eBay

tottie7777 · ‎01-03-2020

What a scam!

Not only is it spurious that Ebay collects sales tax - but it does so in a manner to enrich its' sister Paypal.

The sales tax is collected from the buyer.

Ebay sends that sales tax to the seller at paypal.

PAYPAL DEDUCTS A FEE ON THAT SALES TAX along as a sales total!!!!

Ebay gets the sales tax back to pay the states IF it wants and if anything is due (which is another question/scam).

PAYPAL KEEPS THE FEE ON THE SALES TAX!

YOU PAY FEES FOR EBAY TO COLLECT SALES TAX!!

So one has to calculate the sales tax, add an amount onto shipping or the goods to TRY and cover the ever increasing fee for those sales taxes.

Ebay shoud/could just keep the sales tax and pay it out direct to states. Adding the amount to the sale and allowing its partner Paypal to collect on that amount too is a pure scam. Something has to be done. Class action?

Anonymous · ‎01-03-2020

@eleanor*rigby wrote:
Well, you are a business. You have an online presence, you are offering goods for sale, you are collecting money for selling those goods, you are reporting any income on your taxes. How can you say you're not a business? Someone who sets up a garage sale once a year is not a business. You are.

That's ridiculous! What's the difference between someone selling hundreds of items at a garage sale once a year and selling 40 or 50 items throughout the year on eBay? You're selling your personal property to other individuals.

Anonymous · ‎01-03-2020

@wint_5631 wrote:
You're actually supposed to charge buyers on CL sales tax and remit it or they're supposed remit use (sales) tax to the state.

New laws have been enacted, forcing marketplaces like eBay, Amazon ECT to charge buyers in those states sales tax. If you're really so upset over it, write to state legislators and demand they stop trying to collect sales tax.

What are you talking about? Sales of personal property between individuals has NEVER been subject to sales or use tax outside of motor vehicles (which is a huge rip-off and subject for another conversation) which as I mentioned, is NOT collected by the seller, but payed by the buyer when titling/registering the vehicle.

disneyshopper · ‎01-03-2020

It's my understanding you have sell in excess of something like 20k/year before it's taxable and I'm nowhere near that amount.

Paypal will issue a 1099-K if you have received at least 200k in payments and 200 or more transactions. However, you should be including any income/expenses on a Schedule C when filing federal income taxes. I have been doing so since I started selling in 2000.

disneyshopper
Volunteer Community Member

wint_5631 · ‎01-03-2020

Actually it has, but nobody pays it, but do carry on a trying to make a valid argument.

eleanor*rigby · ‎01-03-2020

@Anonymous

Okay. You're right, and everyone else posting on this thread--including long time, seasoned eBay sellers--are all wrong.

Just go ahead and go with that . . . but eBay will continue to charge your buyers sales tax no matter what your opinion is, so it really doesn't matter whether you think you're a business or not.

eburtonlab · ‎01-03-2020

@Anonymous

What's the difference between someone selling hundreds of items at a garage sale once a year and selling 40 or 50 items throughout the year on eBay?

The difference is that eBay is on the states' radar -- and it is worthwhile for the states to target eBay and other online marketplaces, while it is not really worth their time to go after individual yard sales for not collecting taxes. Which explains why there are sales thresholds -- thresholds that eBay meets and yard sales do not. But if your yard sale starts raking in hundreds of thousands of dollars in sales, you can bet that your state will take an interest.

gracieallen01 · ‎01-03-2020

Ummmm, it looks like you possibly have been having a continuous garage sale since '00. Be that as it may, if you aren't making a profit on your personal items, then you probably have less of a tax burden when you file income tax.

However, the folks buying your items are being taxed because they are avoiding paying local sales tax by buying online from you. Their local and state agencies are not getting their due for providing the services these people demand because they don't pay sales tax and don't declare Use tax when buying out-of-state. There are those that don't think that is fair.

Not saying 'NO' doesn't mean 'YES'.

The foolishness of one's actions or words is determined by the number of witnesses.

Perhaps if Brains were described as an APP, many people would use them more often.

