by Ariful | Oct 26, 2026 | US Updates
Protect the individual tax identity behind your business
An IP PIN is a six-digit number known to you and the IRS. It helps the IRS verify your identity when you file an individual federal return. Anyone with an SSN or ITIN who can verify their identity may be eligible to request one, even if they are not required to file a return. A parent or legal guardian can also request one for a dependent.
This is relevant to international business owners. For example, a foreign owner of a U.S. LLC who files Form 1040-NR using an ITIN may be eligible. If someone files a fraudulent return first using your SSN or ITIN, the duplicate filing can complicate your legitimate return and delay processing while the IRS reviews the issue.
An IP PIN is an individual taxpayer safeguard. It does not replace company-level compliance or protect an entity’s tax account. IRS business accounts are separate from individual online accounts. And if you are a sole proprietor or single-member LLC owner filing business income on your individual return, your personal filing still needs appropriate protection.
Keep the distinction clear: an IP PIN does not replace company filings such as Form 5472 where applicable. Form 5472 penalties are a separate compliance issue and are not avoided by having an IP PIN.
Request your PIN before the mid-November closure
If you plan to file early in 2027, request or retrieve your IP PIN before the online service becomes unavailable for annual maintenance in mid-November 2026. The IRS says the service is generally available again starting in mid-January.
The quickest route is through your IRS Individual Online Account. If you do not already have an account, you will need to complete identity verification before accessing the IP PIN section.
If you cannot enroll online, the IRS lists alternatives. You may be able to submit Form 15227 if you have a valid SSN or ITIN, telephone access, and adjusted gross income on your last-filed return below $84,000 for an individual or $168,000 for married filing jointly. The IRS will call to verify your identity. If you do not qualify or cannot verify your identity this way, you may request an in-person appointment at a Taxpayer Assistance Center and bring the required identification documents.
Alternative routes can take longer, so do not leave this until the last moment. Check the current instructions on the IRS IP PIN page before applying.
Use and store your PIN carefully
An IP PIN is valid for one calendar year. The IRS generates a new one each year, so make retrieving it part of your annual filing checklist. If you opted in online, you generally need to retrieve the new PIN from your online account; the IRS does not mail you a CP01A notice for online opt-ins. Confirmed identity-theft victims who are enrolled by the IRS receive a CP01A notice each year.
Use the PIN when filing the federal individual return forms covered by the IRS, including Forms 1040 and 1040-NR. An incorrect or missing PIN can cause an e-filed return to be rejected or delay a paper return. If you have been issued a PIN, use the current calendar year’s PIN when filing a return during that year, including a prior-year return.
Follow this international seller security checklist
- Get your IP PIN before the maintenance window. This gives you time to resolve account access or identity-verification issues before the online service closes.
- Protect your IRS login. Use a unique password and multifactor authentication where available. Never share your sign-in details, including with anyone claiming to be an “agent.”
- Keep the PIN private until filing. Give it only to a trusted tax professional when you are ready to prepare and submit your return. Your tax preparer may need the PIN, but should not need your IRS password.
- Watch for impersonation scams. The IRS will never call, email, text, or contact you through social media to request your IP PIN. Do not respond to messages asking you to disclose it.
- Keep personal and business compliance tasks separate. Maintain the company’s records and filing calendar independently from your individual IRS account. This matters whether you are a U.S. entity owner, an overseas director, or one of the U.S. importers of record managing cross-border operations.
A UK-based business may use an ecommerce accountant or Amazon seller accountant in the UK to coordinate bookkeeping and compliance records. That support does not replace your responsibility to protect personal IRS credentials. Sterlinx Global supports ongoing accounting and compliance operations; we are not an identity-theft resolution service. If you suspect someone has already filed using your details, follow the IRS’s identity-theft instructions and contact the IRS directly.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need an IP PIN if I am not required to file a U.S. return?
You can request one if you have an SSN or ITIN and can verify your identity. The IRS says you do not need to be required to file a federal return to obtain an IP PIN.
Does an IP PIN protect my LLC or business tax account?
No. It helps verify your identity on specified individual federal returns. It does not replace company-level account security, business reporting, or filings such as Form 5472 where applicable.
What if I already have an IP PIN?
