Weird prompt to "update" my tax i.d. number, which they already HAVE

[gurlcat]

Last night when I logged in to print a label for an item that my phone said had just sold, I had an alert banner across the top of my home page, stating that I must provide my tax i.d. or SSN, for the purpose of 1099 IRS reporting. 
Okay, now I was in the March 2021 batch of sellers forced onto MP, I knew it was coming so I had gotten a stupid BAM bank account, and didn't hesitate to provide the account number and my SSN, then go along with the bank account verification process, to get onboarded as quickly as possible to resume getting my money as quickly as possible.  Then over a month later, after totally smooth sailing with regard to payments, I was inexplicably required to do the account verification all over again, which put my payments on hold for several days again, for no apparent reason.  
When I typed in my SSN  AGAIN last night, the resulting window thanked me and said it may take up to 2 days to verify it, before my payments will resume depositing.  Now, since it's the weekend I would already be waiting until at least Monday for my next (daily) payment, but I have a bill I really need to pay on Monday, so I'm going to be P.O.'d if I can't because of this fresh hot rubbish. 
 I recently heard a discussion on some video about people being ignorantly upset about income over $600 being reported to the IRS, because they thought it meant their Covid relief checks would get taxed.  But I knew that there was (at least) reason why the $600 figure has some significance, because it's the minimal amount of (annual) income, of any kind, that is supposed to be reported to the IRS.  The reason that number is mayyyyyybe relevant is that the item I sold yesterday was $675.  It's not the only item over 600 that I've sold this year; I remember another for over 1000, but it was so far back I can't recall if it was before or after my March onboarding to MP.  
ANYWAY,  regardless of whether this sale had anything to do with it, why on Earth would Ebay require a seller to give their tax i.d./SSN on a random night in November, hamstring their payments and all, when they already HAVE it, and it's about the most unchangeable number that can ever be affiliated with an American citizen's name, so it's not like I might have a different one now. 
Anybody else ever get this, or know why? 

[hurryagain]

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@mam98031 wrote:

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@hurryagain wrote:

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Welp...I am happy to have you around to dig up all of the technical heavy reading stuff and then translate it for the rest of us.

...I am just a numbers person...

@mam98031 

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I am too.  That is part of my background.

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AHA!

I am p-r-y-i-n-g...LOL!!! 

🏆

@mam98031 

[mam98031]

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@hurryagain wrote:

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@mam98031 wrote:

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@hurryagain wrote:

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Welp...I am happy to have you around to dig up all of the technical heavy reading stuff and then translate it for the rest of us.

...I am just a numbers person...

@mam98031 

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I am too.  That is part of my background.

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AHA!

I am p-r-y-i-n-g...LOL!!! 

🏆

@mam98031 

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As corny as it sounds my greatest achievement are my two kids.  They are simply awesome young adults that continue to make me proud.

@hurryagain 

[gurlcat]

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@mam98031 wrote:

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@gurlcat wrote:

I supplied my full SSN when I did my MP onboarding so it is not "new information" for them to verify.  I surpassed $20k in 2021 sales months ago (yes, even if only 'net sales' was used for the threshold) and my current item sales count is 524 so I obviously surpassed the 200 way back also. 
  So ...................... ???

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They have no way of knowing what your Net Sales are.  They only know what your Gross Receipts are and some of your expenses.  

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I just included that part in case it made a difference. 
So then what could have triggered this sudden SSN demand when they already had it and I already reached the 1099 thresholds months ago? 

[mam98031]

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@gurlcat wrote:

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@mam98031 wrote:

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@gurlcat wrote:

I supplied my full SSN when I did my MP onboarding so it is not "new information" for them to verify.  I surpassed $20k in 2021 sales months ago (yes, even if only 'net sales' was used for the threshold) and my current item sales count is 524 so I obviously surpassed the 200 way back also. 
  So ...................... ???

