Amazon to Block AU buyers from purchasing from Amazon.com

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584 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2026743 1-Jun-2018 09:45

kryptonjohn:

I thought it was illegal to charge GST and not provide a GST receipt?

Yeah, I'd be curious about the rules on that with overseas companies. The invoices that eBay and Amazon provide certainly don't meet the IRD requirements for claiming back GST.

With Amazon they take it as a import duty deposit, and they refund you if you overpaid in your deposit, but it doesn't have a breakdown of GST in that anywhere.

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MikeB4

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#2026750 1-Jun-2018 09:53

It could be seen as another example of how tax averse these multinationals are.

Fred99

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#2026753 1-Jun-2018 09:55

Earbanean:

surfisup1000:

Free trade is dying under labours tyrannical bureaucracy!

I think you'll find Labour is not in power in Australia. They currently have a Coalition (National/Liberals) government.

I'm guessing that there's been a bit of "Poe's Law" happening here - the explanation mark wasn't a clear enough indication that the comment may have been sarcasm.

One law that probably applies to the situation is the law of unintended consequences.

Unintended doesn't equal "unknown" or "unforeseen" - plenty of people warned about how difficult collecting local taxes from overseas would be - if not that it would be Amazon basically telling Aus (and presumably NZ in time) where to stick it.

Fred99

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#2026758 1-Jun-2018 10:03

The global tax system needs to be reformed.

VAT/GST and sales taxes should probably go - despite the apparent simplicity of the NZ system - it's 3 decades out of date - devised in times when free global consumer-level trade in goods and services wasn't really a thing.

surfisup1000

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#2026765 1-Jun-2018 10:29

Earbanean:

surfisup1000:

Free trade is dying under labours tyrannical bureaucracy!

I think you'll find Labour is not in power in Australia. They currently have a Coalition (National/Liberals) government.

The Australians use the spelling 'Labor'.....so, no i am not talking about them.

I was talking about our labour! Who are creating tax laws that apply to entities outside their jurisdiction!

Generally, bureaucracy extracts value from the economy rather than adding to it.

MikeB4

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#2026771 1-Jun-2018 10:41

Fred99:

The global tax system needs to be reformed.

VAT/GST and sales taxes should probably go - despite the apparent simplicity of the NZ system - it's 3 decades out of date - devised in times when free global consumer-level trade in goods and services wasn't really a thing.

International Corporate taxation needs a serious look at but probably wont happen. Example Exxon/Mobil Australia (Esso) in three years had revenue in excess of $AU27 Billion and paid tax of $AU0.00

Fred99

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#2026795 1-Jun-2018 11:03

MikeB4:

Fred99:

The global tax system needs to be reformed.

VAT/GST and sales taxes should probably go - despite the apparent simplicity of the NZ system - it's 3 decades out of date - devised in times when free global consumer-level trade in goods and services wasn't really a thing.

International Corporate taxation needs a serious look at but probably wont happen. Example Exxon/Mobil Australia (Esso) in three years had revenue in excess of $AU27 Billion and paid tax of $AU0.00

Profit shifting is illegal. Proving it is nearly impossible. The harder anyone tries, the more "creative" global traders become. The solutions being offered for example by Trump reducing tax rates in the hope that'll encourage repatriation of profits won't work in the context that the US deficit is accelerating.

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MikeB4

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#2026798 1-Jun-2018 11:10

Amazons clear tax aversion shows that they are not a good corporate citizen, not only are they a major tax avoider they are showing they will not assist in tax collection in the countries they do business. So they are a leach on the markets they operate in and intend to give nothing back.

rugrat

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#2026869 1-Jun-2018 12:23

I don’t think it’s not assisting with tax collection makes them a bad citizen.

That just the way governments are trying to spin it when things go wrong to make it look like they’re not the bad guy.

It must be more complicated collecting tax for an overseas government then your own as you also have the currencies to worry about, international money transfers, doesn’t that cost also, to move money internationally.

Local retailers will have something to celebrate if consumer as less choice where to buy.
What can people do, just vote for change of government each election, knowing the next one will continue it on any way.

Fred99

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#2026874 1-Jun-2018 12:51

MikeB4:

Amazons clear tax aversion shows that they are not a good corporate citizen, not only are they a major tax avoider they are showing they will not assist in tax collection in the countries they do business. So they are a leach on the markets they operate in and intend to give nothing back.

Why blame them for doing what they can get away with to minimise costs / maximise profits?

You're repeating a flawed argument of "anti-globalists" to target individual corporations who behave exactly as they should be expected to behave in the regulatory environment in which they operate. It might be an attempt to deal with the same problem, but as the past 30 years or so have very clearly shown - that solution does not work. Not even close. If anything, it's made it worse.

MikeB4

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#2026899 1-Jun-2018 13:36

I consider my self a capitalist but I have zero sympathy for the corporate greed and scum baggery that major corporations are amusing themselves with. Here is some food for thought, a single employee working in at a McDonalds store will pay more in tax in a week than the combined tax paid by a huge chunk of the Corporations trading in NZ. Have a further thought about the houses, transport infrastructure, health services and education that could well do with if these corporations did the right thing. If Amazon gets inconvenienced by collecting some tax for NZ then I say good, if they throw the toys out of the cot then I say bugger off.

sbiddle

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#2026910 1-Jun-2018 14:01

Hang on here.. Why is there all the Amazon bashing?

Amazon already collect tax on purchases to NZ in excess of $400 - but my understand is they have never collected any charges for Australia over their $1000 limit.

The problem is the new NZ rules are actually pretty complex and not straight forward like the current rules - particularly in regard to duty. This means some people will actually save money compared to their purchases now.

Wiggum

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#2026912 1-Jun-2018 14:07

MikeB4:

Amazons clear tax aversion shows that they are not a good corporate citizen, not only are they a major tax avoider they are showing they will not assist in tax collection in the countries they do business. So they are a leach on the markets they operate in and intend to give nothing back.

Tax avoidance is not a crime and I think you are confusing it with tax evasion. No need to make a moral case out of this one.

Same can be said about many corporates. Do you buy from Amazon?

MikeB4

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#2026914 1-Jun-2018 14:09

Wiggum:

MikeB4:

Amazons clear tax aversion shows that they are not a good corporate citizen, not only are they a major tax avoider they are showing they will not assist in tax collection in the countries they do business. So they are a leach on the markets they operate in and intend to give nothing back.

Tax avoidance is not a crime and I think you are confusing it with tax evasion. No need to make a moral case out of this one.

Same can be said about many corporates. Do you buy from Amazon?

Where in any of my posts did I say "tax evasion"?

tdgeek

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#2026919 1-Jun-2018 14:14

Fred99:

The global tax system needs to be reformed.

VAT/GST and sales taxes should probably go - despite the apparent simplicity of the NZ system - it's 3 decades out of date - devised in times when free global consumer-level trade in goods and services wasn't really a thing.

Alternatives? If we cannot tax goods we tax ourselves? Increase income tax to cover GST?

In any case, its very easy for Amazon to collect GST or VAT, they already do it via US sales taxes. They are just playing a power game

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