EBAY is wrongly charging GST ON postage,GST only applies to the item price and not postage

[ambler57]

Be aware ebay is wrongfully charging 10% GST on the  postage cost at checkout when buying from an international seller when buying on ebay Australia.GST should only apply to the item and NOT the postage costs 

[brerrabbit585]

When GST has been charged on consignments worth over $1,000 it's always been charged on item price + postage. The only thing that's changed is that it's not limited to items/consignments worth over $1,000.

GST = Goods & Services Tax. Postage is a service. It's also part of the total cost to get the goods to you.

[lyndal1838]

Ebay is not wrong.....the GST applies to item and postage.

[ambler57]

I have just spoken to customer service & they agreed GST is applied to the item cost and should not apply to the postage cost from international sellers and have offered a refund ......so who knows who is right

[enigmabear]

It's not customer service

GST = Goods and service tax

Postage is a service 

[lyndal1838 · Accepted solution]

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@ambler57 wrote:
I have just spoken to customer service & they agreed GST is applied to the item cost and should not apply to the postage cost from international sellers and have offered a refund ......so who knows who is right

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Do you really think that Customer Service in another country is going to have a clue about the GST in Australia?

[clover0007]

hi sorry for my ignorance but i have just started selling on ebay after a break away from it and dont understand the gst component at all. if i sell a book for say $10 do i get charged a 9.9% ebay fee and then an additional 10% gst on top of that.

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@lyndal1838 wrote:

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@ambler57 wrote:
I have just spoken to customer service & they agreed GST is applied to the item cost and should not apply to the postage cost from international sellers and have offered a refund ......so who knows who is right

---

Do you really think that Customer Service in another country is going to have a clue about the GST in Australia?

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@lyndal1838 wrote:

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@ambler57 wrote:
I have just spoken to customer service & they agreed GST is applied to the item cost and should not apply to the postage cost from international sellers and have offered a refund ......so who knows who is right

---

Do you really think that Customer Service in another country is going to have a clue about the GST in Australia?

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[kopenhagen5]

If you sell a book at 10 plus 3 postage you will be charged fees of 10.9% on 13.

That includes the Netflix tax (GST) on fees only.

The recent GST on imports under 1000 is if you are selling into Aus from overseas.

And that is invoiced as an additional 10% by eBay to the buyer.

(Unless an agent is used such as the GSP)

[brerrabbit585]

From this ATO webpage:  https://www.ato.gov.au/Business/International-tax-for-business/GST-on-low-value-imported-goods/Infor...

Using an electronic distribution platform (EDP)

An EDP is a service (such as a website) through which you can buy goods from various merchants. The EDP operator will generally charge GST on:

• low value goods you import
• delivery costs and other fees.

NOTE THE LAST LINE!!

[lyndal1838]

It is one thing to charge the GST on the superinflated GSP shipping charge, but IMO it is offensive to charge another fee to do so.