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They have no way of knowing what your Net Sales are.  They only know what your Gross Receipts are and some of your expenses.  

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I just included that part in case it made a difference. 
So then what could have triggered this sudden SSN demand when they already had it and I already reached the 1099 thresholds months ago? 

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IDK

[gurlcat]

Welp, looks like my funds are "available" today and scheduled to be sent tomorrow, so I'll have it by about 8 p.m. tomorrow night.  Sure could have used it today or by close of business tomorrow, but at least it's not the projected 2-5 days before even releasing it.   I'm not even sure if this verification caused a 1-day delay, because there have been other times that I didn't get weekend sales payments released until Tuesday, even without Monday being a holiday.  
Anyway I'm still just 'bugged' by the mystery of the tax I.D. random demand.  And since I started a thread about it, and it may be something that will happen to others, I feel something like duty to find out why it happened.  I will try EFB on Facebook.  

[jrzpeddler]

I too have been asked over and over to “verify” my information after been selling on eBay for 17 years and being enrolled in Managed Payments since the start. Payouts will go on hold, I call, get the same canned “help” to re-enter the same correct information. Sometimes they get sent for a brief time and then back on hold again. After months of calling, explaining the same thing over and over, being on hold for hours, re-entering information and emailing, it slipped out they have a problem with my SSN (same number they always had and same since birth!). I have 7 email messages showing they have manually checked everything and all is verified and it is a system glitch, but still the payouts are on hold. None of my information has ever changed, name, SSN, bank account, address, nothing. I have even been listing and selling during this time and there’s no problem taking the final value fees and shipping costs out of my account, but still no payouts! Supervisors in MP say the problem is escalated to the IT dept and I will get a call back, tonight, tomorrow, when they hear back, etc… never get any calls and still never receive payouts. Nobody can help and now message shows entire account will be restricted shortly. If someone would only let me know what the problem is or how to take care of it, I would.

[gurlcat]

So sorry this is happening to you, makes me feel bad for whining about having my couple of * brief * payment holds.  And your whole ACCOUNT is in danger of being shut down??  
Thing is, note that nobody was able to answer my question either, even though I haven't had nearly the woes that you have.  But regardless of big or small, how scary is it that this system is (apparently) glitching AT ALL?  I mean it's one thing to have glitches in listings, search results, etc., but the actual payment stuff?!!  
You mess with my money, you mess with my emotions. LOL. 

[mam98031]

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@jrzpeddler wrote:

I too have been asked over and over to “verify” my information after been selling on eBay for 17 years and being enrolled in Managed Payments since the start. Payouts will go on hold, I call, get the same canned “help” to re-enter the same correct information. Sometimes they get sent for a brief time and then back on hold again. After months of calling, explaining the same thing over and over, being on hold for hours, re-entering information and emailing, it slipped out they have a problem with my SSN (same number they always had and same since birth!). I have 7 email messages showing they have manually checked everything and all is verified and it is a system glitch, but still the payouts are on hold. None of my information has ever changed, name, SSN, bank account, address, nothing. I have even been listing and selling during this time and there’s no problem taking the final value fees and shipping costs out of my account, but still no payouts! Supervisors in MP say the problem is escalated to the IT dept and I will get a call back, tonight, tomorrow, when they hear back, etc… never get any calls and still never receive payouts. Nobody can help and now message shows entire account will be restricted shortly. If someone would only let me know what the problem is or how to take care of it, I would.

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This is quite a pickle to be sure.  Is your name on your SSN different in any way to the name on your bank account and/or your Ebay account?  Even ONE character difference can cause this problem to happen.  That isn't Ebay's fault, it is the requirement of the Federal Laws that Ebay now has to comply with because they are a money processor now.

Take a look at this article.  It is very informative and tells you exactly what they need to verify your account.  Keep an open mind and don't assume it isn't going to tell you something you do not know.  Read it carefully as you might just discover the answers to your questions and concerns.

