General

[custar]

Originally Posted by Drum

Wouldn't proof be the concern of the IRS and not the taxpayer?

If there is no way to prove how much something cost or how much was spent on an ebay item then it would seem to me that Uncle Sam would be the one on the losing end.
(

You would THINK it would work that way, wouldn't you? Sadly, the IRS and the tax courts posit that the burden is on the taxpayer. Absent proof of acquisition cost, the entire sale price will be taxed. It's very close to "guilty until proven innocent".

custar

[PJ]

Most things I buy online I use PayPal, so there's a record of how much and who it went to for our lovely money-hungry government to see, if/when they require it.

Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with paying fair taxes, but the receiver of the taxes (the Government) should be held accountable for how they spend it, and not on pork projects or "Working Ladies" down the street.

[wolf13]

Custar has it, the IRS is a loophole in the legal system in that absent proof of your postion, they have the right. While I have records of some of my stuff, if you don't use paypal then you had better be able to provide some sort of receipt stating excatly what you bought, when you bought it and for how much. Paypal alone might not be enough. if you don't include a detailed description, it may not be sufficient. I find this very scary to be honest. as a gov employee dealing with a severe shortage of funding in my agency, I can't complain about paying taxes. I can complain about unfair taxation and waste though.

[WilD]

I'm more concerned with yet another entity (ebay) collectiong social security numbers. But yeah, the documentation of purchase price for old junk sold on ebay for the purpose of capital gains is going to be a major problem. This goes way beyond paintball markers.

[Drum]

Originally Posted by PJ

the receiver of the taxes (the Government) should be held accountable for how they spend it.

Hear! Hear!

Also, let's hope that the IRS makes enough money funkin' up all those non-tax paying "power sellers" that they won't have to bother with us "power buyers" here at MCB.

(fingers crossed)

D.

[ncbbh88]

maybe this has been touched on already but i didnt see it, what if you are buying and selling on forum? would the tax only be applicable on auction sites or could we still buy/sell on forums since they act more like a garage sale, and last i checked you dont tax someone on the garage sale they had last weekend.

just a thought

NC

[PJ]

Originally Posted by ncbbh88

maybe this has been touched on already but i didnt see it, what if you are buying and selling on forum? would the tax only be applicable on auction sites or could we still buy/sell on forums since they act more like a garage sale, and last i checked you dont tax someone on the garage sale they had last weekend.

just a thought

NC

Nope, it isn't covered that I know of. Yet.

[jwatts]

Man, F*ck The Irs!!!!

[Morgenstern]

Have they actually passed any legislation yet? Ebay probably has a lot of money ready to help fight this and i'm sure they've been in the legal crosshairs plenty of times in the past. From what I've read before I thought the IRS could get an individuals records from Ebay in the event of an audit, so the powersellers always had to worry while the little fish could quietly go about a little business as usual.

[Christian Nelson]

Wouldn't proof be the concern of the IRS and not the taxpayer?

HA! Yeah right.

You have to prove you aren't a tax avoider, not the other way around.

Also, technically, you ARE supposed to report garage sales for sales tax to the state. They tend to not go after you for it, but typically states that charge sales tax expect you to pay sales tax on it, any time it is sold.

Some states have a rule that once someone has paid sales tax on something, it doen't need to after that.

I tend to do it that way with my computer repair business I run on the side of my normal job. For example, I used to have a tax ID, so I could purchase computer hardware without paying taxes. The problem came in where when I ever sold the parts, I had to tack on sales tax, and pay the state for that. Well, I have been instead, paying the sales tax when I buy the part, and then when I install it, I simply charge the whole thing as a service fee, which I use the profit earned for income on my income tax.

Probably still not perfectly legal, but I sleep well at night, not feeling like I have cheated anyone with that system.