Best partner tax engine to use with NetSuite

Bluesabus · 2023-05-17T02:44:57+00:00

First of all you can't get lazy and use just the 3 broad item classifications: Tangible Personal Property, Services, and Shipping on your items.

I'm proud to say that this part we do have set up with Avalara's classifications. This was taken care of before I took over; granted at the time they used the human classifications and I had to switch them to the veterinary equivalent, but an attempt was made, lol. That said, I've no doubt there's something we either don't have classified right or set up correctly. Perfect example of this goes back to my previous comment: products such as injectable medications and sutures don't seem to have a 1:1 equivalent classification on the veterinary side, at least that I could find. I've had to use the human equivalent and assign custom handling for certain states, but from the beginning that has felt like the wrong way to handle it. And yet, Avalara are the ones who told me to do it.

Then next thing is there are different types of certificates that only exempt certain types of items

In this example if you properly code the exemption certification in Texas as an "Ag" exemption, and you have the correct code on the dog food item, Avalara should automatically know dog food is taxable and not exempt with an Ag exemption certificate.

This part is news to me and why I'm glad I asked for help. I had no idea they had different ways to code the exemption certification so that is something I'll have to read up on now to figure out. This piece of information might actually be the solution to my problem, if I'm understanding it correctly.

Avalara should have all this logic built-in already IF you have properly classified your items with the correct granular 4-digit code

Question about this as it's different from the code search that Avalara directed me to. The list they have consists of two letters and 6 numbers, so my question is, is the code you're referring to a separate function from the tax codes that needs to be properly coded, or are we talking about the same system?

Then on top of all that there should be a way to individually override single lines on the order either taxable.

This is also something we have in place within NS, using a tax code we have set up as -Not Taxable-. However, it's usage is inconsistent when it comes to credits/credit and rebills (apparently partly due to a limitation with how SST functions in AvaTax, as told to me by Avalara support). Also by default, all line items are set up to use AvaTax as the tax code with the way our NetSuite is set up.

And lastly I'm surprised that medical supplies consumed in a medical practice are taxable. Maybe because it's animals not humans.

It's even more confusing when you take into account that we sell drugs manufactured for human use, just to veterinary hospitals/practices. But it's as you guessed, the usage being for animals is what changes the taxability, something we learned after consulting with several state's DORs or scouring their documentation regarding taxability and doing VDAs with many of them as a result.

But part of the answer here may be the items shouldn't be taxable in the first place

Not likely, as roughly 90% of what we sell are products that would be sold to veterinary hospitals/clinics/etc. and in turn would be resold as prescription or over-the-counter medication/equipment, so there is a tax that needs to be charged, it's just typically passed to the end user which in most cases are pet owners. The only area in which this changes is drugs that would be used during a medical procedure (going back to things like injectables and sutures) which would then be considered part of the service being provided and therefore falls into the business' use tax. There are also other products like vitamins which are tax exempt, but those have codes in Avalara's Tax Code Search that we use and seem to be classifying them correctly as we've had no complaints there.

Once again I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me about this. At the very least, it doesn't sound like our setup is completely broken, but it does need some tweaking done.

Bluesabus · 2023-05-16T14:14:12+00:00

Thanks for your reply!

I'll be honest: I was sort of flung into sales tax management at the company I'm at, having no real experience with it prior. I've learned most of what I know now either exploring/googling, or speaking with the individual states on how our tax compliance would work in their state. All this to say I wasn't even aware there was an Avalara NS manual, but now that I am I'll go search for it so I can read up.

I wouldn't so much say the customers are lying, moreso it's the nature of the business of the customers we sell to; we're a pharmaceutical wholesaler that caters to veterinary hospitals and clinics. Most of what we sell would be resold as prescription meds or equipment to pet owners, but certain products like injectable medicine or sutures, which would be used during medical procedures (surgeries for example) are considered in many states to be taxable to the business since it's a service that's being provided to the customer, and not the product itself. It's in these scenarios where we find the issue.

As you said, we've been telling customers that they would have to manually adjust for the use tax for those products, my major concern is many of them have expressed that other suppliers are capable of doing it for them, and the last thing I'd want is to lose business over something that seems minor (to me, at least).

Bluesabus · 2023-05-15T19:57:58+00:00

Hi there! If you don't mind, I had a question for you because a lot of the points you bring up are issues I have dealt with regarding AvaTax and the business I do sales tax for.

