After 26 Years I am Ending my Relationship with EBay!

[teacherreed]

A sad day for me. After 26 years of selling successfully on EBay,  I have decided to end my relationship. Several reasons as follows:

1) Fees are now too high. Tacking on fees for the entire sale which includes shipping and taxes is unfair. Don’t mind paying fees for the actual sale of the item, but these add-ons are too much. 

2) lack of support for sellers. I have been helping a family member list items from my own inventory. One of the listings received negative feedback (my account feedback is 100% and has been for 26 years). An inexperienced buyer/seller gave negative feedback with no explanation to an item that I had listed for my daughter. Tried several avenues to correct the false feedback-even had a long conversation with an agent who graciously tried to correct the issue, but to no avail!  In turn, I had no choice to give the buyer anything but positive feedback! 

So, soooo long EBay! I expect that a number of my other family members with accounts (we sell unique, one-of-kind items) will be following suit. 

[dbfolks166mt]

Which I understand... BUT when my wife and I lived in California and Idaho, we registered our Ebay  stores with those states so we could remit our state sales tax. This was before the gov't decided interstate sales should be taxed.

     You can pretty much blame the Supreme Court for this one. You can follow that with the state governments that elected to pass individual ecommerce sales tax laws. I believe Missouri was the last one to do so. While the bill passed in 2021 it did not become effective until 1 January 2024 due to some tax compromises and politics. 

     It's not unlike the individual states that lowered their 1099-K thresholds well before the Federal Government decided to attempt to do so. That is despite the fact that the 1099-K is a Federal form and not a state one. 

[dbfolks166mt]

@mam98031 wrote:

1.  Yes, but fees on shipping are since 2010, fees on sales tax started when sellers entered Managed Payments and Ebay became our Money processor.  Before that we paid fees on sales tax to PayPal.

I would put a finer point on it. 

The addition of fees on sales taxes really started when the 2018 Supreme Court decision in South Dakota vs. WayFair made eBay start collecting and processing sales taxes. Before Wayfair, most eBay sales did not involve the collect or remittance of sales tax.

The rollout of Managed Payments coincided with the Wayfair ruling. IMHO eBay would have started collecting fees on sales tax under Wayfair whether the payment was processed by eBay or PayPal. Obviously just speculation on my part, but we know eBay has always wanted a cut of every penny the buyer pays 

     It wasn't the Wayfair decision that caused the sales tax collection on ecommerce interstate sales but the individual state laws as they were implemented. Ironically, and I bet eBay never saw this coming when they came up with managed payments, had PayPal remained the financial processor then PayPal would have had the responsibility for collecting and remitting the sales tax. PayPal would have also been responsible for the issuance of the 1099-K's. 

     You have to wonder what eBay's net gain was by moving the financial processing under managed payments especially considering that they outsourced that function to Adyen and basically traded one third party financial processor for another.  

[dbfolks166mt]

@jerseyboymusic wrote:

Which I understand... BUT when my wife and I lived in California and Idaho, we registered our Ebay  stores with those states so we could remit our state sales tax. This was before the gov't decided interstate sales should be taxed

Before SCOTUS overturned Wayfair, yes sellers were suppose to be charging buyer's sales tax when the item shipped to an address inside the state that the seller resides in or has their business license in.  This isn't anything new, there are many sellers that did this.

It is Not "interstate sales", it is interNET sales.  Scotus decided that if you ship something into a state that has sales tax, the buyer of that item needs to pay sales tax.

Most small and casual sellers on this site and all the others, would likely have never been required to collect and remit sales taxes for other states other than the one the seller is located.  For states that would not be cost effective to have to chase all these sellers that have shipped something into their state. 

Many states have minimum thresholds in which most casual and small sellers would never meet anyway.  Sure they could lower their thresholds, but they were never going to chase sellers that may have had a couple hundred dollars worth of merchandise ship into their state.

Which is why MFLs [marketplace facilitator laws] were born.

     Agreed. You have to give the courts and state law makers credit for the MFL laws they obviously thought through the process and implementation in order to maximize their tax revenue. 

[sakic92710]

I would love to see evidence of my name calling.  I do not resent others' having good sales or if they try to offer advice.  Angry?  I never get angry over internet comments.  Most of the time, I laugh at it.   The part I find ridiculous is the vague & obvious advice that is given as if it is helpful.

[mam98031]

eBay's sales tax collection for US states

Based on applicable tax laws, eBay will calculate, collect, and remit sales tax on behalf of sellers for items shipped to customers in the following states and territories.