Retrieve your current PIN through your IRS online account before the mid-November maintenance period. Online opt-ins generally need to retrieve a new PIN each year; the IRS does not mail them a CP01A notice.
Protecting your IRS credentials and getting your IP PIN ahead of the maintenance window can help reduce filing disruptions. For support keeping your accounting records and compliance workflow organized, Talk to an expert.
by Ariful | Oct 26, 2026 | US Updates
Charge local tax based on where the order is delivered
Under Pennsylvania Act 21 of 2026, local sales tax for Philadelphia and Allegheny County is based on the destination of a taxable product or service, not the seller’s office, warehouse, or point of sale.
The combined rates are:
- Philadelphia: 6% state sales tax plus 2% local tax, for a total of 8%.
- Allegheny County: 6% state sales tax plus 1% local tax, for a total of 7%.
The change does not increase the rates. It changes which local rate applies to a sale. If you deliver a taxable product to a Philadelphia address, for example, you may need to collect Philadelphia’s 2% local tax even if your business is located elsewhere.
The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue says the law was enacted on July 12, 2026, and applies retroactively to tax years after December 31, 2025. The department delayed enforcement until October 1, 2026, to give vendors time to update their systems. That enforcement delay is not the same as a later legal effective date. Review covered transactions from 2026 and get support from the Department or an appropriately qualified professional if you need to determine how to correct earlier returns.
See the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue’s local sales tax guidance and the City of Philadelphia’s explanation of the change.
Check whether your sales are in scope
This change applies to vendors already required to collect and remit Pennsylvania’s 6% state sales tax. It does not make every sale taxable, nor does it change which products or services are subject to tax. Pennsylvania’s existing rules for taxable goods and services still apply.
If you are a UK or other international seller registered to collect Pennsylvania sales tax, review the sales you make to customers in these counties. This may include orders through a Shopify or WooCommerce store, as well as direct sales alongside marketplace activity.
For marketplace orders, do not assume the platform handles every sales tax responsibility. Marketplace facilitators may collect and remit tax on sales they facilitate, but the seller’s own website sales and transactions outside that arrangement may remain the seller’s responsibility. Check platform tax settings and transaction reports so you can distinguish marketplace-collected sales from sales you need to report.
Update your checkout and tax engine
A tax setup that applies a flat 6% rate to every Pennsylvania order may now produce incorrect results. Review your checkout, tax engine, invoices, and accounting records to ensure local tax is calculated from the delivery address.
Use this checklist:
- Enable destination-based local sourcing. Apply the Philadelphia 2% local rate or Allegheny County 1% local rate when the taxable order is delivered to the relevant county.
- Keep state and local amounts distinguishable. Clear tax records make it easier to reconcile collections and prepare Pennsylvania returns.
- Test representative orders. Check addresses in both counties, nearby areas outside them, and orders involving marketplace collection. Confirm that checkout displays the expected tax.
- Review tax already charged. Identify whether you undercollected local tax or charged a local rate where it did not apply. Correcting tax settings now can prevent the same error from continuing.
Do not assume a five-digit ZIP code always identifies a county accurately. ZIP code boundaries can cross county lines. Pennsylvania’s Department of Revenue points vendors to tools such as the USPS Address Information System (AIS) Viewer and United States ZIP Codes. Use address-level verification where possible, and check whether your tax provider can resolve county boundaries reliably.
Review 2026 transactions and filing records
The retroactive application means you should not review only orders placed after October 1. Pull Pennsylvania transaction data for the relevant period beginning January 1, 2026, and identify taxable deliveries to Philadelphia and Allegheny County.
Compare what you should have collected with what your system actually charged. Keep a record of your method, the transactions reviewed, and any adjustments made. If you identify a shortfall or overcollection, confirm the correct reporting and correction process with the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Vendors remit the local tax to the Commonwealth through the Department of Revenue, not directly to the City of Philadelphia.
Pennsylvania’s sales and use tax information also explains that existing state and local use tax rules remain unchanged. If sales tax is not collected on a taxable purchase, the purchaser may still owe use tax when the item or service is used in Pennsylvania.
