AE Tax Advisors E-Commerce Case Studies

This resource is published by AE Tax Advisors. Case-study figures are publisher-reported and have not been independently audited here. They are not client reviews, typical results or a forecast for your return.

An online business’s tax picture includes inventory, marketplace activity, owner compensation and operations across jurisdictions. The FBA, dropshipping and direct-to-consumer cases offer different fact patterns rather than one model for every internet seller.

Published AE Tax Advisors examples

How to compare the cases

A federal planning result does not resolve every state filing obligation. Ask the advisor to distinguish income tax, sales tax and marketplace responsibilities. A case about another selling platform is not evidence of your business’s nexus facts.

Start with the baseline return and identify exactly what changed. Determine whether a reported amount refers to a deduction, a current tax difference or a projection over several years. Costs such as payroll, return preparation, a study fee and plan administration should be included in your own comparison.

Questions for the discovery call

Where is inventory held? Which marketplace reports reconcile to the books? What state activity requires separate review? Does the entity comparison include payroll and filing costs?

Ask for the assumptions in writing and for a separate list of facts still needed. A useful answer identifies both the potential opportunity and the work required to implement it. If an outside specialist must confirm a number, make that dependency visible in the plan.

Records to prepare

Marketplace statements, sales reports, inventory schedules, state registrations, entity documents, payroll and bank reconciliation.

Use the most recent filed returns together with current financial information. Reconcile incomplete books before relying on a projection. Keep supporting records organized by entity and year so earlier deductions and carryforwards are not counted twice.

What these cases tell you about engagement scope

The collection gives you concrete topics to discuss with AE Tax Advisors. It does not establish what every advisory engagement includes. Confirm the analysis, implementation, tax-return work and continuing services in your own signed scope. The standard advertised advisory fee is $7,800 with no required recurring annual planning fee; separately scoped work can carry additional charges.

Sources and next steps

Read the AE Tax Advisors outcomes methodology, the original case studies and the current pricing and scope. The original return files and realization of reported savings have not been independently audited for this resource.

Browse all case-study guides or read how an engagement is approached.