eBay overcharges by charging final value fees on GST | Selling

worldofannwn · 2023-06-14T05:37:18.928000Z

I have read many people complain about overcharging here only to be told that it's all correct and legal no matter how unfair it might seem; I would be happy for someone to point out if and how that applies to the following situation because I simply can't see it no matter how I look at it, and there is a dearth of information out there about GST on commissions. 1. Suppose I sell an item for $100 and eBay takes 10% FVF (to keep it simple), then I end up with $90 and eBay with $10 as the variable part. 2. Since both parties are registered for GST, I collect $100 + $10 GST from my customer and eBay collects $10 + $1 GST. 3. The ACCC says display prices must include all applicable taxes and charges, and eBay says listing prices include GST where appropriate. 4. The listing price for a $100 item is therefore $110 GST inclusive. eBay charges 10% FVF on this, and collects $11 GST inclusive. They then add in any other applicable fees and charge GST on the total, or another $1.10 on top of their fee. 5. This amounts to fees being approximately 1% higher than advertised and is a significant gouge out of profits. Unsurprisingly, most responses from eBay customer service have disingenuously asked where the error in the calculation is, or exposed their ignorance of the law. The last response promised that the matter was being passed over to a specialist team (specialising in fobbing off customers, no doubt) and assured me there was no need to email again. I don't know about need but I certainly agree there is no point. A read through the ATO community website indicates that their position is that we need to contact eBay to sort out GST issues; the ACCC seems uninterested in looking into it, presumably considering it's not a matter of public interest. Before I start down the path of legal action I would be interested to know if anyone else has been affected by this and what was done about it.

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eBay overcharges by charging final value fees on GST | Selling | eBay Australia