Question

A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision now permits states to collect sales tax from online retailers whether or not they have a physical (i.e. "bricks and mortar") presence in the state. What is the impact of this decision on online retailers?

1) Online retailers will no longer be required to collect sales tax from customers.
2) Online retailers will only be required to collect sales tax if they have a physical presence in the state.
3) Online retailers will now be required to collect sales tax from customers regardless of their physical presence in the state.
4) Online retailers will only be required to collect sales tax if they have a physical presence in the state, but the definition of physical presence has been expanded to include online activities.

Answer 1

The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision now requires online retailers to collect sales tax from customers regardless of their physical presence in the state.

Step-by-step explanation:

The impact of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision on online retailers is that they will now be required to collect sales tax from customers regardless of their physical presence in the state. This means that online retailers will have to collect and remit sales tax for all sales made to customers in any state, even if they do not have a physical store or warehouse in that state.

This decision changes the previous requirement where online retailers were only required to collect sales tax if they had a physical presence in the state. The definition of physical presence has been expanded to include online activities, so any online retailer that sells to customers in different states will now need to collect and remit sales tax.