Ecommerce accountant for Amazon, Shopify and TikTok Shop sellers
We reconcile your payouts to the books, tell you where sales tax applies, and handle the tax return. Based in Southlake, serving sellers across the US and in China.
Why doesn’t my Amazon payout match my sales?
A payout is what remains after the marketplace takes its share. Fees, fulfillment charges, refunds, advertising and tax it collected for the state all come out before the deposit. Your books need every line separately, or your profit is wrong and your return follows it.
| Line on the settlement | Where it belongs in your books |
|---|---|
| Gross sales | Revenue, recorded at the sale price and not at the deposit. |
| Marketplace fees | A selling expense: referral, subscription and similar charges. |
| Fulfillment (FBA) fees | A cost of sales or a fulfillment expense, depending on your method. |
| Refunds and returns | Reduces revenue; returned stock goes back into inventory. |
| Advertising | A marketing expense, often billed separately from the deposit. |
| Sales tax the marketplace collected | Not your income and not your expense. It never reaches your profit. |
| Payout to your bank | Matches the bank feed. The reconciliation ends when this ties out. |
Shopify payouts work the same way, with processor fees and chargebacks in place of FBA fees. Monthly books are covered on our accounting services page.
Do I collect sales tax on Amazon, Shopify or TikTok Shop?
On a marketplace such as Amazon, Walmart or TikTok Shop, the marketplace usually collects and remits sales tax for you. On your own Shopify store, you collect it yourself. Even when a marketplace collects, you may still have to register or file in some states.
| Platform | Who collects sales tax | 1099-K | What to reconcile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon | Amazon, as marketplace facilitator, on most sales. You check where you must still register. | Issued if you cross the reporting test. | Settlement and transaction reports. |
| Shopify | You. Shopify calculates tax at checkout but does not file it for you. | Reported by your payment processor, not by Shopify itself. | Payout reports plus the processor’s fee detail. |
| TikTok Shop | The marketplace collects on most sales. Confirm state by state. | Issued if you cross the reporting test. | Seller statements and order reports. |
| Walmart | Walmart collects on marketplace sales in most states. Confirm state by state. | Issued if you cross the reporting test. | Payment statements. |
Texas follows the same pattern. Registration and filing in other states is handled on our sales tax registration page, and our Shopify sales tax guide covers the store side. For Texas sellers, see tax and accounting for Texas Shopify stores and the Texas compliance update for 2025.
Does FBA inventory create sales tax nexus?
It can. Stock that Amazon moves into fulfillment centers in other states may be inventory you own in those states, and that is a physical presence. Marketplace tax collection does not erase the question. It affects who collects, not whether you have a footprint.
- Physical presenceInventory held in a state can create nexus in it. Check where your stock actually sits, not where you ship from.
- Economic thresholdsMany states also set a sales or transaction threshold that counts total sales into the state, marketplace sales included.
- Income and franchise taxNexus for sales tax and nexus for income tax are different tests. Clearing one does not clear the other.
A formal review of your exposure, and the options if you find a gap, is on our nexus analysis and mitigation page. For a state-level example, read about Kentucky income tax nexus.
What books does an ecommerce seller need?
You need four things beyond a bank feed: sales recorded from the platform reports, fees booked by type, inventory carried at cost, and a month-end reconciliation to payouts. Without them, you cannot tell which products make money, or support your return.
- Sales and fees from the platform reportsImport the settlement or payout reports rather than booking the lump deposit.
- Inventory and cost of goods soldLanded cost per unit, including freight and duties, moves to cost of sales when units sell. Stock at Amazon is still yours.
- Monthly reconciliationEach payout ties to the bank, each refund to a sale. Differences are chased the same month.
- Sales tax and 1099-K tie-outYear-end, gross sales in the books are compared with the 1099-K so that the return and the form agree.
Importing stock from China? See accounting for importers and wholesalers for landed cost and customs duties.
Will I get a 1099-K, and does it change what I owe?
Marketplaces and payment apps must send a 1099-K when your payments exceed $20,000 and you have more than 200 transactions. Card processors report from the first dollar. The form changes nothing about what is taxable: all sales are income whether or not you receive one.
- Gross, not netThe form shows gross payments before fees and refunds. Your return reports net profit, so the books must bridge the two.
- MismatchesRefunds, sales tax and sales through several platforms are the usual reasons the 1099-K differs from your records.
- No form is not no incomeBelow the threshold you may get nothing, and the income is still reportable.
Should my store be an LLC or an S-Corp?
Most sellers start as an LLC, which passes profit through to your own return. An S-Corp election can lower self-employment tax once profit is steady, but it requires payroll for yourself and tighter records. The answer depends on profit, not on revenue.
Simple to form and maintain. Profit is taxed on your personal return, and self-employment tax applies to the net.
You pay yourself a reasonable salary through payroll, and the remaining profit is not subject to self-employment tax. Worth modeling when profit is consistent.
We model both against your real net profit. See S-Corp election services for how the election works.
I sell from China. Do I need a US company?
Not always, but many sellers form one. A US LLC gives you a US entity for marketplace accounts, a bank account and clear tax treatment. Without one, you generally give the marketplace a W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E. With one, you give a W-9.
- W-8BEN-E or W-9A foreign entity usually files a W-8BEN-E. A US company files a W-9. The form you file decides how the platform reports and withholds.
- A US LLC with a foreign ownerA single-member LLC owned by a non-US person still files information returns, including Form 5472 and a pro forma Form 1120.
- Where the stock sitsInventory in US warehouses can create US tax obligations even if you operate from abroad.
Forming the company is covered on new US company formation, and ongoing compliance on CPA for foreign-owned US companies.
Ecommerce seller questions, answered
Ask us your questionDo I need a CPA if Amazon collects sales tax for me?
Usually yes. Amazon collecting tax does not do your bookkeeping, your income tax return or your nexus review. Some states also still require you to register or file even when the marketplace collects. A CPA checks that each of those pieces is done.
Is the 1099-K threshold $600 or $20,000?
It is $20,000 and more than 200 transactions for payment apps and marketplaces. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act restored that rule and ended the $600 threshold. Card payments are reported from the first dollar. Whatever the form says, your sales are still taxable.
Can I do my own books with QuickBooks or a seller app?
Many sellers do at first. It stops working when inventory, several platforms, or sales in more than one state arrive. The tools import data, but a person still has to decide how fees, refunds and stock should be booked.
What happens to Amazon inventory in the books?
Units you have sent to Amazon are still your inventory until sold, carried at what they cost to land. When they sell, that cost moves to cost of goods sold. Fees charged for storing or fulfilling them are expenses.
Do I need to register for sales tax in every state?
No. You register where you have nexus and where the marketplace does not already collect. That is a state-by-state question that depends on where your inventory is and how much you sell there, so we check it before you register anywhere.
Can a non-US resident sell on Amazon without a US company?
Often yes, using a W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E. But marketplace accounts, banking and US-based inventory are easier with a US entity, and a foreign-owned LLC has its own filings. We look at your products and set-up before suggesting one.
How is your fee set for an ecommerce business?
It depends on the number of platforms, monthly transaction volume, whether you carry inventory, how many states you sell into, and how clean the books are when we start. We quote a fixed fee after a free consultation, not by the hour.
Talk to a CPA about your store
Tell us which platforms you sell on and where your stock sits, and we will tell you what to fix first.
Book a free consultation- Hours (US Central)
- Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm