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November 17, 2016

Some States Allow Sales Tax Payments Via Credit Card

Here’s a rundown of which states let you remit sales taxes via credit card and how much using that option will cost you. “Fee unspecified” means there is no information on the amount of the fee until you actually initiate a credit card payment.

Scott Peterson

For small businesses, credit cards can be an important tool, offering financial management benefits and the opportunity to earn valuable rewards. You can put just about anything on a credit card these days, including your sales taxes — in most states. Out of the 45 states that charge sales tax, all but 7 (Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Illinois, Maine, Nevada and Virginia) allow businesses to pay via credit card.

However, in those states that do allow you to pay sales taxes with plastic, the convenience comes with a price, usually in the form of a small fee that is charged by a third-party payments processor.

Here’s a rundown of which states let you remit sales taxes via credit card and how much using that option will cost you. “Fee unspecified” means there is no information on the amount of the fee until you actually initiate a credit card payment.

Getting help with sales taxes

Keeping up with sales tax filing requirements can be a big burden for a small business. Programs that automate the process, like Avalara’s TrustFile, can help. TrustFile automatically generates reports for each state based on your sales data, broken down according to each state’s requirements. It can also support electronic payment of sales tax returns in some states. TrustFile is constantly updated on the latest requirements for each state, so you will always have the right information on when and how to file.

 

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Tags: Sales Tax

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Scott Peterson Avalara 57c46dc09b4a2

Scott Peterson

Scott Peterson is the Director of Government Affairs for Avalara, Inc. In his role, Scott leads Avalara’s effort to be the first name in sales tax automation. Prior to joining Avalara Scott was the first Executive Director of the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board. For seven years Scott acted as the chief operating officer of an organization devoted to making sales tax simpler and more uniform for the benefit of business. Before joining Streamline Scott spent ten years as the Director of the South Dakota Sales Tax Division where he was responsible for the state sales and use tax, the state’s contractor’s excise tax, the sales and use tax for over two hundred cities, and the sales and use tax for four tribal governments.  

View more articles from Scott Peterson >

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