For UK businesses managing U.S. filings alongside UK records, consistent ecommerce bookkeeping can make this review more manageable. Whether you use Shopify, Amazon, or multiple channels, reconcile order, delivery, tax, and marketplace settlement data so your sales tax filings reflect what happened. Businesses searching for an ecommerce accountant UK or an Amazon seller accountant UK may also want to ensure their provider can organize U.S. sales tax records alongside UK compliance. Good Shopify accounting UK processes and accurate ecommerce bookkeeping UK records support a clearer audit trail, but do not replace U.S. registration, collection, and filing obligations.
Keep the compliance process moving
Act 21 does not change the underlying sales tax obligation for taxable sales. It changes how local tax is sourced in two Pennsylvania counties. If you are already registered for Pennsylvania sales tax, update your destination-based calculations, verify customer locations, and review 2026 transactions for possible corrections.
We support businesses with structured, ongoing accounting and compliance processes, including bookkeeping and tax filing coordination. If you need help organizing your cross-border records and compliance workflow, Talk to an expert.
Frequently asked questions
Does Pennsylvania’s change make more products taxable?
No. The Department of Revenue says the change does not alter which items or services are taxable. It changes where the local tax applies.
Do I charge Philadelphia tax if my warehouse is in Philadelphia but the customer is elsewhere?
The new rule uses the delivery destination. A Philadelphia warehouse location alone does not determine whether Philadelphia’s local tax applies to an order delivered outside the city.
by Ariful | Oct 25, 2026 | UK Updates
TITLE: Proposed ATO Powers Over Joint Bank Accounts: Treasury Consultation on Tax Debt Recovery
The Australian Government is consulting on proposed changes that could give the ATO new ways to recover tax debt from jointly held assets, including a joint bank account. The proposal is not law. But if adopted, it could affect taxpayers and other account holders when the ATO takes recovery action.
Understand what Treasury is proposing
Treasury released its consultation paper, Tackling fraud and financial abuse, on 14 October 2026. Submissions close on 27 November 2026.
The paper considers giving the Commissioner of Taxation power to issue a garnishee notice over a taxpayer’s presumed share of a jointly held asset. A garnishee notice is a formal direction requiring a third party, such as a bank, to pay money it holds for a taxpayer towards a tax debt.
At present, the ATO is generally unable to use garnishee notices to recover funds from jointly held assets, including joint bank accounts. Treasury says this can frustrate recovery action where joint arrangements are used to shield assets from collection.
Under one proposal, the Commissioner could presume that each individual asset holder has an equal interest. For example, if a joint asset has three holders, the taxpayer’s presumed share would be one-third of its value. That is a proposed starting assumption, not a final determination of the owners’ actual legal or beneficial interests.
As Bright Law’s David Jacobson explains in his analysis, the suggested extension would come with safeguards, but it could still have practical consequences for people who share an account or other asset with a taxpayer who owes money.
Know the safeguards, and the alternative option
The consultation paper proposes that the ATO make reasonable attempts to notify other joint owners before issuing a notice. Those owners would have an opportunity to object to the assumed equal split.
This safeguard matters. A joint account may hold money that another account holder contributed or needs for their own commitments. If the proposal proceeds, clear records of contributions and ownership could help an affected person explain why an equal division does not reflect their interest.
Treasury is also considering an alternative approach: the ATO could freeze a set amount in a joint account before notifying any account holder. Under this option, funds would be frozen rather than removed, and the ATO would not need to apply to a court first.
These are options for consultation. Treasury has not confirmed that either approach will be adopted, and the proposed powers are not currently in force. The details (including how an objection would work and how the amount to be frozen would be determined) remain subject to the consultation and any later legislative process.
See the wider fraud and financial abuse package
The joint-asset proposal is only one part of Treasury’s paper. Part 1 also seeks views on recovering tax debts in certain circumstances from tax intermediaries who commit fraud, and on pausing or waiving the debts of innocent taxpayers who are victims of tax intermediary fraud.
Part 2 addresses financial abuse across tax, superannuation, social security, family payment and child support systems. It considers ways to make perpetrators accountable for debts created through coercive control and options for relief for victim-survivors.
The broader reform work follows the Government’s response to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services inquiry into financial abuse. In its 14 October 2026 media release, Assistant Treasurer Daniel Mulino said the Government supported or supported in principle 58 of the committee’s 61 recommendations.
