Sales tax on tourism services resold abroad
<p>I am a software developer working on software that allows users to resell tourism products (tours, accommodation, car rentals etc.) The reseller can be either local, in a different state or a foreign reseller. </p>

<p>In understand well enough how U.S/Canadian sales taxes work when the supplier is selling services directly. The tax percentage is added to the invoice before the customer pays. The same applies when the supplier sells his services to the reseller, the sales tax is added to the discounted price for the reseller.</p>

<p>However I am not sure how to handle taxes on the invoice from the reseller to the end customer.</p>

<ul>
<li>Local resellers

<ul>
<li>Do I add the local resellers sales tax to the final price to the customer?</li>
</ul></li>
<li>Resellers in other states

<ul>
<li>Does the reseller need to apply the sales tax from the state where the services are rendered, or do they apply their local states sales tax?</li>
</ul></li>
<li>Foreign resellers

<ul>
<li>Should the final sale to the customer apply sales tax from the supplier?</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>

<p>i.e. Should the reseller apply the local sales tax where the service is delivered to the final price to the customer?</p>

<p>In the U.S. sales tax is not generally assessed on transactions of goods or services for resale.  (E.g., search for "sales tax resale certificate" and whatever states you're interested in.)</p>

<p>Furthermore, <a href="https://law.stackexchange.com/a/4515/10">in the U.S. businesses are generally only liable for collecting sales &amp; use tax in states and jurisdictions in which they have a "business presence."</a></p>

<p>Therefore: A U.S. business selling goods or services to anyone in a "foreign" state does not collect sales tax.  Nor would it collect sales tax selling to an in-state entity that provides a resale certificate.</p>

united-states canada tax-law