How does everyone do their sales tax. With taxing a session and the whole wedding package. How do you figure out sales tax when your packages include albums, or items?

Also how do you all record and work with deposits? I usually collect the sales tax with the remainder fee right before the wedding, but sometimes I recieve the deposit the year before. How does that work for everyone else, because the deposit is considered income for the one year but I am not collecting sales tax until the next year.

I don't know if I made my question clear, so if you don't understand let me know and I will try to reword it.

Thanks.

varies from state to state but we only collect tax on tanigable products (items that change hands) not service. If you were to figure what you charge for your items charge for those not shooting even though you may have a package. dont forget use retainer not deposit in your wording...deposits are refundable retainers are not.

you need to check with your local accountant andyour state tax authority on this one. How it's collected varies from state to state and only someone familiar with the laws in your state can tell you the right way to do it.

Karen

Agreed. Also, some states require you to tax on everything, even if it's technically just services, because the end objective is a product.

Carli,

We are also from Ohio. My understanding of it is that if any product is included in the session fee or package, the entire thing is taxable in Ohio. State of Ohio website for business has a lot of information (not always the easiest to find but pretty helpful). Also, you can find the numbers to contact someone that know more than I do.

I am interested in knowing what other people in the Pennsylvania area do, Philly as well.

Do you tax on the whole package or just products? Philly really gets you.

Agreed on the varies by state thing....

In Indiana, only tangible products in a package are taxable. (or at least according to my accountant!)

I break down service & products on my invoice and sales tax is charged on the products.

This is a common topic among my photo friends & I because my best friend is a photog in Ohio and she is required to pay tax on the whole package, regardless of service or product.

Check with your accountant or the sales tax dept of your state gov!

My wife is a CPA so we have discussed and researched this pretty extensively.
In California we decided it is best to just tax the entire package. The law is that services aren't taxed but as photographers we aren't doing a service, we are creating something.

But wait, lawyer and accounting fee's aren't taxible you say, why should photo fees. The answer? Taxes don't make sense. But you already knew that The theory is that lawyers and accountants are doing a service while photographers are creating a tangible item. Nobody hires us to take pictures and then not deliver a tangible item. Yes, lawyers/accountants deliver items but those are items that, at least in theory, are something that we would have to do ourselves they are just selling the service of doing it for us. Their job is not to create paper, it is to do the service. Our job is to create images, it's different.
Sorry if that got long winded, this has been frustrating for me and I am only now coming to grips with it