Sales Tax on Patreon for Patrons – Patreon Help Center

Patreon adds sales tax, VAT, or other similar taxes to Patron payments in parts of the US and several other countries as required by law. Review which countries sales taxes apply to, here: List of locations where Patreon is collecting sales tax

Patreon handles charging and paying VAT for patrons in many jurisdictions. Over the past couple of years, many countries and many states in the United States have passed similar laws that require “online marketplaces” as well as video and audio streaming platforms to apply sales tax to transactions. Although aimed at the Amazons, Ebays, Netflixes, and Etsy of the world, the way these laws were written and the way they’re being interpreted means that in many situations they apply to Patreon.

The article and FAQs below will cover all the details about how sales tax applies to Patreon and what you need to know.

Who will pay Sales Tax/VAT?
About Sales Tax
Details on Sales Tax
Where is Patreon collecting tax, and what are the tax rates?

Who will pay sales tax?

Whether or not you will pay sales tax/VAT as a patron depends on where you are located, and what benefits the creators you support are providing. The laws and tax rates in effect in your country of residence will be applied whenever you pledge to a creator through Patreon, whether that’s monthly, annual, or per thing, if the benefits offered are taxable in your location.

If Patreon is charging sales tax in your location, an additional line item will be listed on your receipt. Since tax laws and rates vary from country to country and state to state, the amount will be different for different patrons. The tax that Patreon collects as a result of these laws will be paid directly to your local government, and there are no Patreon fees on this portion of your payment.

About sales tax

Should sales tax apply to Patreon? Is supporting a creator on Patreon the same as making a purchase?

Different jurisdictions will consider different things taxable. If you receive a benefit in return for your pledge, it is likely that it will be subject to tax. For example, many places have passed laws that make streaming content taxable so in those places and platforms, streaming video and audio would be subject to tax.

If you are not receiving any benefits, the payment may not be taxable. For example, if you pledged an amount in excess of your set tier price, or you have given a pledge that falls outside of a set tier, your pledge could be deemed to not have any benefits associated with it.

One notable exception is the EU, where we are currently required to apply tax (VAT) on all payments regardless of whether the patron is receiving any benefits. We are working with EU tax authorities to secure reductions and exemptions for support-based payments in the future.

It is also useful to remember that different jurisdictions approach digital content differently and what one country deems a benefit may not be consistent with the views of another country.

I thought sales tax was only applicable on tangible goods?

The laws about what is taxable vary by location, but in many places, digital goods and content are now taxable, both downloadable and sometimes streaming.

Can creators absorb the cost of sales tax so that it’s not an additional charge for the patron?

Some creators would prefer this and we wish we could provide this option, but in most jurisdictions, we are not legally allowed to include sales tax in the pricing. It must be broken out as a separate line item and added on top of the base price.

Details on Sales Tax: How it works in different regions and how that applies to Patreon

Which benefits on Patreon will be considered taxable?

Outside of the United States, it is common for all electronically supplied services and physical goods to be subject to tax. Within the United States, what’s taxable varies greatly by location. As a rough guide, we’ve broadly sorted benefits into 5 categories that are each taxed differently.

Typical Benefit Type	Examples	U.S. Status
Donations/Support	Support only. Languages such as "pledges whatever"	Currently exempt from Sales Tax in the majority of states
Recognition	Shout-outs, names in credits	Exempt in the vast majority of states
Exclusive Community Access	Patron-only posts, Discord, server access, polls	Exempt in the majority of states
Streaming Content	Extra podcast episode per month, videos, bonus content	Taxable in roughly half the states
Downloadable Digital Goods	PDFs, computer game builds, downloaded color pages	Taxable in roughly half the states
Physical Goods	Candles, T-shirts, mugs, mailed coloring pages	Taxable in all states in which Patreon is collecting, unless the item is a one-time thank you gift

Where is Patreon collecting tax, and what are the tax rates?

Patreon collects, files, and remits sales tax (also known as VAT in many countries). We continue to monitor rules that govern the sale of online content and creation to ensure sales and pledges made through Patreon comply with local tax laws. We will continue to add new jurisdictions to this list.