Please check this page regularly as we are continuously updating the following table as states adopt new laws and regulations regarding sales tax collection.

States and territories	Effective date	Additional information
Alabama	July 1, 2019	Alabama Department of Revenue The State of Alabama has a program for simplified sellers use tax (SSUT) under Statute § 40-23-192. eBay has collected simplified sellers use tax on taxable transactions delivered into Alabama and the tax of flat eight percent (8%) will be remitted on the customer's behalf to the Alabama Department of Revenue.
Alaska	November 1, 2021	Alaska Remote Seller Sales Tax Commission Alaska does not impose a state level sales tax, however eBay is required to collect sales taxes in certain Alaska local jurisdictions that have adopted the Alaska Remote Seller Sales Tax Commission Uniform Code.
Arizona	October 1, 2019	Arizona Department of Revenue
Arkansas	July 1, 2019	Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration
California	October 1, 2019	Please contact the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration for further information.
Colorado	October 1, 2019	Colorado Department of Revenue Effective 2020, eBay is required to collect sales taxes in certain home rule cities in Colorado.
Connecticut	April 1, 2019	Connecticut Department of Revenue Services eBay Inc. is registered with DRS to collect Connecticut sales tax and will collect sales tax on all taxable Connecticut sales facilitated on our site.
District of Columbia	May 1, 2019	District of Columbia Office of Tax and Revenue
Florida	July 1, 2021	Florida Department of Revenue
Georgia	April 1, 2020	Effective April 1, 2020 the Georgia Department of Revenue has enacted Marketplace Facilitator Legislation. eBay, Inc. is required to collect sales tax from Georgia buyers on behalf of sellers for items shipped to Georgia, unless there is a valid exemption. Please contact the Georgia Department of Revenue for additional information.
Hawaii	January 1, 2020	Please contact the Hawaii Department of Taxation for further information. City and County of Honolulu Bicycle Registration Fee All bicycles in the City and County of Honolulu with 20" or larger wheels are required to be registered. There is a one-time registration fee of $15, and a fee of $5 when transferring ownership of a bicycle. eBay is not collecting bicycle registration fees on behalf of sellers. Buyers should register their bicycles at the main bicycle registration station or by mail, administered by the Department of Customer Services (CSD). See the City and County of Honolulu website for additional guidance on bicycle registration.
Idaho	June 1, 2019	Idaho State Tax Commission
Illinois	January 1, 2020	Illinois Department of Revenue
Indiana	July 1, 2019	Please contact the Indiana Department of Revenue for further information.
Iowa	February 1, 2019	Iowa Department of Revenue
Kansas	July 1, 2021	Kansas Department of Revenue
Kentucky	July 1, 2019	Kentucky Department of Revenue
Louisiana	July 1, 2020	Louisiana Department of Revenue
Maine	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Maine Revenue Services for further information.
Maryland	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Comptroller of Maryland for further information.
Massachusetts	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Massachusetts Department of Revenue for further information.
Michigan	January 1, 2020	Michigan Department of Treasury
Minnesota	January 1, 2019	Minnesota Department of Revenue Effective October 1, 2019 there is no longer a small seller exception for Minnesota and eBay is required to collect sales tax on all sales.
Mississippi	July 1, 2020	Mississippi Department of Revenue
Missouri	January 1, 2023	Missouri Department of Revenue
Nebraska	April 1, 2019	Nebraska Department of Revenue
Nevada	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Nevada Department of Taxation for further information.
New Jersey	May 1, 2019	New Jersey Department of Taxation
New Mexico	July 1, 2019	Please contact the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department for further information.
New York	June 1, 2019	New York Department of Taxation and Finance eBay Inc. is a registered New York State sales tax vendor and will collect sales tax on all taxable sales of tangible personal property that it facilitates for delivery to a New York State address.
North Carolina	February 1, 2020	Please contact the North Carolina Department of Revenue for further information.
North Dakota	October 1, 2019	Please contact the North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner for further information.
Ohio	September 1, 2019	Please contact the Ohio Department of Taxation for further information.
Oklahoma	July 1, 2019	Oklahoma Tax Commission
Pennsylvania	July 1, 2019	Pennsylvania Department of Revenue
Puerto Rico	January 1, 2021	Puerto Rico Department of Treasury
Rhode Island	July 1, 2019	Rhode Island Division of Taxation
South Carolina	October 1, 2019	South Carolina Department of Revenue
South Dakota	July 1, 2019	South Dakota Department of Revenue
Tennessee	October 1, 2020	Tennessee Department of Revenue
Texas	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts for further information.
Utah	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Utah State Tax Commission for further information.
Vermont	July 1, 2019	Vermont Department of Taxes
Virginia	July 1, 2019	Virginia Department of Taxation
Washington	January 1, 2019	Washington Department of Revenue
West Virginia	July 1, 2019	West Virginia State Tax Department
Wisconsin	January 1, 2020	Wisconsin Department of Revenue
Wyoming	July 1, 2019	Wyoming Department of Revenue

