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Brandy registrations see impressive 322% spike from Q4 2021  As spring and the warmer months inch closer, beverage alcohol brand registration patterns are also continuing to creep higher. The industry is perhaps gaining a better understanding of how to move forward in a marketplace working through a pandemic. There were increases in Product Registration Online […]

Sovos ShipCompliant’s Alex Koral, regulatory general counsel, invited Tom Wark, executive director of the National Association of Wine Retailers and author of the Fermentation Newsletter, for a conversation about the three-tier system’s role in the modern-day beverage alcohol regulatory landscape. Tom shares his take on how Prohibition may have initially shaped the approach to regulating […]

This blog was updated on January 25, 2023. On July 13, 2016 the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) approved its drafting committee’s final draft of the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (RUUPA). The approved RUUPA is now considered the latest version of a model law that will serve as reference for state legislatures in modifying and […]

The three-tier system, under which beverage alcohol is predominately sold in the United States, establishes a clear distinction between the different “tiers” of the market. As it is designed to work, alcohol suppliers sell solely to wholesalers, who in turn sell solely to retailers, who then are the entities that consumers purchase alcohol from. In […]

With the annual 2021 statutory filing season behind us, the focus now is on 2022 with all the accounting and reporting changes that it will entail. Do not be fooled into thinking that implementation of these changes will be effortless or without a time investment. Hopefully these items have been considered and addressed already. However, […]

West Virginia’s governor signed WV HB 4511 into law on March 28, 2022. The newly enacted law includes significant changes to West Virginia’s unclaimed property. The provisions of this bill will become effective June 10, 2022, which is 90 days after its passage by the legislature. The changes are as follows: Electronic Mail: The definition […]

Editor’s note: This blog was updated on December 28, 2022 Update: Since this content was published, the IRS released guidance that the implementation of the reduced $600 threshold for 1099-K reporting will be delayed until tax year 2023.  As a result, the federal threshold for the 1099-K form reporting for tax year 2022 will remain unchanged […]

We’ve previously discussed the details of direct-to-consumer (DtC) beer shipping, and what shippers must keep in mind to stay compliant. It’s also important to stay current on updates to DtC beer shipping regulations. That way shippers can make any necessary changes to remain compliant should more (or fewer) states allow beer to be shipped directly […]

The 2022 Sovos ShipCompliant Beverage Alcohol Summit virtual event included in-depth data analysis, discussions on the latest regulatory updates and insightful thought leadership. Here are some Summit highlights and quick facts from our sessions. Big picture industry updates Alex Koral, regulatory general counsel, Sovos ShipCompliant, shared some observations about the role of regulations in the […]

What does wedding season have to do with sales tax? Depending on the products and services your business offers, there could be more involved than you think. Find out if your organization is prepared for these sales tax considerations connected with the upcoming wedding season. According to a study done by The Knot, 80% of […]

We’ve previously discussed the importance for producers to get licensed for the three-tier system when beginning to sell and distribute their alcoholic products. However, it’s also critical that when a supplier distributes into a new state, they first recognize if they will be selling into a “control system.” In the control state model, state agencies […]

Despite the reputation of being a “once a year” thing, tax information reporting and withholding is a year-round organizational compliance process. Add unclaimed property (UP) obligations and crypto tax compliance to the monthly to-do list, and businesses have a lot of compliance obligations to prepare for – all throughout the year. This quarterly blog series […]

This March, Sovos ShipCompliant released the second annual Direct-to-Consumer (DtC) Beer Shipping Report in partnership with the Brewers Association. The report features exclusive insights and data on the state of the channel, an economist’s review of the marketplace opportunity and key findings from a consumer preferences survey. Fast facts from the 2022 DtC Beer Shipping […]

The tax season isn’t over yet, but one of the biggest organizational reporting challenges is behind us–   issuing and filing of Form 1099-NEC for payments companies made to nonemployees in exchange for their services. As we look back on the flurry of activities that our organizations orchestrated to issue and file millions of Forms 1099-NEC […]

No company wants a focus on managing sales tax to distract them from their primary business objectives. But it’s a mandatory part of business that can be particularly daunting for SMBs that lack the necessary time and resources to keep pace with the complexities of sales tax. With over 12,000 U.S. tax jurisdictions that are […]

Regulatory scrutiny is a constant in the beverage alcohol industry, and direct-to-consumer (DtC) shipping is no exception to that. However, the DtC market does bring some unique regulatory concerns. The last several years have seen increased efforts by regulators to get a handle on the growing market, which has led to more audits and enforcement […]

Let’s face it: no one likes dealing with tax, and no one likes learning they’ve done something wrong when it comes to their organization’s compliance. Sovos launched the Sales Tax Learning Series to guide you through revamping your team’s sales tax strategy. This learning series was designed with industry-leading partners to help you navigate the […]

Suppliers looking to get into the valuable and growing market of direct-to-consumer (DtC) alcohol shipping often need support from third parties. From setting up sales to managing shipping logistics to handling complicated tax filings, DtC alcohol shipping is often too much for any one business to deal with entirely on their own. Within the ecosystem […]