The SALTcast

Valerie has spent 10 years in Cloud Accounting technology. At LumaTax, she's empowering SALT and Client Accounting Services teams to streamline, elevate, & grow their sales tax advisory services (such as nexus studies, threshold monitoring, registrations, and voluntary disclosures). She partners with accounting professionals through technology transformation as they work to deliver an improved client experience and has a passion for learning and teaching new tools.

LumaTax is a sales tax software that has the ability to power your sales tax advisory arm of your accounting firm. With LumaTax you can help advise your business clients on where they may have some sales tax responsibilities or some serious sales tax exposure. LumaTax gives you the ability to not only add some tremendous value to your firm but provide some much needed peace of mind to your clients.  Come listen in as Valerie discusses LumaTax and how it can help you.

You can find Valerie on Linkedin here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/valerieheckman/

You can find LumaTax here:
http://www.lumatax.com/

We have spoken to 100s if not 1000s of small to medium sized businesses that are concerned about their sales tax responsibilities. After a discussion with them  we often find that there is nothing that  needs to be done at the moment. We will never recommend buying things that you don't need. So, I was curious what our recommendations are when it comes to this situation. I invited Paul on to discuss this with me today.

Additional Questions Answered:

Do I need to collect sales tax?

As a small to medium sized business do I need to collect sales tax?

As a startup do I need to collect sales tax?

Should I sign up for TaxJar, Avalara, Sovos?

What should I do right now about sales tax?


If you are unsure of what to do about sales tax a great place to start is with our resources page https://peisnerjohnson.com/resources/. If your situation seems more complicated and you can't find the answers that fit your business situation, join us on a what's next call: https://peisnerjohnson.com/whats-next/

On our podcast episodes we talk a lot about getting on a What's Next Call with us. What we haven't done is go through what a What's Next Call consists of. While this may not be an actual recorded call it is as close as it gets. I asked Paul and Danny to give us a reenactment of a recent call with a new contact that had some questions.  In this particular scenario a business got some bad advice from a professional but now they are suffering the consequences.  They ended up collecting sales where they weren't registered to remit the sales tax. This results in tax being collected and not being remitted. This can be considered as fraud in the states eyes. Surprisingly, this is a very common situation that we run into. So, get your popcorn and enjoy.



A What's Next Call has the potential of changing the tide of your sales tax woes. If this sounds like a similar situation you find yourself in, reach out to us today! https://peisnerjohnson.com/whats-next/

When someone new engages with us we almost always start with a sales tax risk analysis. Once you find out that you have some sort of sales tax responsibility this analysis should be your next step. With this analysis you will receive a report that will help you decide what to do next. This could mean that you need to get registered for sales tax, engage in a VDA, or do nothing. Since Paul and Jason have engaged in literally thousands of these. So, I asked them to give me some idea of what they cover in one of these sales tax risk analysis.

Additional Questions Answered:

What is economic nexus?

What is physical Nexus?

Why is is important to determine the taxability of my product and services?

Why is knowing how I sell my product important when it comes to sales tax?

What can I expect from a sales tax risk analysis?

Can I do a risk analysis on my own?


If you would like to know what your sales tax responsibilities are or you had one done and would like a 2nd opinion? Sign up for a free What's Next call and we can get it rolling. https://peisnerjohnson.com/whats-next/

We talk to people with businesses on a daily basis that are unhappy with their sales tax compliance process. Those we talk with are either aware or unaware with the flaws in their sales tax compliance process. What they really don't recognize is that there are different solutions to their sales tax woes that they did not know existed.

 Additional Questions Answered:

What does sales tax automated software cost?

What re the pros and cons of sales tax automated software?

is switching sales tax providers a lot of work?

does automated sales tax software provide sales tax consulting?

What should I expect to get from a third party sales tax compliance provider?


