eBay

dtexley3 · ‎10-01-2019

Why November????

I mean seriously, what site releases what appears to be a significant code change in the middle of the busiest time of the year? eBay has had an exceedingly poor track record of late with site updates being released prematurely, so there's a potential that this could go south, quickly.

What's the rush? Why can't this be released after Jan 1? Or at least on Dec 26th???

brian@ebay Please raise our concerns up the chain. Maybe with Jordan Sweetnam, the new Senior Vice President and General Manager, Americas Market at eBay that just posted about how y'all know "how important sellers are to the site"??

Member of the Grumpy Old Man crew

thehonorabletrader · ‎10-03-2019

@dtexley3 eBay gets to keep part of the collected sales tax? Can you tell me where you got that information? In my state, Amazon negotiated to start collecting sales tax two years ago before these laws were passed. Now that the new law has gone into effect Amazon doesn't get to keep that kick back anymore because now it's national law whereas before it was not.

So, if this is the case, can you please provide your source that shows that in every state (30+) that eBay is collecting sales tax for that they get a kick back? (Otherwise, it's really just an assumption)

Also, my understanding of the workflow is different than yours. Payment Processing fees were designed by Visa, MC, Disc, Amex, etc.. to be masked and hidden from buyers. So the sellers have always paid them.

Buyer Pays for Item

PayPal settles the transaction (most credit cards have an "Auth" to authorize the card and then at the end of the day they "settle". This is why you see a charge for $1 at the gas pump that later is higher. This is also what allows you to leave tips at restaurants.)

PayPal sends funds to eBay for eBay to remit

PayPal deducts fee from total charge for seller before sending it to them.

The entire setup is meant to keep the funds out of the hands of the sellers.

Also, I want to point out it is much worse for the buyers than the sellers. Buyers used to be able to avoid paying sales tax by buying online. Now all the buyers in these states are paying essentially 5% to 10% more for each purchase while the sellers are paying 5% of 5% to 10% (or something like .003%). I know every penny counts, but at the end of the day this has much more of an impact to buyers than sellers.

brian@ebay · ‎10-03-2019

@wastingtime101 wrote:

brian@ebay wrote:

@wastingtime101 wrote:

brian@ebay

So these sales tax amounts will not be included in our 1099s, nor will we have to pay fees on the amounts, correct?

Hi @wastingtime101, in states where eBay is required to collect Internet Sales Tax from buyers, order totals sent for processing will reflect the gross order amount inclusive of tax. The PayPal processing fee applies to the gross transaction value (item value, shipping and sales tax). eBay Final Value fee's will be based on item price and shipping cost. No eBay Final Value fee will be charged for sales tax.

Sellers will need to contact PayPal for more information about PayPal fees and the 1099 form.

brian@ebay

Will PayPal deduct the sales tax from the seller's payment once it's processed, or will it be paid out to the seller at which point eBay would add the sales tax to the seller's monthly invoice? Logically PayPal should take out the sales tax when they take out their fees, but I don't want to make assumptions when it comes to taxes and fees.

I see the announcement page says Managed Payments sellers are not affected by this which is good. That information wasn't in the e-mail eBay sent resulting in my additional questions yesterday.

Hi @wastingtime101, eBay is not adding anything related to taxes to your eBay monthly invoice. Once the payment settles in PayPal, the tax amount will be automatically deducted for remittance to the applicable taxing authority.

Brian,
Community Team

the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth · ‎10-03-2019

brian@ebay What does "payment settled in Paypal" mean? Is that before it hits the seller account?

Sellers right now are not paying fees on sales tax for Managed Payments and Paypal but come November 1st sellers will all of a sudden be required to pay fees on that amount, even though the change is just a processing change?

brian@ebay · ‎10-03-2019

@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

brian@ebay What does "payment settled in Paypal" mean? Is that before it hits the seller account?

Sellers right now are not paying fees on sales tax for Managed Payments and Paypal but come November 1st sellers will all of a sudden be required to pay fees on that amount, even though the change is just a processing change?

Hi @the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth, a settled payment refers to a payment that has fully processed and finalized. PayPal could probably give a more detailed definition as well.

That is correct. Beginning November 1, the gross amount of a buyers payment (item cost, shipping cost, and sales tax) will be sent to the sellers PayPal account (if they aren't in managed payments). PayPal processing fees will be applied to the gross amount (which includes sales tax).

Brian,
Community Team

dasarock · ‎10-03-2019

brian@ebay wrote:
@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:
brian@ebay What does "payment settled in Paypal" mean? Is that before it hits the seller account?

Sellers right now are not paying fees on sales tax for Managed Payments and Paypal but come November 1st sellers will all of a sudden be required to pay fees on that amount, even though the change is just a processing change?

Hi @the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth, a settled payment refers to a payment that has fully processed and finalized. PayPal could probably give a more detailed definition as well.

