Payments and reports
Tax profiles and order tax
How factual product profiles, checkout addresses, liability, direct-charge withholding, and seller reports fit together.
Answer facts, not “taxable or exempt”
Each product needs factual answers about what the food is, how it is packaged or served, its temperature at sale, and any conditional details. VibeKitchen maps those facts to tax treatment. There is no seller switch that simply turns tax on or off.
A listing inherits its product’s tax profile. Use a listing override only when that specific listing is packaged or served differently. If you are not sure, choose the not-sure answer and add a note; the item stays unavailable for checkout until the facts can be resolved.
Who holds customer tax
VibeKitchen collects and remits customer tax for Maryland orders. Outside Maryland, you remain responsible for your tax obligations. If your state requires you to collect tax on prepared food, add your registration under Settings > Payment Account > Sales tax registration and VibeKitchen adds tax at checkout on your account. On mobile, open Profile > Payments > Manage payment account to reach Sales tax registration.
Checkout recalculates tax from the current cart, fulfillment choice, verified origin and destination, active rules, and product profiles. Payment stays a direct charge on your connected Stripe account.
When VibeKitchen is responsible as a marketplace facilitator, that customer tax is withheld through the direct-charge application fee so VibeKitchen can report and remit it. Otherwise, the receipt shows the tax result for that order and jurisdiction. In states without a general sales tax, the receipt explains the zero-tax result.
Some jurisdictions can also tax VibeKitchen’s service to you. That seller-service tax is separate from customer tax and can be withheld with the VibeKitchen fee.
Review and reconcile
The buyer receipt separates item subtotal, delivery, buyer-visible service fee, customer tax, and total. Seller order cards and order details on web and mobile show that buyer total separately from seller earnings. A buyer-paid fee is a positive buyer charge; an absorbed fee is a negative seller deduction.
Customer tax stays visible with its owner, including explicit $0.00 results. Payouts & Reports separately identifies marketplace-held tax, seller-held tax, tax on VibeKitchen’s fee, Stripe processing, refunds, disputes, and net earnings.
Keep your product facts and seller address current. VibeKitchen’s mapping and reports are operational records, not legal or tax advice.