An overview of the standard sales tax rates per jurisdiction can be found below:

Country	What sales tax is called	Tax Rate
Australia**	GST	10%
Belarus*	VAT	20%
Iceland	VAT	24%
New Zealand	GST	15%
Norway	VAT	25%
Canada (Quebec only)*	QST	9.98%
Canada (as of July 15, 2021)	GST	5%
Chile	VAT	19%
Columbia (as of January 2, 2021)	VAT	19%
India	GST	18%
Malaysia (as of June 1, 2022)	SST	6%
Russia	VAT	20%
Saudia Arabia (pending)	VAT	15%
Singapore	GST	7%
South Africa (pending)	VAT	15%
South Korea	VAT	10%
Taiwan	VAT	5%
Thailand (as of July 15, 2021)	VAT	7%
Turkey	VAT	18%
UAE (pending)	VAT	5%
United States (36 states plus D.C.)	Sales Tax	ranges from 4% - 11%

* To comply with local laws, there are some countries or regions where we do not charge VAT/GST to patrons who are supporting a creator located in the same country as them. However, if those patrons support creators in other countries, they may still be charged VAT/GST on those pledges if the benefits they receive are taxable in their country. Affected regions: Belarus, Quebec, Australia. For more details about this, please refer to this section: Sales Tax FAQs for Australian creators and patrons

** Please note that Canadian provinces may add local tax in addition to the federal rate

Europe VAT - Country breakdown

Country	Value-Added Tax Rate
Austria	20%
Belgium	21%
Bulgaria	20%
Croatia	25%
Cyprus	19%
Czech Republic	21%
Denmark	25%
Estonia	20%
Finland	24%
France	20%
Germany	19%
Greece	24%
Hungary	27%
Ireland	23%
Italy	22%
Latvia	21%
Lithuania	21%
Luxembourg	17%
Malta	18%
Netherlands	21%
Poland	23%
Portugal	23%
Romania	19%
Slovakia	20%
Slovenia	22%
Spain	21%
Sweden	25%
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland	20%

*Note: The VAT rate percentages listed above are based on information provided by the European Commission.

United States - State Breakdown

States where Patreon collects sales tax		States where Patreon does not collect sales tax
Alabama	Nevada	Alaska
Arizona	New Jersey	Delaware
Arkansas	New Mexico	Missouri
California	New York	Montana
Colorado	North Carolina	New Hampshire
Connecticut	North Dakota	Oregon
District of Columbia	Ohio
Florida (as of July 15, 2021)	Oklahoma
Georgia	Pennsylvania
Hawaii	Rhode Island
Idaho	South Carolina
Illinois	South Dakota
Indiana	Tennessee
Iowa	Texas
Kansas (as of July 15, 2021)	Utah
Kentucky	Vermont
Louisiana	Virginia
Maine	Washington
Maryland	West Virginia
Massachusetts	Wisconsin
Michigan	Wyoming
Minnesota
Mississippi
Nebraska

Canada - province/territory breakdown

Province/Territory	GST	HST	PST/RST	QST	Combined Rate
Alberta	5%				5%
British Columbia	5%		7%		12%
Manitoba	5%		7%		12%
New Brunswick		15%			15%
Newfoundland and Labrador		15%			15%
Nova Scotia		15%			15%
Ontario		13%			13%
Prince Edward Island		15%			15%
Quebec	5%			9.975%	14.975%
Saskatchewan	5%		6%		11%
Northwest Territories	5%				5%
Nunavut	5%				5%
Yukon	5%				5%

What is the rate being charged?

Whether you will be taxed, and at what rate, depends on both your location and the types of benefits the creator provides you.

Within the United States, sales tax rates currently range from 4% to 11%. To make things more complex, some locations tax certain things while others don’t (e.g. - “physical goods” vs. “digital downloads” vs. “digital streaming”). Outside of the United States, rates range from 5% to 25% in the countries where Patreon will charge and pay sales tax.

It is important to understand that tax rates and rules change frequently. Patreon ensures that patrons are taxed at the current rate for the patron location and the benefits being provided.

Will more states/countries start requiring Patreon to charge sales tax in the future?

Very likely. We expect more states and countries will attempt to pass similar laws or regulatory changes in the future. We are constantly monitoring our tax obligations and will keep this page up to date and with as much advance warning as possible.

How will the US Sales tax work for a creator that charges ‘per thing’?

Sales tax applies to each transaction. If you have a per thing membership and are in a location that requires sales tax, sales tax will be applied to each monthly transaction if the 'thing' the creator is offering is taxable in their location and the creator posted a "thing" during that month.

Sales Tax

Contents