[natoman777]

I just now read their comment fully and looked at their profile.  Yes, it is a waste time.  This seller has been on eBay for 26 years and has a feed back of just over 1000?  Again, why post on here?  When you invest time and energy into eBay sales will come.  When you focus on rare collectibles sales will be slow.  Most who say "I'm leaving" were never really here

[natoman777]

@jerseyboymusicall the comments are because negative is popular...

[gurlcat]

Wow for once someone comes to declare their departure and their listings are actually taken down.  

What a shame too, in this case.  Looks like you sold some really neat eBay-perfect stuff, and made fantastic listings.  The fall of a real O.G.   

Hope you change your mind after a break, but respect and understanding if you don't.  

Example of a beautiful listing:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/225682258309?itmmeta=01HZPNJEVMFXMC083PTZ88ECMV&hash=item348bb5f985:g:TLMAA... 

[laststopgeneralstore]

See, the reasons your leaving really doesn't make any sense to me. The fee's should be the last thing you should be concerned with, they're very very low just in general. Not to mention the massive amount of eyeballs, server storage, account tracking, free sales tax remittance that we don't have to track for 100's of municipalities, easy shipping service so we don't have to sign up for another place and use them, the list goes on and on. Getting a negative feedback means nothing and if you're going to let that bother you and leave because of it then you're not cut out for business in general. I've gotten plenty of negative feedback, in fact I have 2 on my account now that I've been meaning to get rid but haven't because I've been so busy. Feedback means nothing and the majority of buyers could care less. Just because they didn't support you on a negative feedback doesn't mean eBay doesn't support their sellers. You can't take one small minuscule thing that eBay didn't help you with then encapsulate that with "eBay doesn't support sellers", that's just blatantly false.

[luckythewinner]

---

@sakic92710 wrote:

"This is not new. Fees on shipping and taxes have existed for years."

So what?!  So what if they have been around for years?  When shipping fees (for providing absolutely no service whatsoever) began, no one liked it then.  No one liked paying those 6 years ago & they don't like paying them now.  I do not understand the logic behind defending those fees with a simple fact that they have been around for years.  It is a money grab.  Period.  Nothing will change that.

---

I never said they popular.

I simply said they were not new.

The OP said he had 26 years of successful selling, so I was wondering why they were suddenly an issue.

[luckythewinner]

---

@mam98031 wrote:

"The addition of fees on sales taxes really started when the 2018 Supreme Court decision in South Dakota vs. WayFair made eBay start collecting and processing sales taxes."  That is simply not correct.  Yes in 2018 SCOTUS did make this change, however fees charged by Ebay on sales tax did NOT start in 2018.  SCOTUS left the implementation of charging the sales tax to items shipped into their states, up to the states.  

In 2018 this was all new for states and they had to take time to figure out how to handle collecting all those taxes from all over the internet.  Not a small chore.    See my post #23 for more info.

Also keep in mind that the MFLs did not start until 2018, Washington state being the first one to implement theirs.  As the next 18 months or so passed, more and more states came online with their MFLs.  It was only when the MFLs came into existence that Ebay was require to collect and remit sales tax for all states having stuff shipped into by any of its sellers.

---

I think most everyone here understood my point.

Prior to the Wayfair decision, sales taxes were not much of a factor because most sellers did not collect them or remit them because they were not required to (or simply ignored them because there was little effective enforcement).

But once the Wayfair decision came down, it was clear that sales tax was now going to be a component of most transactions on eBay, and thus eBay saw this as a potential revenue source.

So I didn't mean that fees on sales tax started the very day that Wayfair came down, I meant that this event in 2018 is what pushed eBay to start charging them.

[theseeker_jamrock]

I use to sell on ebay as well, but I decided to stop selling here a few years ago. I got scammed a few times but the fees was what killed it for me. When I list something for sale and ebay fees is $60 and I get $10 made no sense. Now I only buy here and even that is not looking good, because every day I see more of my favorite sellers leaving ebay. Plus there is no more ebay bucks and when you see a 20% coupon promotion the once $500 item is now listed for $650 which is a joke. Ebay is not what it use to be and at the rate it is going in 2 years I don't see it existing if the don't go back to the old ebay.

