Sales Tax

[Ultrarunner]

Originally Posted by West coast at heart

Thanks Utrarunner. Will the sales person ask if I live in OR? I am talking about things like televisions, books, cars.... I like the idea of no sales tax, but I would not want to be dishonest about it.

wc@h

OR could care less and the merchant is happy to make a sale...

You are not prevented from buying in other States... you just need to pay the tax on it when you import the merchandise...

Of course there are exemptions... like moving to the State and stuff like that and items bought for resale, etc...

Lots of people would love to buy a new car with no tax... doesn't work if you buy it to register it in WA or CA...

I have a friend that is not an OR resident... he owns a home and bought a car to keep there... no problems because the car has never been in his home state of TX...

[scirocco22]

West coast at heart, I'll give you my take on your question but as you can see from my prior responses, I'm not an expert.

Theoretically, as a Washington state resident, any items you buy in Oregon and bring back to USE in Washington, will be subject to a "use tax" which is taxed at the same rate the state taxes retail sales. So if you want to be "absolutely" honest, you should be remitting payment to Washington state for all items bought in Oregon and used in Washington.

Read about how to do this here.

However, if someone goes to, for instance, Portland, buys some items at Target and then brings them back to use at their home in Vancouver, how many of them will "voluntarily" remit the use tax to the state of Washington? I guess you have to be the judge on how honest you want to be if you are a resident of Washington and go to Oregon to buy a few things. On smaller items, it's virtually on the honor system because the state of Washington can't monitor who buys a tube of toothpaste and brings it across the border to use in Washington. Theoretically, you owe use tax on that purchase.

This is my interpretation. Please correct me if this is incorrect.

[StealthRabbit]

I like the idea of no sales tax, but I would not want to be dishonest about it.-
wc@h

Do be advised, if you are talking about asking an OR retailer about the tax... As 'rocco mentioned; OR does not have, nor collect a sales tax, so typically an OR retailer would not ask or care, BUT... If that retailer is delivering your OR purchase to be used in WA, there should be tax collected. The retailers get around this by using a '3rd-party' for delivery to WA. Basically it is your responsibility as a WA resident to drop by the DOR and pay a 'use' tax (Same rate as sales tax) for items purchased outside of WA for use inside WA. It is an 'honor system', but could be enforced as obligatory if necessary. There is actually less emphasis on this at the moment than I have seen in the past. Just consider your community / state / benefits and act (buy) appropriately. Since I own commercial properties in WA and enjoy tax-free income on that and I like to support local retailers who have a competitive disadvantage, I do most my shopping in WA, even tho I'm in OR often. For any WA 'business related purchases' in OR I am required to submit "use-tax", qtrly.

[scirocco22]

Thanks for the clarification, StealthRabbit.

So, in terms of practicality, let's use this as an example:

Let's say a Vancouver (non-business) resident regularly goes to Portland, for whatever reason, to buy miscellaneous sundry items and staples. Can that resident submit his "use tax" in one payment on a quarterly basis?

From a strictly legal and ethical standpoint, I'm guessing that this particular Washington resident should keep a list of such purchases and submit the use tax at a regular interval. What interval should be used?

Obviously, we only want to hear from those who do submit the use tax and not from those who do not as not submitting the tax would be considered illegal(?). So those of you who want to rant about "I'm getting taxed enough as it is," need not respond.

[nwcountrygal]

For the car sales the regulations for multiple items other than ID I believe started around two years ago in WA. I have never had anyone in OR ask me if I was from WA when buying normal smaller items. Although I haven't bought a car in OR. Just sold cars to OR residents in WA. The state required those items to dismiss the sales tax. I have never seen a certificate.

[scirocco22]

Originally Posted by nwcountrygal

For the car sales the regulations for multiple items other than ID I believe started around two years ago in WA. I have never had anyone in OR ask me if I was from WA when buying normal smaller items. Although I haven't bought a car in OR. Just sold cars to OR residents in WA. The state required those items to dismiss the sales tax. I have never seen a certificate.

nwcountrygal, I guess you can blame me for all the confusion.

First, no, a certificate is not required unless you are reseller.

Second, there's no reason for any retailer in Oregon to ask you if you are from Washington. They don't care. They're more than happy to sell you stuff no matter where you're from.

It's the state of Washington who theoretically cares if you go to Oregon and buy a bunch of stuff to use in Washington and don't pay the obligatory use tax.

And, what we were discussing earlier is if an Oregon resident comes to Washington to purchase stuff, they can show their Oregon ID and ask not to pay Washington sales tax ...not demand not to pay it but request not to pay it.

[West coast at heart]

Wow! I really appreciate all of the input.

I have a feeling my sense of morality may get the better of me.

I try to have a sense of community loyalty as well. When ever possible, my wife and I shop at the locally owned shops and restaurants. Now more than ever. Especially after seeing so many places go under in the last year. Buying locally also helps me in the sense of protecting my home/investment. If too many places fold, the community can just fade away.

Sorry, I kind of strayed off track there.

I intend on paying my dues/taxes when and where possible. I know that my wife and I will be down in OR a lot with her parents living in McMinnville. I am certain OR will be getting some of our money!

Any way, thank you all for helping me understand tax life in the Northwest!

wc@h