EDIT: sorry, just realized this would probably fit better in the "Ecommerce and General Business Forum"

is there any laws or whatever for selling services online? I have a website, and I want to make an optional premium service, like on sites such as rapidshare. Users would pay through paypal.

Are there laws for taxes or anything? I have no knowledge on the subject.
Any tips or links would be helpful.

PS:based in the US

hope this is this is the right place =]

thanks

In general you don't need to charge taxes if you sell services, but you should really check with your state. Look for your state's department or state website. I think that's where the information is. If not check the department of revenue for your state.

PS: I moved the thread for you.

More states are starting to charge sales tax on service items.. I know that Michigan was looking at doing this recently but I don't know if it went through..

I think if states do implement taxes on services it'll really hurt many small businesses in this country. I think it would be a bad idea and probably cause a lot of confusion. If I, living in Colorado, give services to someone in NY, which states taxes get used? Those sort of questions. Same thing that's causing problems with taxing products online.

Hmm you probably would need to check with your local tax office because if you make so much per year then you have to declare it but in some cases (I know in the U.K) if you don't make a certain amount you don't have to declare it.
I think it's 16K I could be wrong. But then it might be different for you anyway. Again check with your local tax office or seek the advice of a solicitor/legal advisor.

It might also depend on the service you are offering as well though. Some services would require you to have a licence where as others you would require nothing.

For example if you wanted to provide a vehicle advertising service or a simple advertisng site you would only need to have a Privacy Policy, a Disclaimer and some T's & C's of course.

I think though however what you are describing could be done without any of these things and you would still have no problems.

A good tip would be to try and network with people who have done a similar thing as to what you want to do and hopefully try and extract some information from them.

Thanks for replying guys. It probably doesn't help that I'm also under 18 and haven't had a job.

I'm gonna ask some people about my states laws.

Also, does it matter if my site is hosted in another state? I think it probably is.

I don't think the hosting will matter. It's usually based on where the company is located and if it maintains a physical presence in a given state. I don't believe hosting would count as maintaining a physical presence.