UK VAT requirements for US eBay sellers?

[tealt]

This morning I came across this short article about increased enforcement of UK VAT laws:

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-46838687

The  last paragraph is most interesting:

Non-UK business selling goods in the UK to UK consumers via online marketplaces are required to register for VAT in the UK, charge VAT of 20% on sales, and account for that VAT to HMRC.

  Does anyone know, briefly, how HMRC defines a "business"? 

Would this law apply to an average US eBay seller? 

Can anyone point me to eBay's official position on this (if it has one)?

[penguins_dont_fly]

eBay (via Pitney Bowes) collects the VAT on GSP items at time of payment.

But there's no mechanism for an independent seller to collect or remit if they ship direct.

I do know that eBay collects and remits GST automatically on sales to Australia, even if the seller doesn't use GSP.

Along with state sales taxes ... I think that this will become the norm as time goes on as more states and countries require the "facilitator" to be responsible.

[richard1rst]

As it is now for those of us who still ship USPS not through eBay's global system, when a package arrives the post office, on behalf of customs, bills the buyer for the taxes. They have to pay that before they get their package. So I do not see how the UK is missing out on any of this. One possibility is that sellers are grossly understating the value to help the buyer avoid taxes. (There have been many threads on that subject here - personally I refuse to do it).

As I understand the global system the taxes are built right into the invoice. A little weak on that as I do not use it. Maybe others who do can fill it in. But again, if that is the case then how is the UK missing out on their tax bite?

[gramophone-georg]

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@tealt wrote:

This morning I came across this short article about increased enforcement of UK VAT laws:

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-46838687

The  last paragraph is most interesting:

Non-UK business selling goods in the UK to UK consumers via online marketplaces are required to register for VAT in the UK, charge VAT of 20% on sales, and account for that VAT to HMRC.

  Does anyone know, briefly, how HMRC defines a "business"? 

Would this law apply to an average US eBay seller? 

Can anyone point me to eBay's official position on this (if it has one)?

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If I had to guess I'd say that this has more to do with "Brexit" than USA sellers. Sounds like an attempt by the UK to keep collecting the VAT that the EU collected on their behalf.

[mr-bluray]

As far as i can see it's a crackdown on those sellers who list their location as being within the UK when they actually ship the item from outside the UK. Usually only Chinese sellers will do this. It's not anything a US seller should be concerned about.

[gramophone-georg]

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@mr-bluray wrote:

As far as i can see it's a crackdown on those sellers who list their location as being within the UK when they actually ship the item from outside the UK. Usually only Chinese sellers will do this. It's not anything a US seller should be concerned about.

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Right- Good catch! 

Non-UK business selling goods in the UK to UK consumers via online marketplaces are required to register for VAT in the UK, charge VAT of 20% on sales, and account for that VAT to HMRC.