Wondering if Whiteflash charges sales tax on its jewelry (and if there is a way to avoid it?).
You have come to the right place!
Here you will get all the information you need including;
- Does Whiteflash charge sales tax on its jewelry?
- If yes, how is it calculated?
- How can one avoid paying sales tax for jewelry bought from Whiteflash
- Does the law allow this?
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Being a shop that sells jewelry online, Whiteflash is not so clear when it comes to sales taxes. From 2018 until today and still going, all online shops are mandated to collect sales taxes. The sales tax is charged based on the state where the customer is from if that state chooses to charge taxes.
For example, if you are based in North Carolina and are ordering a diamond ring from your local bank, Whiteflash will charge you a sales tax for that ring.
There is a huge amount you may be forced to part with when buying jewelry. The tax charged on such purchases will equally be high ranging from between $200 and $500. For a savvier shopper, you may even be looking for a way to calculate the sales tax up front and put it into consideration when purchasing.
Is there Any Whiteflash Sales Tax on Rings?
In the case of South Dakota vs. Wayfair, the Supreme Court ruled that all online stores should collect sales taxes from customers who purchase their products.
You may or may not pay sales tax when purchasing jewelry from Whiteflash depending on the state you are in or where you are ordering from.
If you want to buy your preferred jewelry from Whiteflash’s showroom, you will pay Texas sales tax that is charged at 8.25%. Any purchases made online will attract a sales tax dependent on the state. If you are in New Hampshire, you are lucky as that state does not charge sales taxes and therefore you will not pay.
If you have recently moved from North Carolina to Oregon but your credit or debit card still reads North Carolina, you will not escape the sales tax. Alternatively, you can wait until that information is changed to reflect your new residence then make a purchase minus the sales tax.
In the past, customers would not report online purchases or any sales taxes they paid, and they got away with it. Today, that is not possible, the store where you buy the jewelry will deduct the sales tax on their end.
If you come from a state that charges sales tax on online purchases, the money will be deducted automatically and the figure reflected on your shopping cart on the website. You can see this and decide whether to continue with the purchase or not.
RECOMMENDED: Does Whiteflash Offer Financing?
As earlier mentioned, the sales tax that you pay will be calculated depending on the billing address of the credit or debit card you use for payment. The billing information will be used automatically regardless of which state you are ordering from. The information is used to calculate the sales tax. The only way to escape is to change the billing information.
The FAQ section at the Whiteflash website has all the information you need about the states that mandate you to pay sales tax. This subject, however, is subject to change as online shopping legislation changes. Whiteflash also notes that the information on its site may not be accurate.
There is also a section on their site that gives information about international shipments and how such shipments are handled when it comes to GST and VAT fees. Such pieces of information are useful to international customers. Australian residents are lucky since there is an entire section devoted to them when it comes to AUSFTA and how that affects any jewelry purchase from Whiteflash.
How Sales Tax is Calculated On Whiteflash Jewelry
You do not have to worry about how to land on the figure that you will pay, Whiteflash calculates the tax amount for you when purchasing. If you need to cross-check if the calculation is correct, you need to know how much the tax amount is for your state. The state tax calculation is done in percentage form, say 5%.
Once you know the sales tax for your state, you need to convert it to decimal form, which is more usable. This is easier done by moving the decimal place two points to the left. If we still use the 5% example, its decimal format would be 0.05. In case we used a different example like 4.75%, then the decimal format would be 0.0475.
To calculate the sales tax, take the decimal conversion multiply and add to your jewelry price then you get your total purchase value. You should multiply the cost of the jewelry bought by the decimal sales) and add the result to the original cost of the jewelry piece.
For example, if the jewelry you bought costs $4,800 and your state charges a 5% sales tax, you would multiply $4,800 by 0.05 and get 240. You then add 240 to 4,800 to get 5,040, this is the total amount you will pay. Using this method, you can tell exactly how much you will pay in sales tax by doing the mathematics.
