VAT on purchase

[Simplex]

I live in Poland, we have 23% VAT tax. When I want to buy Gemini Rue (pay in dollars) this VAT is added to my purchase - why?

When I buy games in Telltalle game store in dollars I do not have to pay any VAT.

When I buy games on GoG.com store in dollars I do not have to pay any VAT.

Why am I supposed to pay 23% more for the game - I don't get it. I may just as well ask one of my US friends to buy the game and give me a download link - he will not have to pay any VAT...

[CheekyBoinc]

Same here in Germany :/

Paid $17,84 USD (12,98 €)

[Simplex]

Good news - I selected "USA" from the country list, VAT disappeared, I paid with my credit card, transaction was accepted.

[CheekyBoinc]

Too late for me...but...i love the game  ..so nevermind ^^

[Simplex]

Not to mention that your VAT is a bit lower than ours I hope I will love the game too

[CheekyBoinc]

Not to mention that your VAT is a bit lower than ours

But btw, i never paid VAT in Years :/ ..and i bought many games with many different clients and on different websites First time i realised a paid VAT

If you like it, take a look at the Soundtrack

[DaveGilbert]

You know, all this time I left the "include vat" box unchecked on the store, assuming it meant that it would leave off the VAT price.  Instead, it turns out it means that the vat would be included WITHIN the price if it was checked. 

So basically I've been charging VAT all this time and you are the first person who has ever mentioned it!  So, thanks for bringing it to my attention!  I've gone in and fixed it. 

How much was your VAT charge?  Email me privately and I'll refund you.

-Dave

[CheekyBoinc]

Original price: 10.90 €
Paid: 12,98 €

I dont need a refund. The game is worth it. Its like a further donation. Keep the money.

[alphatt]

Thanks for this, I posted about this on the ags forums yesterday. Thanks for fixing this, I'll be buying the game soon, now that it's fixed. One thing to note is that it's stilla  bit misleading because it still indicates that there's VAT on the page where you enter your billing adress and only corrects the number at checkout wich might put some people off. I suggest contacting plimus about that. Anyways, thanks a bunch !

[DaveGilbert]

Once the sales settle down a bit I am dropping Plimus like a hot potato.  For awhile it seemed like switching to another service was way too much hassle, but the issues just keep piling up and I believe it's time. 

[alphatt]

In my experience steam is a very good choice, it's a great tool for advertising your games and a very convinient conduit for delivering your games, for me steam is the hub for all my games and I'm not alone(6.1 million uniqe users everyday). I saw that you guys already released puzzle bots there, so I imagine you known how it works.

[Majestic12]

In my experience steam is a very good choice, it's a great tool for advertising your games and a very convinient conduit for delivering your games, for me steam is the hub for all my games and I'm not alone(6.1 million uniqe users everyday). I saw that you guys already released puzzle bots there, so I imagine you known how it works.

God please don't recommend Steam to people - at least not as the only option. Not only do they take a big chunk of the profits, having to load the client each time you want to play a game gets tiring for small indie games like these which are the kind I want to play on the move on my laptop. Would be much better to recommend Impulse or Gamersgate - none of the annoyances and all of the benefits (except a lower user base).

[Simplex]

I just tried to simulate buying - the vat is still there.

You know that this vat is supposed to go to Polish IRS, right?

[Nathan Allen Pinar]

Steam can load games that are non-online by running it in Offline mode...if anyone knew that.

Dave, I'm assuming you already have a merchant account. One of my customers recommended "Neucart" as a shopping service. Then you can just use your PayPal and merchant account with it.

I have further info as well.

[DaveGilbert]

I used to have a cart hosted on the website (cubecart), but the traffic got way too much for my servers to handle.  Blackwell alone caused my server to crash.  Gemini Rue would have beaten it down to a pulp.   So using a 3rd party is the only solution. Once the sales settle down I'm switching over the bmtMicro, which every indie I know recommends highly.