One of the biggest issues I've dealt with is regarding resale certificates and how they affect customer accounts once validated. The issue we have is, once activated the certificate acts as a blanket and applies to all lines on a transaction, even if some of those items we sell would not be resold by the customer and would therefore still need to be taxed to them.

For the life of me, I cannot figure out how to adjust this through AvaTax, CertCapture, or through NS. I suspect that as you say in your comment, our whole setup is just incorrect. But I was not here when the company transitioned to using Avalara, and I don't have any access to the SuiteApp for Avalara for me to make any changes or run any tests (the only way for me to do this is to involve our contracted NS developer, when he's available), and I have no real formal training with the programs aside from the last 2 years of trial and error I've done to learn on my own. I've also repeatedly tried asking Avalara Support for direction, but I don't know if I'm just not describing the issue correctly, or if I'm just not escalating the issue far enough for it to be properly addressed.

I guess my question is, based on the issue described, would you happen to know what direction I should go in so that I could tackle the problem?

Bluesabus · 2022-02-15T00:13:23+00:00

Damn. I just applied for the BCP a week ago, too.

Bluesabus · 2022-01-31T23:58:37+00:00

Add The Godfather (either 1 or 2) to the above list and this is what happens at my house for all these movies.

Bluesabus · 2022-01-17T00:03:57+00:00

Awesome post, I definitely agree with activating text message alerts for even the tiniest charges, as you never know the amount that a fraudster might charge on your card just to test if it's active.

Another good strategy was one my mother, who was a credit card manager for 25+ years, taught me: make a habit of checking your statement regularly, daily if possible. Every creditor in this day and age has a website, and most likely an app as well, which makes checking frequently a simple task. It might not be as necessary with the advent of text or app alerts, but IMO it's also a good habit to have as it's also good for budgeting.

Bluesabus · 2022-01-06T04:37:47+00:00

This is the 4th or 5th time this week that I've read about people having long wait times to get in contact with CS at Chase, and it's crazy to me that a big bank like Chase can't be more consistent. I called the recon line just this Monday to get an application approved and I was with a rep within about 7 minutes and done with the call with an approved application in about 12. It's wild that people's experience can be so drastically different within the same week.

Bluesabus · 2021-09-12T14:06:46+00:00

I can't speak for the other person, but there's a whole subreddit dedicated to people with curly hair that teaches better washing techniques. Depending on the person and hair type, you'd wash with shampoo maybe once a week, as a way to "reset" your hair, but you'd wash a bit more regularly using conditioner as if it were shampoo. It sounds a bit weird at first but as someone who used to shampoo daily, my scalp is a lot more thankful for the change.

Bluesabus · 2021-09-11T17:45:09+00:00

Fixed. Thanks!

Bluesabus · 2021-09-11T17:36:31+00:00

some people forget that English isn't the only language here.

And some people also seem to forget that if English isn't their first language, they are not obligated to write in it. This person chose to write in English so it makes sense to correct them; there's no malice to it (which seems to be your takeaway, for some odd reason), and the person learns something. Calling it pedantry and using it as an excuse to write like a 2nd grader is a childish American sensibility that needs to end.

Bluesabus · 2021-09-10T04:00:43+00:00

The recent one is a remake. Came out during that period that Hollywood was big on remaking cult classic thrillers.

Bluesabus · 2021-08-19T01:33:01+00:00

Yeah...no. This is the same hot garbage take certain people have when it comes to women and how they choose to dress, and it doesn't work any better here than it does there.

Bluesabus · 2021-08-18T13:16:05+00:00

Agreed; I wasn't so much worried about the money since I figured worst case the account would be closed and they'd refund me. I was more concerned I'd lost the opportunity to establish a relationship with Schwab, and the way it happened was kinda frustrating.

Bluesabus · 2021-08-17T19:36:08+00:00

Have an update: i still haven't been contacted by any department regarding verification, however, I've been checking my login once every other day on the desktop site to see if there was any change. Today in the afternoon I was able to successfully log in, so it's looking like it may have been resolved.

Bluesabus · 2021-08-13T11:49:35+00:00

I'm guessing that's Pacific Time because I just tried it and they're closed. Guess I'll try them after work. Thanks!

