# Reverb update



## silvertonebetty (Jan 4, 2015)

So I saw this on another forum 


_*Dear Reverber,

We’re writing to let you know about a new IRS reporting requirement for 2022: *_

_*Beginning January 1, 2022, marketplaces like Reverb will be required to collect tax identification information from sellers who sell $600 or more on the platform in a calendar year.*_
_*This information is needed to ensure timely and accurate issuing of a Form 1099-K.*_
_*There’s nothing you need to do now, but we may ask you for tax identification information in 2022 if you hit the new $600 threshold.*_
_*Reporting your sales doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll need to pay income tax on your sales—it just means that you’ll be issued a Form 1099-K. You can learn more in our Help Center, which we’ll keep updated with the latest tax information. We’ll let you know if you need to take any action in 2022.

Thanks for being part of our community,

The Reverb team*_

I don’t understand why they are taxing on used items, the taxes on them has been paid in full all ready not to mention it’s a private sale.


----------



## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

I read something about this on another guitar forum. Seems there is no issue with private sale items from sellers that are not a business. Not sure if there is any responsibility to prove this on the sellers part. I imagine this will just be one more thing that will make it a pain in the ass to sell on Reverb and discourage many sellers from using it. I am mostly a buyer and I won't have anything to do with Reverb or Ebay.


----------



## Paul Running (Apr 12, 2020)




----------



## CMCRAWFORD (Mar 17, 2014)

I have sold more than a few items on Reverb and I noticed within the last year that some US buyers are getting hit with tax at the point of payment. I shows me a summary of what they paid, shipping and the tax they are being charged. It is a double dip for sure. No different though if you buy a used item from a retail store but I think it's pretty shady.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

i hate it, but it was inevitable....much like you pay tax every time a used car is resold. governments will be getting creative to find ways to pay the bills from the past couple years....and the next few at least.


----------



## teleboli (Aug 19, 2009)

I've had great success with my little Revoib outpost, but if they and the gov't keep makin' babies....


----------



## keto (May 23, 2006)

It's a nothingburger (the IRS notice in the OP) UNLESS you are making a profit, and doing business in the USA.

-if you sell and break even or lose money, nobody cares other than they (IRS/CRA) might ask you to prove it, ie., prove what you paid originally
-if you make a profit, that's taxable - ever heard of capital gains? However, these Reverb notices are for the IRS, so CRA still doesn't know.


----------



## Arek (Jan 24, 2009)

With electronic payments it could be all monitored.

Boils down to: 
If you get any money coming to you = PAY TAXES.
Whether ir is from employment, sale, or a gift = PAY TAXES

Have you noticed a question on our tax forms re: income from house sale?

Is crypto the solution?


----------



## teleboli (Aug 19, 2009)

Like everything else we had it right the first time.

Cash, goats, chickens.


----------



## Okay Player (May 24, 2020)

Arek said:


> With electronic payments it could be all monitored.
> 
> Boils down to:
> If you get any money coming to you = PAY TAXES.
> ...


Crypto is already taxed.


----------



## colchar (May 22, 2010)

silvertonebetty said:


> So I saw this on another forum
> 
> 
> _*Dear Reverber,
> ...



Well this doesn't apply to Canadians, but if you or I were to sell a used guitar it would be one thing but it is quite another for someone doing it as a business. They pay taxes if a brick and mortar location, so why not online as well?


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

keto said:


> It's a nothingburger (the IRS notice in the OP) UNLESS you are making a profit, and doing business in the USA.
> 
> -if you sell and break even or lose money, nobody cares other than they (IRS/CRA) might ask you to prove it, ie., prove what you paid originally
> -if you make a profit, that's taxable - ever heard of capital gains? However, these Reverb notices are for the IRS, so CRA still doesn't know.


if it happens it will be a mess for awhile...better start saving copies of the ads of stuff you buy on KJ or even here, in case you need a paper trail when you sell.


----------



## Frenchy (Mar 23, 2011)

Theyre is enough deals local for me not to have to use Reverb or Ebay. Bought only about a dozen guitar/basses in the last 20 years and nothing in the last 8 years. Local markets have increased so much that the need for these services are not needed.

I'm not selling mind you !

If I was selling, might look at those services since the selling prices are whackos in my mind ... who would not want to make those big bucks for your junk !!! 
but fuck it if I now have to pay tax on it...

