Paying taxes from Ebay sales in Canada

[50cent | 8]

Hey, I had a little chat on the topic with a USA fellow member here. Since August this year Ebay seems to send reports for taxes which I never received before. I was wondering if any fellow Canadian had more information on the subject? Do we have to declare our gain to the government or it's not mandatory for Canada?

 

Cheers!

[the_wizard_666 | 1,325]

https://www.ebay.ca/help/policies/selling-policies/tax-policy?id=4348&mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=706-53473-19255-0&campid=5338683477&customid=&toolid=10001

I can't say what the Canadian legalese on the matter is, you may be fine as an individual and not a business, but if you're unsure, talk to someone familiar with the tax system, like H&R Block or something.  There's gotta be somewhere that gives free consults.  As far as I'm aware, they're not gonna come after you for small shit, but it may also work to your benefit...if your sales are a net loss, it could be used to offset some of your gains elsewhere.

[Andy_Bogomil | 815]

Got an email from eBay stating they will be charging taxes right off the top starting July 1st (non-optional). Of course they are doing it 'for our convenience'. I know you were always suppose to pay with our taxes, but with this cost up front and shipping ANYTHING with tracking costing $25, I'm not sure how selling games on eBay is viable any more. Selling a $100 game is either going to cost the buyer $140 after taxes and shipping or you pay shipping and fees and lose the majority of your profit. 

Edited May 5, 2022 by Andy_Bogomil

[docile tapeworm | 4,204]

@Andy_Bogomil You know if that’s statewide as well?

[a3quit4s | 4,125]

I think what @Andy_Bogomilis saying is that eBay takes out sales taxes off the top which are charged to the buyer. That wouldn’t go towards the sellers sales price only the price + shipping is included there for sales reporting purposes. 
 

Definitely not an expert though 

[Renmauzo | 1,205]

Yes, so in PEI for example, sales tax is 15%. If I buy a $100 game, shipping within Canada is generally $17+ depending on weight & dimension AND ebay will charge me $15.00 in tax at the payment screen. 

People with a business license were already indicating buyers would have to pay sales tax based on their province as they have to declare as an extension of their brick & mortar, but this will make it so that anyone you buy from will see sales tax added onto your purchase at the time of checkout. Considering the overwhelming majority of people who sell don't have a business license, it's unreasonable for the government to step over this line.

I don't buy on ebay.ca anymore due to the - overall - poor selection so this won't change anything for me on the buying front, but this means I'll likely not waste my time trying to sell there either...at least to my fellow Canadians, anyway (which is unfortunate). The items I sell are often rather expensive, and I'm not about to be inundated with messages from people asking me to eat $50-$75 worth of tax.

[Andy_Bogomil | 815]

2 hours ago, Renmauzo said:

Yes, so in PEI for example, sales tax is 15%. If I buy a $100 game, shipping within Canada is generally $17+ depending on weight & dimension AND ebay will charge me $15.00 in tax at the payment screen. 

People with a business license were already indicating buyers would have to pay sales tax based on their province as they have to declare as an extension of their brick & mortar, but this will make it so that anyone you buy from will see sales tax added onto your purchase at the time of checkout. Considering the overwhelming majority of people who sell don't have a business license, it's unreasonable for the government to step over this line.

I don't buy on ebay.ca anymore due to the - overall - poor selection so this won't change anything for me on the buying front, but this means I'll likely not waste my time trying to sell there either...at least to my fellow Canadians, anyway (which is unfortunate). The items I sell are often rather expensive, and I'm not about to be inundated with messages from people asking me to eat $50-$75 worth of tax.

 

Yeah, great point at the end. It's really not about the tax itself, just the shock factor of the new price+shipping+tax and likely eating some of the profit to minimize that (already doing that with shipping). We're also 15% here in NS, so it's the same. People already complaining about $20-$25 shipping on my listings, I can't imagine them wanting to pay another 15%, especially on high end sales. 

I think this what was implemented in the States a while back if I remember correctly.

[docile tapeworm | 4,204]

@Andy_Bogomilyes it was. I see buyers having to pay the tax when they purchase my items.

[jonebone | 1,307]

9 hours ago, Renmauzo said:

Yes, so in PEI for example, sales tax is 15%. If I buy a $100 game, shipping within Canada is generally $17+ depending on weight & dimension AND ebay will charge me $15.00 in tax at the payment screen. 

People with a business license were already indicating buyers would have to pay sales tax based on their province as they have to declare as an extension of their brick & mortar, but this will make it so that anyone you buy from will see sales tax added onto your purchase at the time of checkout. Considering the overwhelming majority of people who sell don't have a business license, it's unreasonable for the government to step over this line.

I don't buy on ebay.ca anymore due to the - overall - poor selection so this won't change anything for me on the buying front, but this means I'll likely not waste my time trying to sell there either...at least to my fellow Canadians, anyway (which is unfortunate). The items I sell are often rather expensive, and I'm not about to be inundated with messages from people asking me to eat $50-$75 worth of tax.

AH okay, this happened in the USA about 2 years ago.  USA buyers have been paying sales tax on every purchase for awhile now unless you go through business / reseller paperwork (filed with IRS?) to get out of it.