As MBM Accountants’ summary notes, the measures connect to the 2026–27 Federal Budget and funding for the counter-fraud strategy introduced in the 2024–25 Budget. Together, the proposals aim to strengthen responses to fraud while addressing situations where taxpayers have been harmed by another person’s conduct.
Take practical steps while the proposal is under review
You do not need to assume that an ATO garnishee notice can currently be issued against a joint account under the proposed framework. However, this consultation is a useful prompt to organise financial records and understand how a possible tax debt could affect shared assets.
Use this checklist:
- Keep clear ownership records. Retain statements and documents that show who contributed to a joint account or asset. This can help explain the actual interests of the owners if they are questioned.
- Separate business and personal transactions. Use consistent records and avoid mixing funds unnecessarily. Clearer accounts make it easier to trace funds and support accurate reporting.
- Review tax debts and lodgment obligations. Keep returns and payments up to date where possible. Prompt, accurate compliance helps reduce avoidable debt and recovery complications.
- Respond to formal ATO communications. Do not ignore a notice or assume it applies only to one account holder. Check what action is being proposed and the response steps and timeframes stated.
- Consider making a submission. If the proposal affects you, your business or people you support, provide feedback to Treasury before 27 November 2026.
The Australian Parliament’s House of Representatives is scheduled to sit from 26 to 29 October 2026, with Senate supplementary budget estimates taking place during the same week. The ATO and Tax Practitioners Board are scheduled to appear on 28 October. These proceedings may provide further context, but they do not replace Treasury’s consultation process.
For more Australian tax developments, read our earlier update on ATO interest relief for family trust tax liabilities.
FAQs
Can the ATO currently take money from a joint bank account for one holder’s tax debt?
The ATO is generally unable to use garnishee notices to recover tax debt from jointly held assets, including joint bank accounts. Treasury is consulting on whether to change this position. The proposed powers are not yet law.
Would the taxpayer automatically be treated as owning half of a joint account?
Not necessarily. One proposal would allow the Commissioner to presume an equal interest among individual asset holders. For three holders, the assumed share would be one-third. The proposal also includes an opportunity for other owners to object to that assumed split.
Could the ATO freeze funds before notifying joint account holders?
That is one alternative option under consideration. Treasury’s paper proposes that a set amount could be frozen, not removed, before account holders are notified and without first applying to a court. This is a proposal, not a current power under the consultation.
When does the Treasury consultation close?
Submissions on Tackling fraud and financial abuse close on 27 November 2026. You can read the paper and consultation details through Treasury’s consultation website.
by Ariful | Oct 25, 2026 | Business
Launching in a new market is only the first step. During the first year, you need to turn early sales into reliable financial information, meet local filing obligations and decide whether the market is ready for further investment.
This playbook gives you a practical framework for the first 12 months. It applies to UK Limited Companies, ecommerce brands, SaaS businesses, agencies and other SMEs selling internationally. Tax rules depend on your products, customers, fulfilment model and local activity, so treat the steps below as a control framework, not a substitute for checking requirements in each jurisdiction.
Days 1–30: Establish what “trading in the market” means
Start by documenting how the business operates in the new country. A website going live is not the only relevant event. Local inventory, a fulfilment location, employees, agents, contracts or customer transactions can change your tax and reporting obligations.
Create a one-page market map covering:
- Customers: their country, whether they are businesses or consumers, and the sales channel used.
- Products and services: what you supply, where the service is performed, and where goods are stored or dispatched.
- People and premises: employees, contractors, agents, offices and other local resources.
- Transaction responsibilities: who imports the goods, who is the seller of record, and whether a marketplace collects tax on particular sales.
- Money flows: sales currency, payment processor, bank account, refunds, fees, duties and intercompany payments.
This gives you a consistent record to revisit as operations change. It also helps prevent marketplace reports, bank deposits and your accounting records from being treated as if they were the same thing.
Set up a separate market or jurisdiction code in your bookkeeping system from the first transaction. Record sales, refunds, fees, fulfilment costs, tax collected, tax paid and currency conversion consistently. For UK companies, directors remain responsible for company records and filings even when they delegate accounting work. See the GOV.UK guidance on limited-company responsibilities.
