For most states, the general rule is that if you sell products or services that qualify for sales tax, a seller's permit is a must. It allows you to collect sales tax from your end customers.
It can also allow you to purchase products from suppliers/manufacturers bc data mexico without paying sales tax. Instead, you can give your supplier a resale certificate when they purchase products from you wholesale or in the retail channel and across all of your online store.
If you want to sell online temporarily, you can get a temporary seller's permit. They last up to 90 days.
The thing about a seller's permit, however, is that you may need more than one if your business has enough physical presence in different states. This is called nexus.
Nexus is pretty complicated. 'Sufficient physical presence' sometimes includes things you wouldn't think of. Stored inventory is one of them.
If your home state (for business) is Washington and your inventory is in Amazon's fulfillment center in California, nexus has been established in both states. You may need licenses and permits for both states to remit sales tax collected to residents.
Seller's permit and business licenses are two very different things. I honestly don't know how people can still misuse both terms.
A business license allows you to operate anywhere, and a seller's permit identifies you as a sales tax collector. You have to pay to get a business license, but a seller's permit is free.
Seller's Permit and Business License for Non-U.S. Residents
Every country has laws that control what you need to obtain when starting an online business .
In the UK , licenses may not apply to all e-commerce businesses. In the US, all businesses require a business license, even if you don't have a physical store.
Please check with your country's trade office for information on what applies to you.
Also, if you sell to residents of another country, one issue you may encounter is overlapping regulations. For example, having to pay taxes despite not having a physical address in the US because you use Fulfillment by Amazon.
Although there is still some debate about that. Usually this should be the nexus, but many sellers do not remit taxes.
