eBay tax documents: the 1099-K and the records behind it

eBay sends Form 1099-K by January 31 to sellers whose payments met the IRS or a state threshold the year before (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms). For 2025, eBay lists the federal line as gross payments over $20,000 and more than 200 transactions (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms). The same over-$20,000 and over-200 line applies for 2026 (IRS FS-2026-07).

Some states set a lower line, and backup withholding also triggers a form, so a small seller can still get one (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms). Download it from Seller Hub or My eBay, and turn off electronic delivery on the Taxes page if you also want paper (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms).

The 1099-K detailed report is eBay’s list of every unadjusted payment behind the form total. In Seller Hub, go to Payments, then Taxes, then 1099-K details, and select Generate (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms). If PayPal processed some of your eBay sales, it sends its own form (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms).

Several accounts under one tax ID are added together to test the line, and each account then gets its own form (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms). If a figure looks wrong, eBay asks sellers to raise it by March 30, so a correction can go out by April 15 (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms). California sellers who had backup withholding also get California Form 592-B (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms).

eBay dates each payment by when it processed the funds, not when the money reached you (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms). The gross does not take out fees, refunds, credits or discounts, but it already leaves out sales tax and canceled orders (eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms). The IRS lists fees, credits, refunds and shipping as items you can subtract (IRS, What to do with Form 1099-K).

So the fee and refund records matter as much as the form. A seller with many returns, for example, may see a gross total far above what reached the bank. Sales tax needs no adjustment, because it never entered the gross.

The answer changes the whole file. A personal item is something you owned for your own use, such as furniture, clothes or a stereo (IRS, What to do with Form 1099-K). Selling it for less than you paid creates no tax, but the loss cannot be deducted either (IRS, What to do with Form 1099-K).

If those sales show up on a 1099-K, you zero them out. You can report the payment at the top of Schedule 1, or report the sale on Form 8949 (IRS, What to do with Form 1099-K). Either way, keep the original receipt or a fair estimate of what you paid. A personal item sold for more than it cost is a gain, reported on Form 8949 and Schedule D (IRS, What to do with Form 1099-K). Sneakers, cards and other collectibles often land here.

Buying items to sell again is different. A reseller reports eBay sales on Schedule C as a sole proprietor (IRS, What to do with Form 1099-K). The cost of the goods sold is then figured in Part III of Schedule C (Schedule C instructions).

Beginning inventory is the cost of merchandise on hand at the start of the year that you plan to sell (IRS Publication 334). Count it on the first day of the year and again on the last, with what you paid for each item. Then gather proof of every purchase made during the year.

The Schedule C instructions let you value inventory at cost, at the lower of cost or market, or by another method the IRS accepts (Schedule C instructions). A receipt for each lot is the backbone of the file. Items that never sold stay in the closing count; shelf time does not turn them into an expense.

• Thrift store, estate sale and garage sale receipts, with the date and price.
• Wholesale or liquidation invoices for lots you bought to break up.
• Shipping supplies: boxes, mailers, tape and a scale.
• A log of sourcing runs and post office drops; the mileage log checklist shows what each line needs.
• Equipment such as a camera, label printer or shelving, with the purchase date.

Some sellers sell for fun and do not aim to make a profit. The IRS weighs factors such as whether you keep complete books and change your methods to improve profit (IRS, Hobby or business). Income from an activity not run for profit still goes on the return, on Schedule 1 (IRS Publication 525).

The costs are where a hobby seller loses out. Publication 525 allows hobby expenses only as an itemized deduction (IRS Publication 525), and the tax code allows no miscellaneous itemized deduction after 2017 (26 U.S.C. 67). So a hobby seller pays tax on the income with only the cost of the items sold taken off.

Bring what shows how you run the shop: a separate bank account, a sales log and steady sourcing all point toward a business. A reseller on Schedule C also owes self-employment tax and may owe quarterly payments, as the self-employed checklist explains.

• eBay, Form 1099-K and other US tax forms: eBay issues Form 1099-K by January 31 when IRS or state thresholds are met or backup withholding applied (2025: over $20,000 and over 200 transactions), in Seller Hub and My eBay, with a detailed report; gross excludes sales tax and canceled orders; accounts under one tax ID are combined.
• IRS, Understanding your Form 1099-K: Marketplaces, including craft and maker marketplaces, send Form 1099-K over $20,000 in more than 200 transactions and may send one below that; a card processor sends one for any amount; all income must be reported.
• IRS, What to do with Form 1099-K: The 1099-K gross is not reduced for fees, credits, refunds or shipping; personal items sold at a loss can be zeroed out; items sold at a gain go on Form 8949 and Schedule D; sellers in business report on Schedule C.
• IRS FS-2026-07: Gig workers may deduct up to $25,000 of qualified tips for 2025 through 2028, capped at net business income, only if the tips are inside a 1099-NEC, 1099-MISC or 1099-K total; QBI is permanent; the 1099-K line is over $20,000 and over 200 transactions.
• Schedule C instructions: With the standard mileage rate, add parking and tolls and do not deduct depreciation, lease payments or operating costs; Part III covers cost of goods sold and inventory valuation.
• IRS Publication 334: A business expense must be ordinary and necessary; inventory includes merchandise, raw materials, work in process, finished products and supplies that become part of the item; beginning inventory is the cost of stock on hand at the start of the year.
• IRS, Hobby or business: The IRS lists factors that separate a hobby from a business, such as keeping complete books, changing methods to improve profit, and the time spent.
• IRS Publication 525: Income from an activity not for profit goes on Schedule 1; its expenses cannot exceed that income and can be taken only if you itemize on Schedule A.
• 26 U.S.C. 67: No miscellaneous itemized deduction is allowed for any taxable year beginning after December 31, 2017.