Days 31–90: Turn compliance questions into assigned tasks
Build a local obligations register. For each country or relevant subnational jurisdiction, record:
| Control |
What to record |
| Registration |
Tax type, registration status, effective date and account reference |
| Filing |
Return frequency, filing deadline, payment deadline and responsible owner |
| Transaction evidence |
Required invoice, marketplace, customs and payment records |
| Scope |
Goods, services, B2B, B2C, local stock, staff and other relevant activity |
| Change trigger |
What operational change requires the position to be reviewed |
Do not assume that registering for one tax settles every other obligation. For example, obtaining an EIN in the United States does not by itself determine whether sales-tax registration is required in a particular state. The IRS EIN guidance explains when an EIN is needed and how international applicants can apply. State-level and local requirements still need to be checked separately.
Similarly, Canadian GST/HST obligations depend on the business’s activities and circumstances. The CRA’s non-resident registration guidance outlines factors relevant to non-resident businesses. For Australia, check the ATO’s guidance on GST and cross-border business transactions.
For EU sales, distinguish VAT registrations and filings in individual countries from schemes that can simplify certain cross-border reporting. The European Commission’s One Stop Shop information explains the OSS framework. It does not mean every local VAT obligation disappears, particularly where goods are held locally or the business makes other domestic supplies.
Make one person responsible for keeping the register current. Assign the task internally or include it in your ongoing compliance process. This reduces the risk of missing a filing because everyone assumed somebody else was handling it.
Months 3–6: Measure whether the market is working
Once you have several months of transactions, assess performance using market-specific data, not a blended company total. The purpose is to understand what the new market contributes after the costs and compliance work directly connected with serving it.
Use a simple contribution view:
Net sales − refunds and discounts − cost of goods or delivery − fulfilment and duties − payment fees − market-specific support and operating costs = market contribution
Track the figures that reveal whether the launch is gaining traction:
- Revenue and order volume by channel and customer type.
- Gross margin after returns, fulfilment and landed costs.
- Repeat purchases, subscription retention or customer churn, as relevant.
- Unpaid customer invoices and payment-provider settlement differences.
- Tax collected compared with amounts recorded as payable or remitted.
- Unreconciled transactions, missing evidence and filing exceptions.
This is not a substitute for company-level reporting. It is a way to understand the economics and control burden of the new market specifically.
Illustrative example, not a real client: A UK online retailer sees strong sales growth in a new country. Its marketplace dashboard looks positive, but the accounting records show that refunds, shipping charges and duty costs are recorded in different places. After mapping the data by transaction and market, the owner can see the contribution more clearly and identify which records are needed before the next filing. The lesson is not that growth is unprofitable; it is that incomplete data can hide both costs and compliance obligations.
If you sell through Shopify or Amazon, reconcile platform reports to bank receipts and bookkeeping records. A specialist ecommerce accountant in the UK may help structure ecommerce bookkeeping and Shopify accounting so that sales, fees, refunds and tax records can be followed through to filings. Amazon FBA accounting also needs to account for fulfilment, storage and marketplace settlement data rather than relying on bank deposits alone.
Months 7–9: Recheck your original assumptions
Expansion plans often change after launch. You may add a new fulfilment centre, hire local staff, start selling to business customers or enter an additional country. Each change can affect registration, reporting or accounting requirements.
Schedule a formal review of:
- Where you sell: Have you added countries, states, provinces or EU member states?
- Where stock sits:
by Ariful | Oct 25, 2026 | USA Accounting
TITLE: CBP’s Temporary Entry Type 13 Change: What Sellers Need to Know
What changed on 22 October 2026?
In a notice published on 22 October 2026, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) modified its test of the electronic informal mail entry process in the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). CBP will temporarily accept an Entry Type 13 transmission even when it does not contain complete electronic PGA data. Filers may still transmit PGA data electronically where they can.
The change is intended to let participants begin using Entry Type 13 while they build the capability to submit complete PGA data. CBP says it will announce the end of this temporary acceptance in a future Federal Register notice.
This is a limited filing accommodation, not a waiver of product regulations, PGA requirements or other Entry Type 13 rules. Read the CBP notice in the Federal Register and confirm how it applies to your shipments with your customs broker.
Which shipments may use Entry Type 13?
