Selling how much = business account?

ebaygetsworsebytheday

Ive tried searching but didnt find the specific answer.

Does anyone know what the "limits" are on ebay before they force you to become a business seller?

Im having a mass clear out and am listing a fair few items with a lot more to go, but am worried I may hit the "quota" that ebay determines makes me a business (although Im not)

So my question is, what are the maximum amount of sales and/or items listed per month before ebay forces the "business account" on me?

And the second part of the question, if I get forced to change to a business ebay account, do I have to register for tax etc etc, or can I still use it as a private seller - which after all, is what I am!!

Thanks for any help, and apologies if I missed something already posted.

hermum

I think that you are only a business if you buy to sell for a profit, selling your own belongings as you don't need them doesn't make you a business seller.

RFW

If you buy to sell then you are a business seller and need to register for tax.

Ebay are currently tightening up the amount of listings for private sellers, but I don't think it has rolled out yet, so some 'private' sellers are still listing 1000s of items. My guess is they are going to cap it at around 50-100 per week.

Also HMRC have a team trawling Ebay for people who aren't declaring, private sellers with high volume sellers are their first target.

MrsA1939

ebaygetsworsebytheday wrote: »

Ive tried searching but didnt find the specific answer.

Does anyone know what the "limits" are on ebay before they force you to become a business seller?

Im having a mass clear out and am listing a fair few items with a lot more to go, but am worried I may hit the "quota" that ebay determines makes me a business (although Im not)

So my question is, what are the maximum amount of sales and/or items listed per month before ebay forces the "business account" on me?

And the second part of the question, if I get forced to change to a business ebay account, do I have to register for tax etc etc, or can I still use it as a private seller - which after all, is what I am!!

Thanks for any help, and apologies if I missed something already posted.

I would only list a few items at a time, I was reading the eBay discussions
last week and a private seller was having a massive clear out of her childrens clothes, and was told that she had to register as a business seller

StaffsSW

They don't publish what the thresholds are by value or volume for a very good reason.

Ten98

Perhaps not published, but the eBay Powerseller forum is a great source of info.

The current limits as of April 2010 are 100 items per week. After that you get stronger and stronger "advice" from eBay "encouraging" you to register as a business.

If you ignore them then your account gets suspended.

soolin

Ten98 wrote: »

Perhaps not published, but the eBay Powerseller forum is a great source of info.

The current limits as of April 2010 are 100 items per week. After that you get stronger and stronger "advice" from eBay "encouraging" you to register as a business.

If you ignore them then your account gets suspended.

The 'free limits' plus the statement that higher volume sellers will be encouraged to register as a business have been announced and are being discussed here:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=2378595

scarlet74

Well I've just had my email from ebay encouraging me - sorry, forcing me - to become a business seller.

I have a feedback total of just under 400 for buying and selling, so obviously not a large seller, but in the last few weeks I have been having a big clearout of my Lego by listing items individually as 99p auctions.

I have had about 130 or so listed at a time as 3 day listings, and I think this has flagged me up as some sort of high volume seller. The paradox is that free 99p listings are only available to private sellers, but list too many and you are forced to become a business seller - when you get charged 10p for 99p listings.

I don't think I have been page-hogging with my listings, as they are all interesting items which are of interest to buyers, and it's only worth listing them if the listing is free. If I have to pay to list 99p auctions, it's not really worth it, and I would stop - but being "upgraded" to business seller status would be a bit ironic as I would then be listing fewer items than ever.

I know it's ebay that makes the rules and we either take it or leave it - but it's their constant tinkering with things that is so frustrating, and I don't think I'm alone in that.

soolin

How about this seller who is on the community boards protesting that she really is only a private seller and is quite appalled that ebay are only going to allow her to list 100 items a month. Mind you, she may list a lot but she never actually sells anything!

http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/ireallyamtinkerbell/

scarlet74

That's a lot of Happy Meals...

clancy

This issue has been worrying me the last few days after seeing the thread on the ebay forum regarding the lady selling her childrens clothes, i have been listing my childrens stuff (clothes, games, shoes) & Mine and Partners clothes over the last few months and with the money made i have purchased things for my children that they wanted from ebay, i am now considering not adding anything for a few weeks, as i dont want the hassle of being made to upgrade to a buisness seller when i am not.
Do people think that not adding anything for a few weeks is the best thing to do??