 years while continuing to grow its business through organic means as well as merger and acquisition.  But now your staff of 10 is down to four or five. What was once a manageable manual process of […]

Read More
The Rising Tide of Digital Tax: Are You Surfer or Shark Bait?
The Rising Tide of Digital Tax: Are You Surfer or Shark Bait?

Anyone familiar with the Discovery Channel’s Shark Week and the portrayal of hungry sharks setting their sights on surfers may be surprised to learn that tax and IT professionals may be feeling every bit as wary as those surfers as they enter their own version of shark-infested waters. The reason: IT and tax pros are […]

Read More
South Dakota v. Wayfair One Year Later - Sales Tax Retrospective and Look Ahead Q&A
South Dakota v. Wayfair One Year Later – Sales Tax Retrospective and Look Ahead Q&A

On July 25th, Chuck Maniace, vice president of regulatory analysis and design at Sovos, hosted a replay of the  “South Dakota v. Wayfair One Year Later” webinar on regulatory updates since the groundbreaking decision last June. Thanks to all those who participated, we received an additional wide range of thought-provoking questions. Our regulatory team compiled […]

Read More
South Dakota v. Wayfair One Year Later - Sales Tax Retrospective and Look Ahead Q&A
South Dakota v. Wayfair One Year Later Webinar Questions Answered

Thank you all who joined our webinar on June 27, “South Dakota v. Wayfair One Year Later – Sales Tax Retrospective and Look Ahead,” and submitted the following questions during the Q&A portion. They really put our regulatory analysis team to the test, and we hope you find the responses valuable as you prepare for […]

Read More