Why are taxes paid by the buyer added into my final value fee as a seller?

[brovahkiin]

It doesn't make sense that my fees should increase simply because of the tax paid by the buyer. Some states do not require taxes to be paid, and some do. When the buyer pays taxes to eBay, eBay will then forward those funds to the appropriate state. They do not get to keep the money. So if eBay is not allowed to keep the taxes, why are they profiting from them? It is wrong to charge sellers an increased fee based solely on what the buyer paid in total for the item, including taxes and shipping charges.

To be clear, here is an example: I sell an item for $100.00. The buyer pays another 10% in taxes for the item, meaning they paid $110.00 for the item in total. As a seller, I should be charged 10% of the final price of the ITEM, meaning I would be charged $10.00. However, I am charged $11.00, meaning that eBay is adding the amount of the tax onto my seller fee. It is a difference of only $1.00, but it adds up quickly over the course of many sales. Why are my profits being chiseled away based on what one state charges for their taxes?

Does anyone else feel that this practice is wrong?

[dnasilver]

eBay could charge a flat fee for handling the sales tax. Charging a percent does not allow a seller to know cost until after sale. eBay does not care about you or I, only about making a few lots of money. 

[mudville-9]

Oh, I beg to differ with you. Check there final value fees statement. And they added .30 for listing my item. That used to be called an insertion fee for certain situations. Now they call it per item listed. So do the math on that one and you'll see it adds up pretty quickly. So adding taxes to the final value fee and the .30 on all your individual item's you list is just wrong. When I checked their tax policy in one page it says they don't add that to the FVF, then I went to another page, and they said they do. Totally contradicting them selves. I've been a customer with ebay for 20 years now. I've watched them go down hill for the last 10. It's getting so bad that one becomes frustrated as a seller. I'm seriously thinking about pulling the plug on these guys. Here's food for thought. What if you sell an item, in which I have, in the past, and it goes to Russia. Is ebay going to collect the tax, and convert it to Ruple's?  There new format is just too hard to read. They need to learn the KISS rule. They have turned into money gougers. Another thing they do. They offer up a shipping option that they don't have an agreement with USPS. Then they change your shipping option, which they did on me to, Flat rate envelope. Well that's fine, but you can't ship a fishing reel in that and the rate was way cheaper for that particular type of shipping then what I had listed. I told them about this option before, about 6 months ago, and they said  don't worry we will report this to the higher ups. And guess what? They didn't change it. I had forgot about that option and listed it. Last time they did that to me, changed it to flat rate envelope had hit print, not realizing what they had done. Then I had to go thru hopes and ladders to get the difference back from their mistake. They said the refund can take up to 2 weeks. But they sure took my money out of my account right away. Now with this new payment program, no Paypal account anymore, they don't pay you right away, up to 1 to 3 business days, and in  the mean time the customer is waiting for you to ship, but you haven't got paid yet so you don't ship. Crazy **bleep** this company is pulling. Sorry about the rant, but I'm really frustrated.

[mudville-9]

Ma Bell was broke up because it was found to be a monopoly, just for your info. Which by the way is illegal and has been since President Teddy Roosevelt broke up Standard Oil for being a monopoly. Not because of it's policy's. So you know. Just check out your history.

[mudville-9]

You sure are. They are adding the taxes to your final value fees.

[iamtaz]

Ebay as any business that collects sales tax is compensated for collecting the tax when the remit the sales tax.  A recent sale to Arizona cost me $1.10  in final value fees on money that is not included in my revenu stream and the sales tax is not part of my revenue for my personal taxes. Ebay is entitled to compensation from Arizona for collecting taxes>

Accounting Credit

Electronic filing and paying saves money. 

• Electronic TPT filers are able to claim an accounting credit of 1.2 percent of the tax due, up to a maximum credit of $12,000, during a calendar year.
• Paper TPT filers are able to claim an accounting credit of 1 percent and a total calendar year credit of $10,000.

Taxpayers who do not file all their TPT returns electronically for the calendar year do not qualify for the increased accounting credit.

I do not expect Ebay to collect taxes for nothing and the state of Arizona agrees.

[downunder-61]

And they added .30 for listing my item

No they didn't, that is a transaction fee

[varebelrose]

"They are adding the taxes to your final value fees."

No, they are not. They are including the sales tax amount into the gross amount of the transaction, then the final value fees are based as a percentage of that gross amount.

[donsdetour]

https://pages.ebay.com/seller-center/get-started/seller-fees.html 

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/fees-credits-invoices/selling-fees?id=4822#section1 

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/fees-credits-invoices/selling-fees?id=4822#section2 

And more for the folks to read;

To the topic is is shocking that until Manege Payments came along, folks had no clue as to what selling on eBay and using PP cost...Throw in the new tax laws that forces eBay to collect for you:

(think about all that time and money you would have to spend on learning each state and county laws on such taxes, as well as all them international ones, have to keep books on such and then pay each one their due....)  and folks are finding out them low cost sales,  are losing money.

Its about time some figure it out...

Griping about eBay small fees for handling this (fees on taxes and the transaction fee of the .30 on top of it all....

Rotflol.

You could be paying a tax expert a great deal more per year to try and keep you out of trouble with the mess, and you would have to.....

Seems most never realized PP charge you for the total fees as well...

Shocking I say........

[werepupy]

Then the states should pay eBay for acting as their agent. I don't benefit from any state tax charged. In fact, my state doesn't charge ANY sales taxes - period. Yet I have to be penalized because eBay collects taxes due from states where these items weren't even purchased?