HOW MUCH CAN YOU SELL ON EBAY BEFORE IT IS CLAIMED ON TAXES
I DID NOT SELL MUCH THIS YEAR DUE TO MY HUSBAND HAVING A STROKE. I DIDN'T KNOW IF I HAD TO CLAIM SALES THIS YEAR.
41 comments
I DID NOT SELL MUCH THIS YEAR DUE TO MY HUSBAND HAVING A STROKE. I DIDN'T KNOW IF I HAD TO CLAIM SALES THIS YEAR.
coastaltechsolution
·8 months ago$1.00 report 1099 or not
1richdoug
·8 months agoall depends on age/ or total income levels; "For the 2025 tax year (filed in 2026), your minimum income to file depends on your age and filing status, but generally, a single person under 65 needs to file if they made $15,750 or more, while married couples filing jointly need $31,500 (both under 65), with higher thresholds if you or your spouse are 65 or older; married individuals filing separately always file if they made over $5. These figures align with the standard deduction amounts for 2025. " Now, we don t have to declare social security thx to our Pres 47.
tobaccocardyahoo
·8 months ago@1richdoug
I hate to say it but literally, that is not true.
Using the reconciliation process, it was impossible to pass a repeal of the tax on Social Security benefits.
There is a more generous Senior Citizen special deduction until 2028. That is one reason why the $31,500 number you quoted applies only to married couples under 65.
The form 1040 still has the calculation of tax on Social Security.
I spent some time reading the forms and instruction last night to get a head start on my taxes.
babyers88
·8 months agothe bottom line here is even if you do not receive a 1099 from ebay, you do receive monthly reports, use those for tax purposes in place of a 1099 form.
reallynicestamps
·8 months agoThe 1099K is actually helpful since it lets the seller know from what basis they are working.
If they have a 1099k that says they sold $10,000 then they don't have to add up a year's worth of invoices
before working on adding up expenses.
One step done for them.
reallynicestamps
·8 months agoMany people do not understand how graduated income tax works.
On your first $11,000 you pay NO tax
On your earnings from $11,000 to $47,000 you pay 12% tax
but nothing on the first $11K
On your earnings from $47,000 to $100,00 you pay 24% tax
but nothing on the first $11K
And still only 12% on the tranche from $11K to $47K.
There are more tranches, but if it's worrying you, I suspect your total income is less than $100K
And your expenses for selling online (postage, packaging, fees, etc) are deductible.
Not to mention other expenses -- I think Americans can deduct mortgage interest and medical expenses?
So if you earned $50,000 from all sources this year, you deduct all your expenses first.
Now you're down to let's pretend $35K?
You are paying only on $24K -- because that first $11K is not taxed.
You pay only 12% on the $24K --about $2880.
On a paper income of $50,000.
I rounded number because I am dysnumeric, but here is the actual rate card.
https://www.irs.gov/filing/federal-income-tax-rates-and-brackets
rldkmas
OP8 months agoThank you everyone. We are in our seventies and been married for over 50 years and have always filed our taxes. I was under the impression that we did not have to file ebay sales if it was under $700 worth of sales (or something like that) for the year. Just like when people win on gambling they don't have to claim it unless it is over a certain amount. When my husband had his stroke in 2024 I stopped listing on ebay until the last few months of 2025.
lloydsteventaylor
·8 months agoHi I am sorry about your husbands stroke. I know you must be having a lot of stress to deal with. I don't know if you do your own tax return but I suggest you hire an accountant to do that for you. And give your accountant all your records for the year. Like others have said to avoid problems you should report all sales even a dollar and then report all expenses relating to your sales. But get that accountant to help you. It will save you more heartache.
stainlessenginecovers
·8 months ago@rldkmas
That is UNTRUE.
When winning over $1200 a casino will give you a 1099. That also goes to the IRS and should be reported on your tax return. You can then 'write off' that entire $1200 if you have that much in losses gambling throughout the year- and the 'net taxable' would be $0.
But, 2 things
1.) it MUST be reported
2.) You should have 'receipts' for the 'losses' should you get audited.
jonathanbrightlight
·8 months agoYeah, if it’s reported to the IRS by whoever paid it to you, and you don’t report receiving it, that’s going to cause issues for you.
tobaccocardyahoo
·8 months agoIf you make a profit, you have to report it to the IRS.
If you sell your personal property at a loss, you do not have to report the loss or the transactions unless Ebay files a 1099-K.
Even if Ebay files a 1099-K form, you can simply report that amount on a single line on Schedule 1 if it is personal property sold at a loss.
