Selling stuff online? Here comes the IRS

[wakeme2008]

I think this is good if done RIGHT. IMHO, if you sell one or two things a year on Ebay you should not have to deal with the IRS paperwork. But if you live off your Ebay earnings then that is a different animal.

http://news.com.com/Selling+stuff+online+Here+comes+the+IRS/2100-1028_3-6176041.html?tag=nefd.lede

Selling stuff online? Here comes the IRS

By Declan McCullagh
http://news.com.com/Selling+stuff+online+Here+comes+the+IRS/2100-1028_3-6176041.html

Story last modified Fri Apr 13 18:44:00 PDT 2007


Americans who sell items through Internet auction sites could be in for an unpleasant surprise at tax time next year, thanks to an IRS proposal designed to identify taxpayers who don't report income from those sales.

The U.S. Treasury Department wants Congress to force auction sites like eBay, Amazon.com and uBid.com to turn over the identities and Social Security numbers of a large portion of their users to the IRS--so tax collectors know how much each person made through online selling.

..cut..


"It's a total nightmare," said Matt Stinchcomb, vice president of marketing for Etsy.com, which allows people to sell handmade goods. "Our goal as a company is to allow people to make a living making things, and this is just another impediment to that."

..cut..

"One recent study found that 700,000 Americans reported that eBay sales constitute their primary or secondary source of income.

..more at link...



Now Wakeme2008 is getting on his flameproof suit :)

[WePurrsevere]

1. This has been coming down the pike for quite some time...

(years actually).

Most online sellers I know don't have a problem with the idea of sellers reporting their income *IF* they're consistently a "Power Seller" (over $1,000 in sales a month) and *if* it's not just old stuff they had around the house or inherited from their parents (stuff that might otherwise go to a garage/estate sale or landfill).

If you can actually "make a living" selling online you really should be reporting it to the IRS (and making sure you take all the deductions you can;)). If you're just trying to supplement your income a little and feel like you're doing "something" to bring in money and are selling an average of less then $1,000. a month then IMO you're more of a hobby seller and I think those folks should continue to be left alone.

Although I don't recall giving eBay my SS# (it's been a few years since I signed up with a new account), reporting to the IRS all those who have Power Seller status would be relatively easy for eBay. I believe however that eBay is fighting this since it has consistently (when it works in their favor:eyes:) had the stance that they're a "venue" and it's up to the sellers to report to the IRS.

[Vinca]

2. I must be a fool. It never occurred to me not to report my ebay income.

It's kind of dumb not to if you want to report your earnings for the purposes of acquiring a loan of any kind or think you might get social security when you're old. Not to mention the time at Club Fed if you're caught by the IRS.

[postulater]

3. It's probably easier than collecting gambling income

[wyldwolf]

4. The US Tax system has become a nightmare.