Respect, like money, is only of 'worth' when it is earned - with all due respect, it can not be ordained, legislated or coerced. Anonymous

Anonymous · ‎01-03-2020

Last comment I leave you all with re: income tax (even tho this is a sales tax thread). In my state anyway, capital "gains" are taxable. Since I'm selling personal property for less (in many cases far less) than what I paid for it, there are no capital gains and thus not subject to income tax. As stated before, I'm not a reseller, I'm just unloading decade of acquired personal property.

In my state, the Sales & Use Tax FAQs are under Business Tax. I'm not a business. Period.

eburtonlab · ‎01-03-2020

@Anonymous

In my state, the Sales & Use Tax FAQs are under Business Tax.

Sales taxes are collected by businesses (like eBay), but they are owed by and paid by individuals (like you).

corvettestainless · ‎01-03-2020

@Anonymous It's my understanding you have sell in excess of something like 20k/year before it's taxable and I'm nowhere near that amount.

Your "understanding" couldn't be further from accurate. Any income over $400 coming from 'self employment' ie. outside-a-job that takes out SSI, Fed/State Tax etc. (W2) is required to be 'added' to your Federal and some State Income Tax Returns. you can then 'write' off costs of that $400+.

The $20k/200 transaction is a federal requirement for Paypal /Ebay to issue a 1099; but many entities will issue 1099 on anything over $400 if they want the 'tax write off' for costs incurred in their business. ie. do a side job fixing plumbing in a house for a realtor.

greenblu2 · ‎01-03-2020

It is slowing sales and it will have a huge impact and has had a huge negative impact on internet sales . Has for a while and is getting worse . Not just ebay problem . other internet selling venues having same problem .

corvettestainless · ‎01-03-2020

So curious what people then do? Drive to the stores that no longer exist, to buy items they cannot locate at a store and never could in the first place and if they do locate the item in the store that still exits, they get to pay..... sales tax anyway?

I'm sure items online are cheaper than a B&M Store paying $1000- $50000 a month in rent/utils/personal/insurance etc. so even with paying shipping, items on line are a better deal.

Best Buy killed Circuit City, Good Guys and took a big chunk out of Sears appliances. Now, BB has been in the tank hanging by a thread as they are now the Show Case Display house where you can touchy/feely and then go on line and buy that tv/computer cheaper. Even with tax.

Not buying it- paying sales tax will not effect on line sales even .01% and even that much will go away because people like to actually find what they want, and do it at 3 am in their PJ's.

tottie7777 · ‎01-03-2020

Ebay has to collect the fee and should do it from the buyer and deduct that before the transaction goes to paypal.

What it REALLY DOES!!???

Here is the breakdown on how Ebay, who is so integrated with Paypal that arguing they are not the same is like telling me my brother is not related as we force users to use each other.

Here is the fact:

Ebay net revenue is 360 million a month in the USA alone.
18 million at average 5% sales tax collected paid to paypal
paypal charges sellers 3 percent on that 18 million a month for a profit of
$540,000 per month
$6,480,000 per year sellers pay in FEES ON SALES TAX ALONE! THIS IS A SCAM!

All that is based on Ebays net REVENUE in the US of 4.4bn a year. I am not sure if that is really the figure of all sales tax is collected on, but gives you an idea of the scam collecting sales tax and passing it as "sales" to Paypal unwinds.

eBay can't keep money from a transaction that it does not process. It has to be given to eBay by PayPal.

BALDERDASH! Ebay should have their own account with paypal. AND THEY SHOULD PAY FEES FOR ALL THEIR TRANSACTIONS!

A class action would require a legal firm to agree to front the cost of the case. Have you found one? No but, in reality nothing stops individuals from representing themselves. Thanks for giving me that idea. There are a lot of sellers mad about this rip off!

corvettestainless · ‎01-03-2020

PP and Ebay separated years ago, and soon, all ebay sellers will be doing Managed Payments and then this fee PP is collecting is gone. So, by the time this imaginary lawsuit even gets legs, 2020 will be over and all will be in MP.

But you're right, the law should read that you, the seller, needs to collect and remit sales tax on a quarterly basis for what soon will be 45 of the 50 states. That's only 720 reports per year you'll be submitting, and 720 payments after you've collected all those taxes.

You should be happy you don't have to deal with all that for the measly .24c per $100 that this is costing you.