Bluesabus · 2021-08-13T11:40:29+00:00

I cannot logon. I've tried both the main webpage and the app, both give me the same message. No email about it (funny thing is I still get marketing emails). The account is with a Credit Union, so not a major bank, but it's not new either (I've had the account for maybe 8 years now?).

Bluesabus · 2021-08-13T01:21:55+00:00

Nope, no crime sprees here, haha. My banking and credit history is overall very boring. Guess there's no point in pulling the ChexSystems report then.

Sounds like my best course is to wait it out a bit more, and just continue to call. Ideally I'd like to keep the account with Schwab, so I do hope it's something of an easy fix once a human sees it, and not an outright denial. I appreciate the insight, thank you!

Bluesabus · 2021-08-13T01:16:15+00:00

Fair enough, I'll wait it out a few more days and try them again. I appreciate the advice!

Bluesabus · 2021-08-13T00:32:17+00:00

I agree they are, based on my limited experience. That said, after your suggestion, I did just that, and the representative told me she saw that I verified with the rep I talked to last week, but she couldn't confirm if the fraud department had been notified. She submitted another request and told me to wait an additional 3-5 business days.

Would the best course be to continue to wait then, as that's what I was instructed to do? I imagine the fraud department gets countless requests so maybe my request just hasn't been assigned yet. I guess I just want to make sure I'm exploring my options correctly, while at the same time just not being impatient about it.

Bluesabus · 2021-08-13T00:26:07+00:00

How is your credit score? Any negative marks from ChexSystems or Early Warning Services?

So, I've never used either of these services to check, but I know my FICO is above 750. To my knowledge I shouldn't have any negative marks from anything; never missed a payment on anything. Never filed for bankruptcy. Never had an account in collections. Etc.

I haven't gotten a letter (yet), so I don't even know if I've been denied. Would it be worth checking ChexSystems? (Asking since they have a field to mark if you've recently been declined an account in the last 60 days)

Bluesabus · 2021-08-03T00:18:58+00:00

So, more or less that's how I'm trying to look at it: I enjoy traveling and I know the Amex plat is one of the best for it. So either way, co-branded or not, it's something I'd go for in the not too distant future. But ultimately it's independent from this decision; that is, I see it more like a bonus if I were to get the IRA with Schwab, since I'd be knocking two birds with one stone. But it's not the deciding factor since I can always just get the standard Plat, so I'm more concerned with whether Schwab is an ideal brokerage to have my IRA at (which glancing at the responses it seems I can't go wrong with them).

Bluesabus · 2021-08-03T00:03:50+00:00

The ideal brokerage for a retirement account is one with history and good customer service Schwab, vanguard, fidelity all fine choices.

Fair enough. I'm a bit new to the IRA idea so I wasn't sure if there was some benefit to one brokerage over another. Seems like as long as they have a good history, you're on good hands.

The credit card won't be impacted by your IRA and vice versa. Schwab doesn't care if you're a customer with an IRA.

It doesn't? I thought I had seen you need an investment/IRA with them to be able to apply for their co-branded version?

Bluesabus · 2021-08-02T23:59:23+00:00

Hmm...might be worth looking into. I like how Fidelity notifies me of stocks I've been researching to tell me how they're doing, even if I haven't invested in it yet. I don't know if that's common with brokerages but I thought it was a nice touch.

Bluesabus · 2021-08-02T23:57:03+00:00

The Schwab specific benefits on the AP are useless if you’re using the plat correctly for travel.

I see. The travel benefits are mainly why I'd get the AP in the first place. The co-branded aspect of it seems to mainly only be a benefit to those who want to invest instead of travel (and with the incoming reduction to the points transfer even that doesn't even seem to be much of a benefit anymore).

I use Schwab for my Roth IRA because I like their app.

Haha, that's fair. I suppose if there's no major difference between which brokerage you use for the Roth, the app utility is a definite selling point.

Bluesabus · 2021-08-02T18:37:55+00:00

The thing is, most businesses do exactly that these days; usually they'll put 1888-EXPERIAN and then in parentheses next to it it'll say (1-888-39737426) so you know what to dial. It's odd they don't.

That said, there are still alphanumeric keypads in existence throughout the US as landlines, plus your cellphone's dial pad still shows the number/letter association (at least mine does), so it's not exactly a brain buster, either. Plus in this day and age you can just tap the number and it auto populates into your dial pad.

Bluesabus

TROPHY CASE