Washington state earns most of its money from sales tax. It requires businesses that sell products to collect sales tax.
It also requires certain services to collect sales tax. Often if these services are related to physical things, e.g. painting a mural on a wall, fixing a fence.
This is called Retail Service.
Now WA is adding more industries to the Retail Service category.
Which means new types of services will need to collect + submit sales tax.
Some new examples:
Advertising services
Graphic design
Presentations, workshops
Web design
Over the years, WA is constantly adjusting who needs to collect sales tax. Some people are not aware that technically their work is considered Retail or Retail Service.
You might not know …
That these services and products also need to collect sales tax:
Photography - services and photos
Selling digital products - newsletters, digital art, webinars
Painting murals
Repairing, improving furniture or other objects
Is this feeling scary or overwhelming?
Are you thinking things like…..
Oh Sh*t! I can’t afford to pay more taxes? Why am I burdened with this? Will clients think my prices are too high? This is not fair! I already hate number, now I have to do this?
I got you!
Here are some key things to know upfront
1 - This won’t cost you any extra money. This is tax that you collect from the customer, and sent on to the state. (Though it will take a little extra time.)
2 - Once you know what to do, it’s not that hard.
3 - Not sure where to start? Just add 10% sales tax to everything for now, you can get more precise later. Set that money aside in a separate account if possible.
4 - Our customers are used to paying sales tax, so hopefully, for most people, this will not be a big deal.
5 - When it’s time to file, the phone support at the WA Department of Revenue is usually really nice, and it is their job to help you. (You can also tag me in to help with a Quickie Consult-Call )
6 - Other people not as smart as you have figured it out, you can too!
I’ll be creating more support materials and resources in the future. In the mean time, feel free to hit me up for a Quickie Consult-Call for a small fee. Or, if you’re a new client, find me in a free 20-min Zoom chat.
You got this!
Once you’ve got your system, this is just one more way to feel like a Bo$$!
xo Jenny