That is correct. Beginning November 1, the gross amount of a buyers payment (item cost, shipping cost, and sales tax) will be sent to the sellers PayPal account (if they aren't in managed payments). PayPal processing fees will be applied to the gross amount (which includes sales tax).

brian@ebay

hi again brian. you didn't mention just how exactly, if the taxes are given to the seller and paypal fees charged on all …. just how is ebay going to recoup these taxes from the seller and pay them under the marketplace facilitator laws …? how is this going to happen?

autopiacarcare · ‎10-03-2019

@thehonorabletrader wrote:
Now that the new law has gone into effect Amazon doesn't get to keep that kick back anymore because now it's national law whereas before it was not.

It's not a national law. The only thing that happened on a "national" level is that the Supreme Court decided that it was not unconstitutional for states to make laws requiring tax to be collected on online sales shipped from out of state. The Supreme Court does not make laws and there is no "national law" in place regarding sales tax. Each state makes their own laws regarding this matter.

This article is from last year, so it may need to be updated, but it's at least a place to start. https://blog.taxjar.com/state-sales-tax-discounts/ . I haven't seen anything in the Marketplace Facilitator laws that says the marketplaces are not eligible for these deductions. Can you point me to where you are seeing that eBay and Amazon are not eligible for them, assuming they otherwise meet the qualifying criteria (filing on time, electronicaly, etc.)?

Considering the variations in percentages for different states, I was being overly conservative in my estimation and erring on the side of "the deductions may not cover 100% of the processing costs, but they at least help offset it." But @dtexley3 may very well be right that in the big picture it actually ends up not costing eBay anything or in fact may make them money.

buyselljack2016 · ‎10-03-2019

brian@ebay wrote:
@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:
brian@ebay What does "payment settled in Paypal" mean? Is that before it hits the seller account?

Sellers right now are not paying fees on sales tax for Managed Payments and Paypal but come November 1st sellers will all of a sudden be required to pay fees on that amount, even though the change is just a processing change?

Hi @the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth, a settled payment refers to a payment that has fully processed and finalized. PayPal could probably give a more detailed definition as well.

That is correct. Beginning November 1, the gross amount of a buyers payment (item cost, shipping cost, and sales tax) will be sent to the sellers PayPal account (if they aren't in managed payments). PayPal processing fees will be applied to the gross amount (which includes sales tax).

and then................... how does eBay get the sales tax payment to remit to the state? What is that process? Monthly invoice?

brian@ebay · ‎10-03-2019

@dasarock wrote:

brian@ebay wrote:

@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

brian@ebay What does "payment settled in Paypal" mean? Is that before it hits the seller account?

Sellers right now are not paying fees on sales tax for Managed Payments and Paypal but come November 1st sellers will all of a sudden be required to pay fees on that amount, even though the change is just a processing change?

Hi @the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth, a settled payment refers to a payment that has fully processed and finalized. PayPal could probably give a more detailed definition as well.

That is correct. Beginning November 1, the gross amount of a buyers payment (item cost, shipping cost, and sales tax) will be sent to the sellers PayPal account (if they aren't in managed payments). PayPal processing fees will be applied to the gross amount (which includes sales tax).

brian@ebay

hi again brian. you didn't mention just how exactly, if the taxes are given to the seller and paypal fees charged on all …. just how is ebay going to recoup these taxes from the seller and pay them under the marketplace facilitator laws …? how is this going to happen?

Hi @dasarock, I apologize if my previous comments weren't clear on this. While I'm not certain what level of detail you are looking for, I can confirm that as soon as the payment settles, PayPal will automatically deduct the sales tax from the payment and it will be remitted it to the appropriate tax authority. Sellers do not need to take action on their part as this will be done automatically.

Brian,
Community Team

jesusrocks3339 · ‎10-03-2019

that is funny Brian. How it won't affect me. My sales have tanked and I am no longer able to buy on eBay because most of the business I do where I make 10% on an item will no longer be profitable.

sounds like the pitch I got from the outsourced rep this morning. I asked why my sales tax exemption would no longer apply. She said it was not eBay charging the tax but the seller.. give me a break already. I tried giving the rep the low down (after she helped me figure it out) but nooo. that is gonna suck to have to give out a line everybody, and one that clearly did not make sense to even rep I was talking too, but it would have gone off script to actually acknowledge the problem.

which is... my sales tax exemption no longer applies to most states I am buying from...

Is there a list so we can plug that in on the side like choosing (for example) US states only NO TAX ??? Has anyone compiled that list yet? I guess I will be doing that later today, something to check for I guess.

ekmadonna · ‎10-03-2019

Etsy uses the same payment processor Adyen that ebay does and Etsy does NOT charge you fees on the Collected State Sales Tax.

jesusrocks3339 · ‎10-03-2019

also btw, if I had eBay stocks... I would be moving them about now, just sayin'

dtexley3 · ‎10-03-2019

brian@ebay wrote:
@dasarock wrote:
brian@ebay wrote:
@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:
brian@ebay What does "payment settled in Paypal" mean? Is that before it hits the seller account?

