Intermediate Quick Answer
Do I still owe US sales tax on orders shipped internationally?
⚡ TL;DR
No. US sales tax does not apply to orders shipped outside the US — taxability follows the ship-to address, and international addresses fall outside every US state's jurisdiction. If an international buyer ships to a US address, normal US sales tax rules apply based on that destination state.
International shipments are not subject to US sales tax. Taxability follows the ship-to address, if it’s outside the US, no US state tax applies.
Key takeaways
- US sales tax does not apply to orders shipped outside the US: the destination state must be a US state for US sales tax to apply; international addresses fall outside this
- The ship-to address controls: a US seller shipping to London, Toronto, or Tokyo owes no US sales tax on that transaction; the destination country may assess its own import duties and VAT/GST
- International customer + US ship-to address: if an international buyer ships to a US address (freight forwarder, US warehouse, US relative), US sales tax applies normally based on the US destination state
- Marketplace sales to international buyers: if an international buyer purchases through Amazon or another marketplace, the marketplace typically handles any applicable taxes; the US seller doesn’t separately collect
- Import duties and destination-country taxes: US sellers shipping internationally are not responsible for collecting the destination country’s VAT, GST, or customs duties in most cases, those are typically collected by customs authorities at the border or by the marketplace if sold through a platform
- DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) shipping: if a seller offers DDP terms, they collect and prepay import duties and destination taxes on behalf of the buyer; this is a business arrangement, not a legal obligation, and requires careful attention to each country’s rules
- Reporting: international sales are generally not included in US state sales tax return gross sales figures; report only US-destination sales on US state returns
Frequently asked questions
Do I charge US sales tax on orders shipped to other countries?
No. US sales tax is a destination-based tax, it applies when the ship-to address is in a US state. Orders shipped to international addresses (Canada, UK, Germany, Australia, etc.) are not subject to US state sales tax. The customer in the destination country may owe import duties and their country's VAT or GST on the purchase, but that's collected by their country's customs authority, not by the US seller.
What about orders from international customers that are shipped to a US address?
If an international customer provides a US ship-to address, US sales tax rules apply as normal: the destination state's rules determine whether tax is collected. The buyer's citizenship or location doesn't matter; the ship-to address controls.
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