Tax evasion is illegal, but that is no reason to pay tax when no tax is due.
nodders-inc
·8 months agoIt's not what you sell on eBay it's what you sell on everything. I believe it's $2,500 for the year 2025 and it's going down to $600 for 2026, unless Congress changes it. Sometimes the IRS will change that right before taxes are due and say, you know what we're not going to go by that figure we're going to go by a higher amount. But for 2025, it's supposed to be $2,500. That includes eBay PayPal venmo cash apps etc you go over $2,500 on all of that stuff, and you have to explain it or claim it.
monroe67
·8 months ago"It's not what you sell on eBay it's what you sell on everything. I believe it's $2,500 for the year 2025 and it's going down to $600 for 2026, unless Congress changes it. Sometimes the IRS will change that right before taxes are due and say, you know what we're not going to go by that figure we're going to go by a higher amount. But for 2025, it's supposed to be $2,500. That includes eBay PayPal venmo cash apps etc you go over $2,500 on all of that stuff, and you have to explain it or claim it."
VERRRRRRY Mistaken !! Your "belief" is not correct !!
For tax/calendar year 2025, eBay is "required to send [sellers] a Form 1099-K only if the amount of [their] business transactions during the year is more than $20,000 and the total number of [their] transactions is more than 200."
That's a quote from the IRS' Instructions for Form 1040 tax returns. It's on page 7, third column, next to last paragraph --
if anybody wants to search for and download those instructions for him/herself.
kensgiftshop
·8 months agoIt also depends on the State.
Some States have a lower limit then the federal level.
albertabrightalberta
·8 months ago@nodders-inc
That's not correct. You are referring to the amounts that generate a 1099K form. And that can vary from state to state.
But @rldkmas's question asked how much one can sell before it's claimed on taxes. And the answer to that is EVERYTHING. If an item is sold, the seller has to claim it on their taxes as income.
Then they can deduct their costs and expenses and if they net a profit, that profit is taxable.
The fact it many taxpayers don't have enough profit to generate a tax liability.
But the straight answer to the OP's question is that all income must be reported.
jdbelt1960
·8 months agoEveryone gets so frightened this time of year. I had got audited before and no they do not come knocking on your door. You get a letter explaining the discrepancy with the opportunity to dispute or pay. Just file what you got. See if EBAY sends you a 1099K.
nodders-inc
·8 months agoThat's not an audit, an audit is when they go through every aspect of your taxes. You just got a letter of discrepancy. I've gotten those also. They are not an audit
jdbelt1960
·8 months agoIt was actually an audit. They went through my few hundred dollars in investment income and every penny I earned. The larger amount I erred on trigger it.
christworks
·8 months ago@rldkmas But, they are correct. With very few exceptions, all income must be reported. That includes all income generated through selling things online, even personal items. It is irrelevant whether or not a 1099 is generated.
I assume you have reported your past sales, and will be in the future. You really do not want to have a gap year where you report nothing. Stuff like that can raise a raise a red flag because it creates an anomaly.
[Edited by mod - Derogatory and inflammatory language]
soh.maryl
·8 months agoNot only because it creates an anomaly, but failure to report can result in a hefty fine.
ryry-jj
·8 months agoIts silly there are any 1099s anyway...with a click of a button they know what each of us sold in 2025. Maybe two clicks....
soh.maryl
·8 months agoBut "with a click of a button", they have no idea how much of your income is deductible as cost of goods etc.
ten_o_nine
·8 months agoHOW MUCH CAN YOU SELL ON EBAY BEFORE IT IS CLAIMED ON TAXES
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The requirement to report income to the IRS is different from when eBay is required to send you a Form 1099-K. Any profit you make from selling items is considered taxable income by the IRS. This applies whether you are running a business, have a side hustle, or are just selling items as a hobby.
ryry-jj
·8 months agoRemember eBay remits sales tax on your behalf & SS#, so it is very hard to hide and ignore any income. You certainly don't want 4 or 6 years of sales that you don't think is very much to be added up as one larger sum. How would anyone explain the fact that eBay collected $400 in sales taxes from your sales over the years, and yet you don't show any reported income at all?
The more & more business that goes e-commerce, the more the states and feds will go looking for this missing non reported income. Computers and on line marketplaces are fantastic record keepers.
ebay isn't your garage sale anymore
soh.maryl
·8 months agoWhen referring to "taxes" here, it's best to specify which entity. eBay does collect and remit state sales tax on your sales to the appropriate State treasury.
To the best of my knowledge, eBay does not collect Federal income tax.
And some cities also have a city income tax.
ryry-jj
·8 months agoyes, but based on sales tax, the federal government and states can then figure out that you did have income/sales that generated that tax amount. Without properly filing that income and deducting expenses, it can then be considered as 100% profit in any audit. Risk is low, but so is the tax liability for those not receiving a 1099
I'm just saying, doesn't matter any more if you get a 1099, the record keeping today runs deep and is easy to attain. For me eBay is just a fun thing to do, and there is no way I'd ignore any amount of income today and let that raise a red flag to affect my other finances. It is just too easy to report it, as it is minimal in the end
soh.maryl
·8 months agoYou seem to have misunderstood my post. I was not advocating tax evasion at all.
