Tax changes to popular sites such as Vinted and eBay won’t impact those selling their unwanted clothes or unused kids’ toys, a senior tax advisor has insisted.
There have been widespread fears that all users of selling sites, even casual sellers passing on their old clothing and other items, will be made to file tax returns to HMRC when they reach certain limits.
However, Alex Dent, a partner at Cumbria-headquartered Saint & Co Chartered Accountants specialising in tax, has reassured users that tax implications will only affect those classed as ‘traders’ whose goal is to make profit on their stock.
Alex Dent, a Partner at Saint & Co Chartered Accountants
In January 2024, HMRC informed the likes of Vinted, eBay, Etsy and AirBnB they needed to start collecting data on their users’ selling activities, and now they have been told they need to report users who sell more than 30 items or earn more than £1,700 in one calendar year.
However, the rules don’t apply to all as Alex explained.
She said: “There has been a lot of panic and misinformation spread about the rule changes, but these will not apply to a large percentage of users who continue to sell their old clothes or baby items they no longer use for some extra pennies.
“Users who use the sites for trade purposes by buying products and selling them for more than what they paid or those repairing items to make a profit will need to consider whether they need to register with HMRC to pay suitable taxes as has always been the case.
“A lot of people use Vinted and eBay to get rid of stuff gathering dust in their homes at prices much lower than they originally paid so aren’t making a profit, and therefore will not need to pay any tax.
“It’s important to point this difference out so people can continue to sell their unwanted items without fear they will face a tax bill at the end of it all.
“Whilst reports will be made to HMRC by these platforms for those who do sell more than 30 items or have sales of more than £1,700, this does not necessarily mean they will need to register for self-assessment and pay tax.”
Saint & Co has numerous offices across Cumbria and Dumfries & Galloway in Scotland. The team can be contacted at 01228 534371 or advice@saint.co.uk.
