The State Department of Revenue says online retailers which delivered goods or services to Louisiana addresses will soon notify shoppers about purchases that are subject to state use tax.

This requirement is due to a law passed by the legislature in 2016. Department of Revenue spokesperson Byron Henderson says online orders aren’t tax exempt…“You owe the sales tax no matter what, you either have to pay the sales tax or the use tax in which the sales tax was not charged at the time of the purchase.”

Henderson says if out of state businesses don’t charge sales tax at the time of purchase, the burden of paying it falls back on the customer…

“If a retailer does not have a physical presence in Louisiana then by law they are not required to charge a sales tax, but that does not mean that the shopper does not owe a sales or a use tax on the purchase.”

Tax filing season starts January 29th, and Henderson says if you file with a tax professional, then you should provide them with the use tax notices, but if you file by yourself…

“The use tax can be reported on your state resident or nonresident individual tax return, or on the consumer use tax return.”

Shoppers shouldn’t have to worry about Amazon purchases, as the online giant began charging sales tax after the bill was passed.

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