I pay enough taxes in this country.


----------



## laristotle (Aug 29, 2019)

Wait till they hit yard sales come spring.


----------



## Alex (Feb 11, 2006)

colchar said:


> They pay taxes if a brick and mortar location, so why not online as well?


yep, levelling the playing field. I love Reverb but not sure what their business model is going forward. They've increased the commission rate to 5% whereby some retailers threw in the towel. Is it a site for mainly used gear or for retailers with low visibility going forward(?). And even that, once a buyer has done a transaction with a Retailer, why not go straight to the retailer's website. Again, love the service just not sure it's a viable service or it becomes what Ebay transformed a few years back with a 10% commission rate. Consignment for me became the obvious choice and I think Ebay has adjusted the rate since but, they lost me in the shuffle combined with the advent of Reverb.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

i guess its one way to cut down on the flippers.


----------



## colchar (May 22, 2010)

Alex said:


> yep, levelling the playing field. I love Reverb but not sure what their business model is going forward. They've increased the commission rate to 5% whereby some retailers threw in the towel. Is it a site for mainly used gear or for retailers with low visibility going forward(?). And even that, once a buyer has done a transaction with a Retailer, why not go straight to the retailer's website. Again, love the service just not sure it's a viable service or it becomes what Ebay transformed a few years back with a 10% commission rate. Consignment for me became the obvious choice and I think Ebay has adjusted the rate since but, they lost me in the shuffle combined with the advent of Reverb.



Commission rates are becoming issues elsewhere too.

I was looking for a book yesterday and found it through an online site. The seller was in Manitoba, but the shipping was stupidly high. I contacted them to ask about it since there is no way it would cost that much to mail a book from Manitoba to Ontario, and they replied that they hike their shipping fees to offset the fees charged by the website. I am used to buying from sellers there who offer free shipping from the UK, and sometimes the US, so never pay shipping fees and didn't realize sellers would be using those to offset their costs.


----------



## MFW777 (Aug 3, 2017)

colchar said:


> I am used to buying from sellers there who offer free shipping from the UK, and sometimes the US, so never pay shipping fees and didn't realize sellers would be using those to offset their costs.


This is quite common on US eBay postings, sellers promote an item that looks to be a reasonable price only to subsidize with outrageous shipping costs. Then add in the “Global Shipping Program” that charges an outrageous, highly marked up “import, customs and duty” fee in USD (provided by Pitney Bowes). I don‘t think it’s worth buying any US item on eBay anymore, unless you have a US address to ship to. In most instances the seller has no clue what the Global Shipping Program adds to the costs, nor do they care. And…all costs in $USD, far too expensive!


----------



## DrumBob (Aug 17, 2014)

Just another reason to not sell on Reverb. I stopped selling there after Etsy took over.


----------



## zztomato (Nov 19, 2010)

Are they reporting to Revenue Canada as well? They can tell the IRS whatever the heck they want. I think it's just wrong that they are monitoring sales for the feds though.


----------



## laristotle (Aug 29, 2019)

the gov always wants it's cut.


----------



## colchar (May 22, 2010)

zztomato said:


> Are they reporting to Revenue Canada as well? They can tell the IRS whatever the heck they want. I think it's just wrong that they are monitoring sales for the feds though.


Not like they’ve got a choice. You don’t fuck with the IRS, unless you’re Scientology……….


----------



## Powdered Toast Man (Apr 6, 2006)

I seriously doubt this is by their choice. You know how expensive/annoying it is for a company to have to report stuff like this? 

I know Reverb was hit by the US Supreme Court ruling on taxation a few years ago that forced them to start collecting state sales taxes. That means you have to pay sales tax based on the shipping address. That's right, now when you ship to a parcel service on the US side of the border you're going to pay sales tax for whatever state that's in. And then GST/PST again when you bring it back across the border. The deals aren't as good when you're looking at 20% total taxes.


----------



## Arek (Jan 24, 2009)

Okay Player said:


> Crypto is already taxed.


That depends on what you use it for.
Buy in the store - you pay GST HST PST VAT, recycling, carbon tax, fuel surchargetax…
Buy privately - not necessarily. 
Now it could still be used like cash in private transactions like cash, but once cash is gone it may remain non taxed…….until they do……

That’s my understanding, but I don’t use crypto, so correct me if I am wrong.


