Alabama is one of several states taking part in a program offering relief for online sales tax collection.
The Multistate Tax Commission has a sales tax amnesty program going on in nineteen states, including Alabama. The program allows online sellers to come forward and register their sales or use tax without penalties. This includes large online retailers like Amazon and smaller third-party accounts.
Christy Vandevender is the revenue research manager at the Alabama Department of Revenue. She says that companies that volunteer their sales tax returns will not be penalized, saving them a lot of money in the long run.
“So I think it’s just a win-win for everyone, where we can get these taxpayers coming forward voluntarily and filing without much expense from us or coming from the seller’s side. They’re saving money by just coming forward voluntarily.”
Prices of penalty charges can be high for online sellers who have never registered their sales tax before. That’s why online companies approached the Multistate Tax Commission for a chance at tax amnesty. The program will last until mid-October.