Hi forever,

Below is a link to the Australian Business Register where you can read further information as to whether you are entitles to register for an ABN:

https://abr.gov.au/ABRWeb/Homepage.aspx?Task=08cda5d2-4f54-4d80-8d2e-80c50628a91f&NavGraph=Home&View...

Registration is free and it can be done online very quickly and easily as has been suggested.

If you have any questions you can either call your accountant, or click on the "contact us" tab in the link above to get further information for free.

If you want to register a business name that will cost you some money and can also be done online via the ASIC website (see link below)

https://www.asic.gov.au/asic/asic.nsf/byheadline/Registering+a+business+name?openDocument

Please do not give out finacial advice on the boards stating that if you earn less than $20,000 it is not considered a business. That is completely false. As has also been stated you can operate at a loss and still be running a business. If you buy and sell on ebay for the purposes of trying to make money you are running a business irrespective of how much you make from the activity. Whether there ia a tax liability is another matter again.

I understand that we all try to help each other out on the boards but it worries me when well intended advice is wrong and if someone relies on it they could end up in trouble because they haven't done the right thing.

The ATO can be called for advice on tax matters and have a wealth of information on their website. You can also order publications from them with basic information on running a small business, record keeping etc.

The best thing to do if you are unsure is to contact the relevant government agency for some good free advice, or if you prefer, speak to an accountant.