[retrobiz]

I used to stress over all the crazy things ebay did, I just couldn't keep up with all of them.  And then there would be a crazy customer that I could not resolve no matter what I did.  But I persisted.  The thing that is making me pull out what little hair I have left is the USPS!  I sell small light weight items and the cost to ship them is ridiculous.  I've started topping off people's packages with free items so they won't feel cheated, even though I don't control the rates.  My items go through the Atlanta distribution center and sometimes it takes 3 days to get through.  I've had two items damaged in the last three months, for the first time ever!  I spend money on good packaging.  Lately I've started getting NO views on some items even thought they are like items that sell the same week.  Titles are almost exactly the same, but NO views.  I relist them.  No views.  It's like they go into a black hole.  Still, I persist.  However, I'm do this for extra money as a retiree.  If I were running a shop to support myself or my family, I'd be whacking my head against the wall.   Off topic, back to the mail.  It's killing me.  And don't give me the 'free shipping' spiel.  You have to mark up your item and the customers compare prices.  Most of them aren't stupid.  A few are.  Very.  The website that let you list and sell locally are better, but you have to deal with customers in person.  That is getting to be awful.  Perfectly awful.  People don't know how to do a two way communication and keep an appointment anymore.  Ok, I'm done.  I feel better.  For now.  Back to sorting trinkets.  But, I agree about the cost of the shipping. 

[mam98031]

---

@luckythewinner wrote:

---

@mam98031 wrote:

"The addition of fees on sales taxes really started when the 2018 Supreme Court decision in South Dakota vs. WayFair made eBay start collecting and processing sales taxes."  That is simply not correct.  Yes in 2018 SCOTUS did make this change, however fees charged by Ebay on sales tax did NOT start in 2018.  SCOTUS left the implementation of charging the sales tax to items shipped into their states, up to the states.  

In 2018 this was all new for states and they had to take time to figure out how to handle collecting all those taxes from all over the internet.  Not a small chore.    See my post #23 for more info.

Also keep in mind that the MFLs did not start until 2018, Washington state being the first one to implement theirs.  As the next 18 months or so passed, more and more states came online with their MFLs.  It was only when the MFLs came into existence that Ebay was require to collect and remit sales tax for all states having stuff shipped into by any of its sellers.

---

I think most everyone here understood my point.

Prior to the Wayfair decision, sales taxes were not much of a factor because most sellers did not collect them or remit them because they were not required to (or simply ignored them because there was little effective enforcement).

But once the Wayfair decision came down, it was clear that sales tax was now going to be a component of most transactions on eBay, and thus eBay saw this as a potential revenue source.

So I didn't mean that fees on sales tax started the very day that Wayfair came down, I meant that this event in 2018 is what pushed eBay to start charging them.

---

Except Ebay never charged any fees on Sales tax paid by buyer while PayPal was our money processor.  It started in August 2020 for all sellers in Managed payments.  And as they onboarded more sellers, once they entered MP, fees were charged on the sales tax received in the payment to the seller.

Before a seller entered Managed Payments we never paid any fees on sales tax, even in 2018.  As more and more states passed their MFLs, that is when Ebay became responsible for collecting and remitting sales tax.

The last state to pass their MFL was in 2023.

eBay's sales tax collection for US states

Based on applicable tax laws, eBay will calculate, collect, and remit sales tax on behalf of sellers for items shipped to customers in the following states and territories.

Please check this page regularly as we are continuously updating the following table as states adopt new laws and regulations regarding sales tax collection.