Sellers right now are not paying fees on sales tax for Managed Payments and Paypal but come November 1st sellers will all of a sudden be required to pay fees on that amount, even though the change is just a processing change?

Hi @the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth, a settled payment refers to a payment that has fully processed and finalized. PayPal could probably give a more detailed definition as well.

That is correct. Beginning November 1, the gross amount of a buyers payment (item cost, shipping cost, and sales tax) will be sent to the sellers PayPal account (if they aren't in managed payments). PayPal processing fees will be applied to the gross amount (which includes sales tax).
brian@ebay

hi again brian. you didn't mention just how exactly, if the taxes are given to the seller and paypal fees charged on all …. just how is ebay going to recoup these taxes from the seller and pay them under the marketplace facilitator laws …? how is this going to happen?
Hi @dasarock, I apologize if my previous comments weren't clear on this. While I'm not certain what level of detail you are looking for, I can confirm that as soon as the payment settles, PayPal will automatically deduct the sales tax from the payment and it will be remitted it to the appropriate tax authority. Sellers do not need to take action on their part as this will be done automatically.

brian@ebay So are you saying that Paypal will be remitting the Sales tax to the states on behalf of eBay? Interesting to say the least. I would assume that this would imply that eBay and Paypal have entered into an agreement that designates Paypal as the sales tax "processor" on behalf of eBay when Paypal is the seller's payment processor?

Member of the Grumpy Old Man crew

dasarock · ‎10-03-2019

brian@ebay wrote:
@dasarock wrote:
brian@ebay wrote:
@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:
brian@ebay What does "payment settled in Paypal" mean? Is that before it hits the seller account?

Sellers right now are not paying fees on sales tax for Managed Payments and Paypal but come November 1st sellers will all of a sudden be required to pay fees on that amount, even though the change is just a processing change?

Hi @the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth, a settled payment refers to a payment that has fully processed and finalized. PayPal could probably give a more detailed definition as well.

That is correct. Beginning November 1, the gross amount of a buyers payment (item cost, shipping cost, and sales tax) will be sent to the sellers PayPal account (if they aren't in managed payments). PayPal processing fees will be applied to the gross amount (which includes sales tax).
brian@ebay

hi again brian. you didn't mention just how exactly, if the taxes are given to the seller and paypal fees charged on all …. just how is ebay going to recoup these taxes from the seller and pay them under the marketplace facilitator laws …? how is this going to happen?
Hi @dasarock, I apologize if my previous comments weren't clear on this. While I'm not certain what level of detail you are looking for, I can confirm that as soon as the payment settles, PayPal will automatically deduct the sales tax from the payment and it will be remitted it to the appropriate tax authority. Sellers do not need to take action on their part as this will be done automatically.

brian@ebay

thank you, that gives clear edification re that the seller will not be involved in handling the sales tax … other than being charged paypal's fees for them. (which is wrong)

but it brings up another issue re on manage sales page the total inclusive of tax will be reported as buyer's income. would it be so hard to put the buyer's total take on the transaction in a separate amount below the total? and also include the actual seller's "take" in a new field of the downloaded report?

abfabvintage · ‎10-03-2019

@dtexley3

I was just about to ask your same question: I thought EBAY was the facilitator or whatever they call it? When did PP doing this "task" enter the picture? I am more confused now than I ever was.

I ain't got the brains to make this up (Fantastic Beasts)

buyselljack2016 · ‎10-03-2019

brian@ebay wrote:
@dasarock wrote:
brian@ebay wrote:
@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:
brian@ebay What does "payment settled in Paypal" mean? Is that before it hits the seller account?

Sellers right now are not paying fees on sales tax for Managed Payments and Paypal but come November 1st sellers will all of a sudden be required to pay fees on that amount, even though the change is just a processing change?

Hi @the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth, a settled payment refers to a payment that has fully processed and finalized. PayPal could probably give a more detailed definition as well.

That is correct. Beginning November 1, the gross amount of a buyers payment (item cost, shipping cost, and sales tax) will be sent to the sellers PayPal account (if they aren't in managed payments). PayPal processing fees will be applied to the gross amount (which includes sales tax).
brian@ebay

hi again brian. you didn't mention just how exactly, if the taxes are given to the seller and paypal fees charged on all …. just how is ebay going to recoup these taxes from the seller and pay them under the marketplace facilitator laws …? how is this going to happen?
Hi @dasarock, I apologize if my previous comments weren't clear on this. While I'm not certain what level of detail you are looking for, I can confirm that as soon as the payment settles, PayPal will automatically deduct the sales tax from the payment and it will be remitted it to the appropriate tax authority. Sellers do not need to take action on their part as this will be done automatically.