----------



## Okay Player (May 24, 2020)

Arek said:


> That depends on what you use it for.
> Buy in the store - you pay GST HST PST VAT, recycling, carbon tax, fuel surchargetax…
> Buy privately - not necessarily.
> Now it could still be used like cash in private transactions like cash, but once cash is gone it may remain non taxed…….until they do……
> ...


If you have real money in crypto, eventually it will be obvious that you're spending large amount of money that the government knows you aren't supposed to have. They're referred to as lifestyle audits, and they're what they use to catch drug dealers and other forms of tax cheats.

In society as it currently sits, your crypto eventually needs to turn into money to have any real value. Now, I can find you lots of people who think they don't leave any footprint, but I can promise you, they do.


----------



## zztomato (Nov 19, 2010)

colchar said:


> Not like they’ve got a choice. You don’t fuck with the IRS, unless you’re Scientology……….


I suppose not. 
You know what I mean though? 
I have a business that has sales that I report every year. RevCan expects that I report honestly and, as a small business owner, I always live in fear of the audit. I have to make sure that my balance sheet makes sense. So if I report all my other sources of income voluntarily, why does Reverb report my sales preemptively? 
Again though, is this just happening with the IRS?


----------



## colchar (May 22, 2010)

zztomato said:


> I suppose not.
> You know what I mean though?


Totally.





> Again though, is this just happening with the IRS?



For now, but Revenue Canada can't be far behind.


----------



## Alex (Feb 11, 2006)

zztomato said:


> Are they reporting to Revenue Canada as well? They can tell the IRS whatever the heck they want. I think it's just wrong that they are monitoring sales for the feds though.


At the moment they do not, however, the tax agencies do talk and share information. The risk is quite low but the IRS is a well known aggressive agency. Given you are a resident of Canada with (I presume) no business establishment in the US, you should be fine but I suspect in the future, "establishment" will be revised and truth be told, I thought a few years back when Reverb introduced the reporting scheme to take a break on the Reverb platform. If I can crystallize my losses, I'm happy for them to do a review 😆


----------



## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

I went to buy an update of Scuffham S-Gear amp software. They are charging me Canadian tax in American dollars.

I asked them this:

"Hi, When I click on the upgrade link you sent me, you are adding Canadian taxes. I find it strange that an American small business is collecting taxes for the Govt of Canada.
You are also collecting the tax in American dollars. I have not had any software companies collect taxes from me, and I have bought a ton, and for a lot more.

Please remove the tax from the item?

Thanks,"


They replied this:

"I believe that there were recent changes to the taxation of digital goods and services supplied in Canada (by foreign companies). A sales tax is now due. 

If you have any questions about the checkout, you can contact our reseller Cleverbridge and they will be able to explain. Contact details are as follows:

Online store powered by cleverbridge AG 

If you are purchasing as a business, there is a checkbox you can tick on the checkout page in order to be exempted from sales tax.

https://support.cleverbridge.com/hc...eive-a-reimbursement-for-sales-tax-in-Canada- "


----------



## cheezyridr (Jun 8, 2009)

silvertonebetty said:


> I don’t understand why they are taxing on used items, the taxes on them has been paid in full all ready not to mention it’s a private sale.





colchar said:


> Not like they’ve got a choice. You don’t fuck with the IRS, unless you’re Scientology……….


the current administration is hiring 80,000 irs agents in order to drum up money to pay for the spending spree they've been on. this is the EXACT reason why this is happening. anyone in the u.s. who thinks they won't pay capitol gains (real or imagined) is deluded. anyone who thinks revenue canada won't be following suit eventually is equally deluded.
i do local sales through craig's list because i don't want to bother with shipping, so it won't affect me as much as it will some folks. but it will affect me as a buyer because it will drive up prices, and kill off some of the sellers


----------



## Fred Gifford (Sep 2, 2019)

player99 said:


> I went to buy an update of Scuffham S-Gear amp software. They are charging me Canadian tax in American dollars.
> 
> I asked them this:
> 
> ...


charging you Canadian tax in American dollars?? oh my, scammers are getting more and more creative these days, that's the best one I've heard all week


----------



## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

Fred Gifford said:


> charging you Canadian tax in American dollars?? oh my, scammers are getting more and more creative these days, that's the best one I've heard all week


I don't think it's a scam. It's the new way.


----------