States and territories	Effective date	Additional information
Alabama	July 1, 2019	Alabama Department of Revenue The State of Alabama has a program for simplified sellers use tax (SSUT) under Statute § 40-23-192. eBay has collected simplified sellers use tax on taxable transactions delivered into Alabama and the tax of flat eight percent (8%) will be remitted on the customer's behalf to the Alabama Department of Revenue.
Alaska	November 1, 2021	Alaska Remote Seller Sales Tax Commission Alaska does not impose a state level sales tax, however eBay is required to collect sales taxes in certain Alaska local jurisdictions that have adopted the Alaska Remote Seller Sales Tax Commission Uniform Code.
Arizona	October 1, 2019	Arizona Department of Revenue
Arkansas	July 1, 2019	Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration
California	October 1, 2019	Please contact the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration for further information.
Colorado	October 1, 2019	Colorado Department of Revenue Effective 2020, eBay is required to collect sales taxes in certain home rule cities in Colorado.
Connecticut	April 1, 2019	Connecticut Department of Revenue Services eBay Inc. is registered with DRS to collect Connecticut sales tax and will collect sales tax on all taxable Connecticut sales facilitated on our site.
District of Columbia	May 1, 2019	District of Columbia Office of Tax and Revenue
Florida	July 1, 2021	Florida Department of Revenue
Georgia	April 1, 2020	Effective April 1, 2020 the Georgia Department of Revenue has enacted Marketplace Facilitator Legislation. eBay, Inc. is required to collect sales tax from Georgia buyers on behalf of sellers for items shipped to Georgia, unless there is a valid exemption. Please contact the Georgia Department of Revenue for additional information.
Hawaii	January 1, 2020	Please contact the Hawaii Department of Taxation for further information. City and County of Honolulu Bicycle Registration Fee All bicycles in the City and County of Honolulu with 20" or larger wheels are required to be registered. There is a one-time registration fee of $15, and a fee of $5 when transferring ownership of a bicycle. eBay is not collecting bicycle registration fees on behalf of sellers. Buyers should register their bicycles at the main bicycle registration station or by mail, administered by the Department of Customer Services (CSD). See the City and County of Honolulu website for additional guidance on bicycle registration.
Idaho	June 1, 2019	Idaho State Tax Commission
Illinois	January 1, 2020	Illinois Department of Revenue
Indiana	July 1, 2019	Please contact the Indiana Department of Revenue for further information.
Iowa	February 1, 2019	Iowa Department of Revenue
Kansas	July 1, 2021	Kansas Department of Revenue
Kentucky	July 1, 2019	Kentucky Department of Revenue
Louisiana	July 1, 2020	Louisiana Department of Revenue
Maine	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Maine Revenue Services for further information.
Maryland	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Comptroller of Maryland for further information.
Massachusetts	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Massachusetts Department of Revenue for further information.
Michigan	January 1, 2020	Michigan Department of Treasury
Minnesota	January 1, 2019	Minnesota Department of Revenue Effective October 1, 2019 there is no longer a small seller exception for Minnesota and eBay is required to collect sales tax on all sales.
Mississippi	July 1, 2020	Mississippi Department of Revenue
Missouri	January 1, 2023	Missouri Department of Revenue
Nebraska	April 1, 2019	Nebraska Department of Revenue
Nevada	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Nevada Department of Taxation for further information.
New Jersey	May 1, 2019	New Jersey Department of Taxation
New Mexico	July 1, 2019	Please contact the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department for further information.
New York	June 1, 2019	New York Department of Taxation and Finance eBay Inc. is a registered New York State sales tax vendor and will collect sales tax on all taxable sales of tangible personal property that it facilitates for delivery to a New York State address.
North Carolina	February 1, 2020	Please contact the North Carolina Department of Revenue for further information.
North Dakota	October 1, 2019	Please contact the North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner for further information.
Ohio	September 1, 2019	Please contact the Ohio Department of Taxation for further information.
Oklahoma	July 1, 2019	Oklahoma Tax Commission
Pennsylvania	July 1, 2019	Pennsylvania Department of Revenue
Puerto Rico	January 1, 2021	Puerto Rico Department of Treasury
Rhode Island	July 1, 2019	Rhode Island Division of Taxation
South Carolina	October 1, 2019	South Carolina Department of Revenue
South Dakota	July 1, 2019	South Dakota Department of Revenue
Tennessee	October 1, 2020	Tennessee Department of Revenue
Texas	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts for further information.
Utah	October 1, 2019	Please contact the Utah State Tax Commission for further information.
Vermont	July 1, 2019	Vermont Department of Taxes
Virginia	July 1, 2019	Virginia Department of Taxation
Washington	January 1, 2019	Washington Department of Revenue
West Virginia	July 1, 2019	West Virginia State Tax Department
Wisconsin	January 1, 2020	Wisconsin Department of Revenue
Wyoming	July 1, 2019	Wyoming Department of Revenue

[sakic92710]

We have the same problem in Canada with high shipping costs.  Especially for cross border mail.  Anything that is not documents or papers, must count as goods & postage is $9.00+ to send a small bubble mailer to   the US.  How can we sell inexpensive sports cards, pins, buttons, patches, etc. if we have to charge $10 S/H??!!  If you sell a single card or patch, it can be slipped into a birthday card & shipped for $2.00.  We can cheat that way.  Otherwise, the only other way to do it is to sell lots for more money & make it worth the cost for US buyers. Why is it cheaper to mail overseas than to our direct neighbors?  Ridiculous!