I felt it was important to point out that there can be several entities who require tax be paid.
When people come here and ask about taxes in general, it's a good idea to find out exactly what "taxes" they are referring to. Perhaps I was not clear.
bonanza125
·8 months agoYes you do. All income you make needs to be reported on taxes.
tealt
·8 months ago@rldkmas
As above, all eBay sales should be reported, no matter how small the total.
Your state, Illinois, has a state 1099K threshold of $1000 and 4 items for the tax year 2025.
If your total sales (item price +shipping + returns--everything except taxes collected by eBay) and number of items exceeds those thresholds, eBay is required to issue you a 1099K.
rolen4u
·8 months agoIt used to be several thousand, now in Texas, last I heard it is 600 dollars. Maybe different in each state? I don't know. Good question. I have been reporting everything and writing off all deductions I can legally do.
tealt
·8 months ago@rolen4u
Yep, different for each state.
Each state which levies a state income tax has it's own thresholds. Some, but not all, just adopt the federal thresholds.
soh.maryl
·8 months agoIf we're talking about Federal income tax, it's the same for all states.
If we're referring to State income tax, it can vary from state to state.
stainlessenginecovers
·8 months agoYou sold $400 worth the past 3 months, so I would figure you did $1600 for the year, minimum.
Your account also shows that you sold 4,600 items since 2006, so I would think:
a.) you would know what the minimum is
b.) you would have claimed all those sales since 2006
ps. Myself and the IRS have NO tolerance for tax evaders.
I can't do much, but the IRS can.
rldkmas
OP8 months agoWE ARE BOTH RETIRED AND YOU ARE ALLOWED TO MAKE A CERTAIN AMOUNT BEFORE HAVING TO PAY TAXES ON THE EXCESS YOU EARN. THE GOVERNMENT JUST STARTED TAXING ON EBAY SALES IN LATE 2019. WE HAVE PAID TAXES ON THE SALES SINCE THEN. WE ARE NOT TAX EVADERS !! I THOUGHT YOU HAD TO SELL OVER A CERTAIN AMOUNT BEORE YOU STARTED GETTING TAXED ON IT. I DID NOT SELL ANYTHING IN 2025 UNTIL LATE IN THE YEAR.
fern*wood
·8 months agoTh government didn't just start taxing ebay sales. They have always been reportable. The only change was the requirement for anyone processing payments (like Adyen for ebay) to file 1099ks over a certain amount of income. You may or may not owe anything, but income is always reportable.
stainlessenginecovers
·8 months ago@rldkmas Wow! lots here:
1.) does NOT matter if you are retired
2.) The government did NOT 'start taxing in late 2019'. That was 'collecting sales tax' and has NOTHING to do with 'REPORTING 'OTHER INCOME'. The 'government' has been 'taxing' profits made selling since the invention of 'income tax'. There is a line on even the easiest form 'Other income' and that's where you list it.
3.) If you have ONLY been reporting since 2019, that is, sorry to tell you, tax evasion- if you did NOT report that 'extra income' for tax years 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 and so on to 2006 (and possibly before that as I have no idea what you may have done then.
4.) your entire 'thinking' is in regard to 'WHEN A COMPANY needs to give you a 1099 (over $20,000 and over 200 transactions) but that NEVER meant you did not have to 'still report' that income.
For example:
if you sold $15,000 in 2014 (you would NOT have received a 1099 from anywhere) and had $10,000 in write offs (shipping, original cost, fees- all "at minimum) and profited $5000- that is what you would-have/should-have shown on your tax returns, in which you would then have that $5000 added to your 'other income' and then pay tax according to those totaled amounts.
To NOT report that 'extra' is tax evasion.
simply-the-best-for-you
·8 months ago@rldkmas The key word in your statement is PAY. There are definitely minimums before having to PAY. But you still must REPORT. 2 different things. You REPORT it & then go through the process of doing your taxes to find out if you have to PAY any tax on it. Hope that helps. It does not matter what part of the year you sold it in or how much you sold, you still must REPORT.
inhawaii
·8 months agoHOW MUCH CAN YOU SELL ON EBAY BEFORE IT IS CLAIMED ON TAXES?
A: One dollar.
jerseyboymusic
·8 months ago@rldkmas
If you made a dollar on Ebay, you file taxes on it
ten_o_nine
·8 months agoTechnically, you cannot ignore a penny profit because the IRS requires you to report all taxable income.
kensgiftshop
·8 months agoYou're supposed to report all your income.