Paypal drastic changes


When you’re paid for goods and services, the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) considers this reportable income.

Once you receive $600 in payments for goods and services within a calendar year, tax laws require us to withhold 24% of such payments when you have not confirmed your taxpayer status by either providing your US tax ID or completing a Certificate of Foreign Status. This 24% is sent to the IRS as backup withholding for any potential income tax due on those payments.

You can learn more about this tax law on the IRS website.

I tried to attach a link , but it wouldn't cooperate.

krelldog

This entire thing annoys me to no end. I researched it pretty thoroughly, and it looks like I'll never pay tax unless I profit on the sale, which I never ever do. So there's that.

My return is already complicated. But this won't complicate it further because at most, I take the form from Paypal, attach it to my documentation of what I purchased the item for, then give them to my tax prep guy who files it as a check-off (ie, he checked it off, no need to make part of actual IRS return).

On the other hand, the changes this IRS kerfluffle have wrought were/are entirely predictable: many many sellers demand payment only via PP's "Friends & Family" feature, which offers no transaction protection to the buyer. I've tried to purchase things from sellers like this and end up walking away. Doubtless some are regular audio citizens who simply don't understand that they have little if any risk. But also doubtless, some are scammers who would take my unprotected money and run. How can I tell them apart? It's impossible, so I walk.