GloryBells • 
I really don’t understand why people who are so upset about giving their SSN don’t just get an ITIN?
The one time in my life that I was a victim of identity theft was 33 years ago, before everyone on the planet had computers. How this person got my info is a puzzle in itself. I moved back to Florida from New Hampshire and started getting bills from a local doctors office with my name, Florida address, and SSN. Fortunately I was able to prove, using the stubs from my paychecks, that I was working in New Hampshire at the time these appointments occurred in Florida. But we never did figure out how someone got my information.
@ony_chine wrote:Based on what I read so far, it might be ok for some sellers to migrate based on the type of money they are making. For instance if you are making over 20k per annum and eBay is your major source of income, its a win win. I dont make near 20k per anum and the last thing I wanna do is to complicate my tax returns. I thought about using one of my companies , but my organization is way too big for the type of thing I sell on eBay. The fact is that its worth the time for some sellers but its not worth my time . The only way I can share my tax id with eBay is if they carve out certain percentage of their share for sellers and be able to disburse profit sharing per annum base on how much each seller has been able to generate. Being a part owner in this situation is a win. Another way is to hand over the selling to someone who does not have anything doing.
Your beef with having to share your SSN with MP is NOT with Ebay. It is with our Federal Government. Ebay is just doing what is REQUIRED of them by law. Both with IRS and the Anti Money Laundering laws. I know it is popular to blame Ebay, but it is misplaced.
There are LOTS of sellers, likely millions of them that sell far less than 20K a year that are profitable on Ebay which makes it a reasonable choice to register and adapt for MP.
MP is different than we are use to. It is a big change. And big change is hard for many to deal with. It can be a change that some just aren't willing to make for a variety of reasons. Some people can't make the change because they can't have a checking account in their name. So many reasons out there and a decision for each of us to make for what is best for us.
But make no mistake, blaming Ebay for asking you for your SSN is Ebay COMPLYING with Federal Law.
@veronicabooksandart wrote:If eBay were COMPLYING with the law, Mercari, who uses the same payments processor, would ask for this information as well - they don't until sales reach a certain threshold; similarly, if you never gave it to Paypal, Paypal will do likewise.
The concern is over trust and risk avoidance; namely, eBay requiring it even when it's not needed by them. The risk is not limited to the seller, but to eBay as well.
It is only eBay that demands it from everyone.
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Why do you suppose that is?
The AML laws were updated in 2020. I do not know if the requirements for new accounts on Mercari are the same as they were for older accounts.
This is what I see when I Google for info on how Mercari.
Oh and there is this.
https://www.mercari.com/getting-paid/
Which says the buyer has to rate the seller BEFORE the transaction / money can be completed to the seller.
@veronicabooksandart wrote:When Mercari deems it likely they will need the information, at that point, they will require it or place limitations on your account. Paypal requires it now, but did not always, nor do they require it in such cases until and unless they deem it likely they will need it. So eBay doesn't need it from the small seller, yet they want it regardless. Why? This just adds undue risk on the part of both parties.
For my part, I would have no problem whatsoever giving my SSN to Paypal. I trust them. Not to bait or be disrespectful, but their community board doesn't read like a **bleep** show surfacing and evidencing serious staffing and structural problems met by disinformation, confirmation bias, cognitive dissonance, and mincing of words.
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Just sayin'
As has been stated before, PP began requiring SSN, EINs or TINs in 2011/12 when IRS started requiring them to do so.
Since that time the world has changed quite a bit and now it isn't just IRS requiring certain things of money processors, it is the laws that are for money laundering. And in 2020 there were changes to that law which became stricter on identification procedures.
MP requires what they require due to the laws that are currently in place. They aren't doing it just to annoy you and other members that don't want to comply
The disinformation comes from some posters assuming stuff or just passing along info that "they" said without identifying who "they" is. That has always been true no matter the subject on discussion boards.
As to staffing issues. Depends on what specifically you are talking about as there are all kinds of departments within Ebay, so the statement is far too general to be true or factual. Now if you want talk specifically about the CS dept for MP, that statement would be absolutely correct and I and others have discussed it at length on many threads regarding MP. It has been going on for a very long time and doesn't seem to be getting any better.
With that said. MP functions as MP was designed to do. Some of us just don't like how it was designed. That is hugely different than suggesting it is having "structural problems". That is not the case as it function the way it was designed to function. Many of us would just like to see certain changes sooner rather than later. And others just don't see a way to survive in the current structure of the program. Which is the right of each seller to decide for themselves. It will work for some and not others.
What you stated earlier about Mercari is incorrect according to Mercari's own website. So whether the requirements have changed for them since the 2020 AML laws updated, IDK. But I provided you with the information. If you are sure the info is incorrect, you will need to contact Mercari and address it with them. I have nothing to do with what their stated policies are or aren't.
@veronicabooksandart wrote:Their getting paid is attractive. Yes, there's a wait. But it's not 5 years down the road to escheatment.
My issue with Mercari is marketplace run payments processing in general. Should a small seller rise to anything but, they will require the information. Unlike eBay which seems to use it however it may serve their interest, Mercari seems to simply use it to process payments. Only that their TOS clearly states if there is any issue with third-party payment service providers, you're on your own. eBay, OTOH, shields third-parties (cf. FedEx) in the sense that your issue is ostensibly with eBay and eBay's liability, barring gross negligence or illegality, is zero.
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Which is why I've deemed affiliate marketing to drive small marketplaces that use Paypal for payments the best option under the circumstances.
I just gave you info straight from Mercari's site. If anyone has issues with how MP functions, then they certainly would take issue with Mercari as it will take even longer.
Those that have objections to MP having the information they require tend to say things like "however it may serve their interest", when in fact it is the LAWS of the USA that they are complying with. But they need someone to blame for something they don't want to do and they need a bad guy in the pic, so that would be Ebay, even if it is NOT their fault but a REQUIREMENT BY LAW.
I too prefer PP but likely not for all the same reasons you have. There are however things about PP that I don't like as well. But overall I like their services.
@veronicabooksandart wrote:Many have tried for months to get paid. Some have all but certainly given up. I can't imagine being put through that cycle.
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Your view does not comport with reality.
You seem to be at it again, trying to stir things up.
NOT a SOUL has said that some sellers have had issues, because some have and some have been serious issues that only Ebay can help them resolve. Others have been because they just refuse to give MP the info they require and they have money sitting there because they were activated in MP without the seller giving banking info. It is a mixed bag of issues. Not everything is Ebay's fault although there are some that sure want it to seem that way.
We are all suppose to be adults here. We all need to take ownership for what we do or don't do as it may be. Blaming Ebay when it is actually the seller refusing to give the info needed is that seller making a choice. One they are entitled to make if they want to, but that does not in turn make Ebay the bad guy.
Judging from the threads it is a few that have had issues that have crossed months. But that doesn't mean that each and every one of them have a serious issue that MP needs to get fixed or addressed. And again the call center for MP is far less than adequate. It is a mess to be honest.
It isn't my view that doesn't "comport with reality", it is your rewrite / interpretation of what I've said, not what I've actually said which is often two completely different things.
Now do you want to continue down this road or can you give it a rest?
