Sales Tax Management

Track, file, and remit sales tax correctly so you stay compliant without spending hours on it every month.

What This Is

Arizona calls it transaction privilege tax, but everyone just says sales tax. Either way, if you sell taxable goods or services, you need to collect it, track it, file returns, and remit payments to the state and sometimes to cities and counties as well.

The complexity comes from multiple jurisdictions with different rates and filing schedules. Scottsdale has different requirements than Phoenix. Some products are taxable, others aren’t. Miss a filing deadline or calculate the wrong rate and penalties start accumulating immediately.

The Work

Track sales by jurisdiction and tax rate. Calculate what’s owed to state and local agencies. Prepare and file returns monthly, quarterly, or annually depending on your volume. Remit payments on time. Handle rate changes and jurisdictional updates as they happen.

The Schedule

Returns filed based on your assigned frequency. Payments processed before deadlines. Regular reconciliation to ensure what you collected matches what you’re remitting. Annual reviews to confirm you’re registered in the right jurisdictions and using current rates.

Why This Matters

Sales tax agencies don’t negotiate. File late and there’s a penalty. Pay late and there’s interest plus a penalty. Underreport and you owe the difference plus penalties plus interest, even if it was an honest mistake. They assume you collected the tax from customers, so they want their money regardless of what actually happened.

The other problem is nexus. Sell to customers in multiple Arizona cities and you might have filing obligations in each jurisdiction. Expand to online sales or out-of-state customers and the complexity multiplies. Most business owners don’t realize they have filing obligations until they get a notice demanding back taxes for periods they didn’t know they needed to file.

Multi-Jurisdiction Confusion

Phoenix has one rate. Tempe has another. Some cities have additional local taxes. Figuring out which rate applies to which customer and tracking it all separately takes time and creates opportunities for error.

Penalty Accumulation

Sales tax penalties compound fast. A small late filing becomes an expensive problem when penalties and interest stack up over multiple periods. The longer it goes unfiled, the worse it gets and the harder it becomes to deal with.

What Changes

Sales tax gets tracked automatically as transactions happen. Returns get filed on time every period without you having to remember deadlines or calculate what’s owed. Payments go through before they’re due. You stay compliant without thinking about it.

When tax rates change or new jurisdictional requirements take effect, the system updates accordingly. You don’t have to monitor state websites or worry about using outdated rates. If you expand to new areas or start selling different products, someone who knows the rules can tell you what that means for your tax obligations.

No Penalties

Consistent on-time filing eliminates late penalties and interest charges. Over a year, avoiding even a few late filings saves more than most businesses realize. Compliance becomes automatic instead of something you’re constantly worrying about.

Audit Protection

Accurate records and timely filings reduce audit risk. If you do get audited, having organized documentation and someone who can respond to requests properly makes the process significantly less painful. Most audits go better when handled by someone who knows what the auditor is looking for.

The Valley's Trusted Accounting Firm