If you are unsatisfied with your current sales tax compliance process you are only a What's Next call away from discovering what is truly possible. Schedule your call today here: https://peisnerjohnson.com/whats-next/

Sales tax compliance can be a major burden for a business. As a CPA your clients are looking to you as a trusted advisor and mentor to help them navigate any and all tax issues. If your clients lose sleep over sales tax, you may find that you probably do, too.

 There’s a lot to know, and it can be taxing (no pun intended) to stay up to date while doing all the other functions of your job.

That’s why we have come up with a simple approach in helping your clients stay compliant so they can avoid exposure. We put together this quick guide created for accountants, bookkeepers and CPAs to help keep their clients compliant. 

 Today we discuss the 3 most important questions to help give you a clear picture of your clients tax responsibility and potential liability. 

Additional Questions Answered:

Does my client have economic nexus?

Does my client have physical nexus?

Is what my client sells taxable?

Is my client responsible for collecting sales tax?

Being a good mentor and consultant is knowing when to ask for help. We have a few resources we are happy to share with you. Please utilize our state-by-state nexus guide and we will respond indicating whether there's an issue in that state or not; we will provide the background about that state. We are also available to help guide you through any further questions you may have through our free “What’ Next Call” and we can provide more education. Even if we don’t have a partnership or agreement, we are always more than happy to provide guidance and peace of mind for you and your clients. There is confidence in collaboration, and we are ready to collaborate.

Did you know that you may potentially be paying taxes that you don’t have to pay? It is becoming more important now than ever for businesses to conduct a sales tax refund review. By doing so they have the potential of saving money and better yet, getting money back from overpayments made on their acquisitions of expense and capital asset items. Listen in to see if you should consider a refund review for your business.

If you decide that your business would benefit from a sales tax refund review, schedule your What's Next Call Today! 

There are so many ways that you can sell your product. One of the most popular ways is through a marketplace facilitator like Amazon, Ebay, and Walmart. In many cases a seller can de-register their sales tax accounts if they only sell on a marketplace facilitator. So, I asked Paul and Jason, under what circumstances would a seller need to remain registered or get registered for sales tax.

Additional questions answered:

What is a marketplace facilitator?

If I only sell on Amazon do I have nexus and have to collect sales tax?

How does materiality play into determining wether or not I should register for sales tax?

If I have inventory in a state do I have to register to collect sales tax?

If I only sell on a Marketplace can I just deregister all of my sales tax accounts?

What are some of the pitfalls I will run into with sales tax?

Do you do significant sales on a marketplace facilitator and are wondering what your sales tax responsibilities are? Don't worry, you are not alone. Jump on what's next call with us here: https://peisnerjohnson.com/whats-next/  and get some solid peace of mind.

When you are getting your business started there are a lot of things to worry about. One of those things may or may not be sales tax compliance. A lot of people reach out to us about their situation. I invited Paul and Jason on to give their advice on what you should be doing.

Questions Answered:

How  do I know when I should be collecting sales tax?

What is sales tax nexus?

Where should I register for sales tax?

Does sales tax keep you up at night?

When I first start my business do I ned to collect sales tax everywhere?

Do I have to do anything about sales tax when I fist start my business?

Do I have to collect sales tax after I hit economic nexus thresholds?

When you are looking to get compliant with sales tax you will find a few different "automated" solutions. Peisner Johnson has been  in the sales tax trenches for the last 30 years and we have used every sales tax software solution out there.  But, to truly say that your sales tax is fully automated isn't really accurate. What is automated is truly amazing and well worth it. Let's talk about that.

Questions Answered:

Is sales tax automation "set it and forget it?"

What about sales tax prevents it from being totally automated?

What is truly automated  with sales tax automation software solutions?

What does sales tax software do right?

Do I need to talk to a sales tax professional?

How do I know the correct sales tax rates?


If you are looking for a sales tax compliance solution or you are not super happy with your current solution, lets chat. You can schedule a call with us here: https://peisnerjohnson.com/whats-next/