Express charges a sales tax on online orders for NYC residents?

I live in NYC and I wanted to place an order for Express, but they're charging me $5.01 as sales tax. The thing is, NYC does not charge a sales tax on clothing and shoes unless the item is $110+. My order comes out to about $50 with shipping. They have a corporate office in NYC and Ohio, but I don't recall seeing Ohio listed as one of the 3 that will be charged a sales tax.



Are they charging me the tax because they have a corporate office in my state?Express charges a sales tax on online orders for NYC residents?
Are you buying clothing from them or are you buying jewelery? A lot of accessories don't fall under the clothing exemption. If you are buying clothing, then you're right: they shouldn't be charging you sales tax if you're shipping the item to NYC. They are required to charge sales tax because they have stores and/or office in your state.



Here's an interesting article I found: http://consumerist.com/328849/is-express鈥?/a>Express charges a sales tax on online orders for NYC residents?
NY is charging sales tax because Express has a store in NYC and you live in NYC.

By state law (NY),Express has to collect the NY sales tax and pay it to NY.

NY has started collecting sales tax on all internet orders from any company that has any kind of presence in the state of NY.

Many states are doing the same thing,but they are also including your home internet service as a "presence" within the state.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled several years ago that states do not have the right to tax out of state orders,this constitutes regulation of interstate commerce and only the federal government has that authority.

To get the law rescinded,you will need to contact your state lawmakers or take a tax repeal campaign or a law suit against the state.Express charges a sales tax on online orders for NYC residents?
The law used to be that you would only be charged the tax if the company has a store in your state, however the tax laws are changing rapidly, and some companies are now required to charge a tax regardless of whether they have a store in the state where the merchandise was sold.



I'm surprised that they charged you tax if they don't charge a tax on clothes in NY, but the parent company may be in Ohio, which may charge a tax. I'd call their customer service line in the morning and ask why you were charged tax, to what state it was paid and exactly what type of tax is it (sales tax, luxury tax, etc).



If you are unhappy with their answer, then write to your congressman and make sure you get a response as to why you were taxed on clothing when the state you live in doesn't charge tax unless the purchase is $110+. If you're not happy with his/her answer, make sure you vote for his/her opponent (provided they don't feel the same way as the original guy) in the next election.



In the future, see if you can go to the store and have them order it for you. If they will do this, since you are technically buying it at the store, you may still have to pay for shipping, but you may not have to pay the tax.