Ebay Fees and VAT

[brickdragon]

OK, this might turn into a slight rant but I just want to check that I understand the VAT charges to business sellers correctly:

I'm a relatively new Ebay business seller and I've taken a look at my final value fees for items sold in August and they looked higher than usual so I contacted Ebay Customer Services who explained that VAT is now being charged to all business sellers at the standard UK rate of 20% for final value fees. ( I retrospectively found a message from Ebay relating to this from May this year after the on-line chat)

So this means that instead of the 9% FVFs that I normally pay, I'm now paying an average of around 11% as VAT is loaded on top? Is this right?

So as a business seller, unless you're VAT registered, you're going to pay higher fees than a private seller on top of the monthly subscription which private sellers don't have to pay??

If this is the case, I don't understand the value of registering as a business seller apart from a few additional tools as I'm probably going to be paying around £150 more a month in fees based on my turnover compared to a private seller who also get several free listing and final value fee discount offers that business sellers don't get!

Does anyone else feel the same way or have I completely misinterpreted the situation?

[angelah1847 · Accepted solution]

You would probably be better off posting on the business seller discussion board, there are no doubt other threads on this topic as a number of sellers are not happy/confused about it.

http://community.ebay.co.uk/t5/Business-Seller-Board/bd-p/21900001545

As far as your comment 'So as a business seller, unless you're VAT registered, you're going to pay higher fees than a private seller on top of the monthly subscription which private sellers don't have to pay??' is concerned.  You pay a monthly subscription because you have a shop.  A private seller can open a shop and would also be charged a monthly subscription fee.

'I don't understand the value of registering as a business seller'

You're selling items you have bought with the specfic intention of selling so you have to be registered as a business seller, you don't have a choice in that.