Sorry been away for a day or two’s fishing. Weather not too good. High winds and nothing much biting.
For the purposes of legal studies there are whole textbooks devoted to whether or not an activity falls within the definition of a business, which of course means, when posting on these boards you can only scratch the surface and deal in generalities.
I-once-was-bump - in answer to your question this kind of activity would ordinarily fall within the classification of a hobby. We all collect things knowing that one day we will need to divest ourselves of them, in the hope that we get more for them than we paid for them, but all other things being equal, and I stress, all other things being equal, this kind of activity would ordinarily fall within the definition of a hobby and therefore be income tax exempt. That is, there is a fundamental difference between divesting oneself of an asset, as distinct to operating a business.
However you need to be wary of the 2 year trap, in that, if it is bought in the circumstances as described and you sell it before you had it for 2 years or more, and if you sold it for more than you paid for it, then the profit generated would be subject to Capital Gains Tax.
I know clear as mud. So my advice to anyone who is thinking of selling in line: everything you do is in the public domain, and organisations such as the ATO and DSS, with their data matching capacity (which is improving every month), they are watching every move you make. So if you’re regularly selling on line, get professional advice as to what your current status is.
