Taxware, a provider of global transaction tax calculation and compliance solutions owned by First Data Corp., says that it has earned certification from the states that are members of the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board.
Businesses that use Taxware’s certified solution to comply with sales tax collection obligations will now enjoy certain audit and liability protections from the states that have certified the company.
Specifically, Taxware has earned Certified Service Provider (CSP) status, allowing businesses to fully outsource all sales tax compliance functions to Taxware, who will calculate, collect, report and remit liabilities on their behalf using remotely accessed certified software.
Under the terms of the contract between Taxware and the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, Inc. in this outsourced CSP deployment, a volunteer seller that does not have a requirement to collect tax will receive this service free of charge, as the states will compensate the CSP for this service. This certified offering interfaces with financial, accounting, and ERP systems such as SAP, Oracle, and Oracle’s PeopleSoft, offering a new level of audit and liability protection to users of those systems.
“Taxware has been on the cutting edge of the Streamlined Sales Tax Initiative since its inception,” said Jon Abolins, senior vice president of operations at Taxware. “We are delighted to be among the first solution providers to offer certified solutions, and we look forward to offering to our clients the reduced audit and liability exposure that comes with certification.”
“Certified solutions are a critical tool for complying with the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement, and with helping businesses reduce the burden of tax compliance on remote and point of sale transactions,” said Charles Collins, vice president of government affairs at Taxware. “Transactions processed through certified solutions are subject to a reduced scope of audit, and the solutions support compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley by providing more control over cash flow as it impacts transaction taxes. Taxware’s solution offers the technology that enables governments to simplify and modernize transaction tax administration.”
Taxware Enterprise, the tax calculation software powering Taxware’s CSP, is built on Taxware’s 25 years of industry leading experience in transaction taxes, while FDC’s expertise in securely managing high volume financial transactions ensures that Taxware’s CSP infrastructure will offer the security and processing speed required by its clients.
“Taxware, through its relationship with First Data Corporation, can instantly fulfill all security and processing requirements for streamlined sales tax,” said Dave Treinen, president, First Data Government Solutions. “As the world’s largest electronic payment processor, FDC has a 35-year heritage in ensuring transactions are safe, accurate, confidential, and secure.”
“Streamlined’s goal is to bring simplicity and uniformity to state and local sales tax systems,” said Scott Peterson, executive director, Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board. “Whether a business collects sales tax in one state or forty states, we are committed to making that process as simple as possible. Today’s certification and authorization of contracts are important milestones toward that goal.” The Streamlined project is funded under an agreement with the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, Inc.