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Payments-Resources/Have-questions-about-payments-Check-out-this-post-f...

[goguac-lake]

I have been dealing with "red banner" asking for updated information for several months, then eBay froze my payouts a couple weeks ago despite my information being updated several times.  I have been an eBay seller for 23 years and migrated to Managed Payments in the first wave a couple years ago, so they have all my information.  I called customer service every two days for the last week and keep being told that my case is being sent to the Technical Team as a "high priority," but nothing is getting fixed.  Today I was informed that the Technical Team acknowledged a glitch on November 19  that has been given top priority because several sellers are having the same problem.  My new "red banner" now threatens that if the information that they already have is not updated by December 7, additional actions will be taken.  I love eBay and have been a loyal user, but this level of incompetence is stunning.

[jrzpeddler]

FINALLY! Payments have started to be paid out again. No exaggeration, but months of on and off again payment issues with MP. Nothing has ever changed (bank info, address, name, SSN, Phone, etc) yet they couldn't "verify" me all of a sudden. After 4 different supervisors worked on this, I finally figured out what I believe to have been the problem. It is with the processor eBay uses for payments. Their information page askes for name, first and last, DOB and SSN, everything is all the same so deleting, re-entering on the app or website would never help ... they have NO way to enter a middle name (or initial) and/or a suffix (ie Jr, III, IV). Since everything including birth certificate, DL, Tax Return, and Govt ID all use this information, it would always clash. Figured out a way to enter it using a space between last name and suffix and they had me scan a W9 using the entire name as has been done in the past. I still don't know why all of a sudden they asked me to verify again, since I have not changed or updated anything and have always received payments, maybe a certain sales threshold? Hope this may help others and save months of problems and hours upon hours on the phone and hold ... 

[gurlcat]

So which was the specific problem in your case: your middle name, or your suffix?  I have heard of suffices causing problems in all kinds of bureaucracies, but not middle names/initials, although I have always suspected those could also cause a problem, since I notice I am only asked for my middle name by SOME agencies, and then some just ask for the initial.  
I now regret that my poor daughter has a hyphenated last name, considering I didn't stay married to her dad for very long and he's pretty deadbeat.  Up to this point she and I have just given my last name to any agency that didn't require her birth certificate or SS card, just to keep it simple, and anywhere that did require her full hyphenated name (like schools), sure enough there is often an issue like whether she is alphabetized by my name (first one before the hyphen), or his name.  And now she's 16, doesn't yet have a job, driver's license or any bank/business accounts, but obviously those will all be biggies.  I would be willing to get her name legally changed to just mine, and I'm sure she'd prefer it, but for all I know that could just cause more problems.  

[lorestate]

Just to clarify something;  It's not $600.00 per transaction.  It's a gross of $600.00 transactions for the year and it includes shipping and any refunded too.  So be on top of your accounting for next year.

If you sold 600 widgets (600 transactions) for $1.00 each you will get 1099.  If you sold 1 widget for a $1.00 and  you had one refunded transaction sale for $599.00 you will get 1099.    YES!🙄

I know this because some states including mine Massachusetts have adopted this stupid $600 law for 2021 filing. 

Dont they have bigger fish to go after!

[tv4-17]

i did...send them the info...hopefully you won't have to go through to get it correct

you should a email/message saying update was sucessful...if not call them for 1 on 1 help

[gurlcat]

I know all that, I just thought there might be some kind of correlation between the tax i.d. update and the >600 sale that immediately preceded it.  Probably had nothing to do with it, but I couldn't help but notice the numerical coincidence.  

[mam98031]

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@gurlcat wrote:

I know all that, I just thought there might be some kind of correlation between the tax i.d. update and the >600 sale that immediately preceded it.  Probably had nothing to do with it, but I couldn't help but notice the numerical coincidence.  

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If Ebay has requested your full SSN it is because of the 2022 threshold change for the 1099K.

But no it did not have anything to do with your prior sales of 600.