Update: The Humble Store confirmed that it will begin charging 10 percent GST on purchases made from Australia as well, although it did not indicate when that policy will take effect.
Original story:
It's been a very real possibility for years now, but it's finally happening: Australians will be required to pay 10 percent GST on every Steam purchase from July this year. The report comes via Kotaku, following an email reportedly sent to developers by Valve.
"The VAT tax amount will be included in the advertised price of your product, just like VAT is currently treated in the EU," part of the email seen by Kotaku reads. "This means the customer will pay the price displayed on the storefront, and the tax will be separated out afterwards."
It's hard to know whether this will effect a 10 percent increase across the board: some publishers and studios might choose to absorb the tax themselves – as unlikely as that seems. Whatever the case, despite promises in 2014 that it was imminent, Australia still doesn't have its own currency on Steam. If that isn't cleared up come July, the handwringing will be real.
A handful of other countries, including New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Iceland, South Africa and India, will also pay taxes specific to those regions come March. We've reached out to GOG and the Humble Store to see whether those storefronts will introduce the tax this year.