Another way to calculate is to add a 1 to the sales tax that is converted to decimal before you multiply. From the example used earlier, it would mean you multiply by 1.05 instead of 0.05.
The State You Are In
The charges on sales tax depend on the state you are located in and in some cases the particular city you are in. some states charge sales tax while others do not.
Some states charge sales tax on certain products. Before buying a piece of jewelry that is going to cost you a fortune like an engagement ring, you need to confirm with the laws in your state about the amount of sales tax for jewelry pieces in your location.
You can get information quickly by searching for sales taxes on Google. If you wish to get information from a more reliable source, you can download a PDF file from usa.gov that has a list of all the states that charge sales tax and specific rates per state. This file can be found on the State and Local Taxes page in the Sales and Use Tax section.
The file contains a list in alphabetical order of the states and the sales tax where applicable as well as any exemptions or adjustments depending on the kind of product where applicable.
Can You Buy Jewelry From Whiteflash Tax-Free Or Duty-Free?
Buying in the USA
Surprisingly, there is a way for you to purchase jewelry from Whiteflash WITHOUT spending a single cent on sales tax. Here’s how you do it.
DISCLAIMER: Do this at your own risk. This is just an explanation of how you would leverage states that help you save more when buying jewelry.
Step 1. Get Familiar with States That Charge Sales Tax
To start with, you need to know which states Whiteflash will not collect any sales taxes from. These states are Oregon, Delaware, and New Hampshire.
Step 2. Make a Call to One of Your Friends in Any on Those States (If No Friend Proceed To Step 3)
If you have a friend or know someone who resides in Delaware, Oregon, or New Hampshire, you can request them to buy the jewelry on your behalf. Just like that! You have saved money and have the jewelry of your choice.
If you do not have a friend in any of those places, there is a chance for you to make one. Learn how to in the next step.
Step 3. Set Up a Virtual Mailbox in One of these States
Your creativity skills will be very helpful in this step. I like to use iPostal1 to establish a digital presence by creating a virtual mailbox.
You can set up one in the states that don’t collect sales taxes on online purchases. You will only incur a couple of bucks every month and save thousands. I think this is worth it.
Step 4. Open a Debit Card with the Mailbox You Just Created
Once you have the mailbox, you need a form of payment associated with the mailbox. A prepaid debit card comes in handy.
There are however several options here. Movo.cash is a good option too.
Step 5. Buy and Forward the Mail to Your Location
It is now time for you to buy your preferred jewelry from Whiteflash and have it delivered to your newly created postal address and card. You can then forward the package to your home location.
That is it! You are done!
For International Buyers
If you are buying Whiteflash jewelry outside the USA, the process gets a little complicated.
Unfortunately, you will not escape the taxes and duty fees in your country.
Whiteflash makes it a point to label all their international packages so that the customs department that it is a shipment from the USA. Whiteflash also uses FedEx to ship which also works closely with the customs department.
If you are shopping from other locations, you need to know the tax laws in your country or region when it comes to international purchases and shipping before buying anything. Whiteflash has international estimates for slates taxes although that information is not exactly accurate.
However, people shopping from Australia are covered by special rules because of AUSFTA. This regulation exempts the USA and Australia from any customs duties. So, if you live in Australia, you will not pay any sales tax on your jewelry purchase.
This regulation is in place because the items sold by Whiteflash are manufactured and produced by Australians in the USA. The supplies they use come from other countries but they still get covered by AUSFTA.
Since Whiteflash works together with FedEx to ship their products, jewelry buyers in Australia don’t have to worry about sales tax or receiving their orders duty-free.
Conclusion
That’s all you need to know about the sales tax policy at Whiteflash.
I would like to hear from you too.
Have you ever bought a diamond engagement ring from Whiteflash and saved the sales tax?
If yes, let me know whether your experience was good or bad? Or just somewhere in between?
Leave a comment below.