Entry Type 13 is the electronic informal entry route for qualifying international mail shipments valued at $2,500 or less and sent through the international postal network. The process includes shipments that were previously eligible for de minimis treatment. It also provides a route for certain low-value mail shipments that have PGA data requirements or duties beyond those covered by HTSUS Chapters 1–97.
It is not a general solution for every US-bound parcel. Eligibility depends on the shipment, its value, how it is transported and the applicable entry requirements. A shipment sent by courier, for example, is not an international postal-network shipment. Ask your broker to confirm the correct entry process before relying on Entry Type 13.
The importer of record (IOR) (the owner, purchaser or a properly appointed licensed broker) must file the required Entry Type 13 data electronically in ACE.
What does temporary PGA-data acceptance mean for sellers?
Some goods are subject to requirements administered by PGAs, such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The October notice addresses a practical barrier for filers whose systems are not yet ready to submit complete electronic PGA data with an Entry Type 13 transmission.
For qualifying shipments, CBP will temporarily accept the transmission without complete electronic PGA data. That can help a business begin using the new entry route while it works on its filing capability. But it does not mean that regulated goods can be shipped without meeting applicable safety, documentation or admissibility requirements. Nor does it remove other Entry Type 13 data requirements.
Treat this as a temporary transition, not a permanent exemption. Continue working toward complete PGA data submission. CBP will publish a future notice when the temporary acceptance ends.
Use this checklist before your next postal shipment
- Ask your customs broker about ACE Entry Type 13. Confirm that your shipment qualifies and that the correct IOR will submit the entry. This reduces the risk of using the wrong filing route.
- Review your products for PGA requirements. Check which SKUs may be regulated by agencies such as FDA or CPSC. Accurate product and classification records help your broker identify relevant requirements.
- Keep improving your data and systems. Map the information needed for complete PGA submissions and agree a plan with your broker to transmit it electronically. This prepares you for the end of the temporary acceptance.
- Check special duty claims carefully. Shipments subject to Chapter 98 or Chapter 99 duties, or claiming Chapter 98 duty-free treatment or a Free Trade Agreement benefit, must include additional mandated data. The temporary PGA-data change does not remove those requirements.
- Keep evidence linked to each shipment. Maintain product descriptions, classifications, values, origin details and filing records. Consistent records make it easier to resolve entry questions and keep your accounting data aligned with customs activity.
Keep customs activity connected to your financial records
US importers of record and overseas sellers need a clear picture of the costs and obligations attached to each order. Keep entry records, duties and product data connected to your sales and inventory records. This supports more reliable reporting and helps you spot discrepancies before they become a recurring problem.
Sterlinx Global operates as a Global Tax Compliance Suite for ecommerce brands, digital businesses and growing SMEs, including UK Limited Companies, USA LLCs and cross-border sellers. We deliver bookkeeping, tax calculations, filings and year-end compliance. We are not a customs broker, so coordinate Entry Type 13 submissions and customs requirements with your broker.
For sellers managing marketplace and direct-to-consumer transactions, an ecommerce accountant in the UK can help keep the accounting workflow organised alongside customs records. Whether you need an Amazon seller accountant in the UK, Shopify accounting in the UK or structured ecommerce bookkeeping in the UK, accurate records help your finance and compliance processes work together.
Frequently asked questions
Does the change mean I can ignore PGA requirements?
No. CBP is temporarily accepting Entry Type 13 transmissions without complete electronic PGA data. This does not waive applicable product rules or other filing requirements. Continue working toward complete PGA data submission.
Is the temporary acceptance permanent?
No. CBP will announce its conclusion in a future Federal Register notice. Monitor CBP updates and work with your broker so your systems are ready to submit complete required data.
Do Chapter 98, Chapter 99 or Free Trade Agreement claims still need additional data?
Yes. The notice says shipments subject to Chapter 98 or Chapter 99 duties, or claiming Chapter 98 duty-free treatment or a Free Trade Agreement benefit, must transmit additional mandated data. The temporary PGA-data acceptance does not remove that requirement.
Who submits the Entry Type 13 filing?
The importer of record must file the required data electronically in ACE. This may be the owner, purchaser or a properly appointed licensed broker. Confirm responsibility with your broker before shipping.
Talk to an expert.
