When sales tax is due
Sellers who act on Ebay according to plan and with considerable organizational effort can carry out an entrepreneurial activity and thus be subject to VAT. The Federal Fiscal Court has now decided (Az. XI R 43/13). A self-employed financial service provider who sold at least 140 fur coats in two years via several seller accounts has to pay taxes. Total income: around 90,000 euros. The Federal Fiscal Court (BFH) did not want to believe that it was the private fur collection of her deceased mother-in-law, also because the coats were different sizes. In some cases, the arm lengths differed by up to ten centimetres. The plaintiff's argument that a size "could change from time to time" did not help.
Tax office gets wind of anonymous ads
The tax office found out about the sales from an anonymous report and assessed sales tax. The woman's lawsuit against the determination before the Baden-Württemberg Finance Court was initially successful. Their reasoning: The sale of a private collection is not a business activity. The BFH decided otherwise. The sales cannot be compared with the activities of a private collector who collects stamps or coins, for example. The woman sold someone else's fur coats, not her own. Even the plaintiff's reference to the limited duration of her sales activity changed nothing.
Active marketing leads to tax liability
According to the top financial judges, whether there is entrepreneurial activity depends largely on whether the seller has taken active steps to market it like a dealer or used similar means.
Tip: Read the special tax traps for Ebay dealers to find out when other taxes are due on Ebay. If you need help with your tax return – you will find many helpful books from Stiftung Warentest in the shop on test.de.
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