Private Sales and Taxes
Selling one's own used items occasionally does not automatically constitute a commercial activity, and a person does not have to pay income tax merely because of a sale.
Whether a sale is relevant for tax purposes depends on the general tax laws and the circumstances of the individual case.
The German Platform Tax Transparency Act (PStTG) does not introduce a special tax on private sales. Any reporting under the PStTG and the question of whether tax is actually payable must be distinguished as a matter of law. The PStTG contains procedural and reporting rules; actual taxation continues to be governed by the applicable tax laws.
1. Occasional sales of one's own used items
Occasional sales of one's own used items from private assets are often unproblematic for tax purposes.
Examples may include:
used clothing,
furniture,
household items,
books,
ordinary electrical appliances,
bicycles, or
other items for personal use.
For private disposals of other assets, section 23(1) EStG generally provides for a one-year period between acquisition and disposal. Items of everyday use are expressly excluded from this rule.
For example, a person who resells a used household item that they used privately does not become taxable merely for that reason.
2. Private disposals
Section 23 EStG may apply to certain assets.
For assets other than real estate, a taxable private disposal may in particular arise if no more than one year passes between acquisition and sale and no statutory exception applies.
This may be relevant, for example, to certain valuable items or other assets that are not considered items of everyday use.
As a rule, the decisive factor is the profit, not merely the sale price.
3. Threshold for private disposals
Under section 23(3) EStG, profits from private disposals are tax-free if the total profit from private disposals in the calendar year is less than EUR 1,000.
This is a threshold, not a tax-free allowance.
This means that if the statutory limit is reached or exceeded, only the portion above EUR 1,000 is not taken into account. The tax treatment must then be assessed as a whole under the statutory provisions.
This EUR 1,000 limit must not be confused with the thresholds under the PStTG.
4. Sale price is not the same as profit
For tax purposes, the sale price received must be distinguished from an actual profit.
Example:
An item was bought privately for EUR 1,500 and later sold for EUR 800.
The seller received EUR 800, but made no disposal profit in economic terms.
Conversely, a tax-relevant profit may arise if an item was acquired for a lower amount and resold at a higher price within a relevant statutory period.
Acquisition costs, disposal costs and any other deductible expenses may be relevant to the calculation.
5. When can private selling become a commercial activity?
A large number of sales does not automatically make a person a trader based solely on a fixed number of items.
On the other hand, an activity may lose its private character if, viewed as a whole, it is carried out systematically and on a sustained basis.
Possible indications include:
targeted purchase of goods for resale,
regular offers of similar goods,
ongoing sales activity,
a professional market presence,
significant organisational activity, or
activity aimed at repeated income or profits.
The overall circumstances must always be considered.
Anyone who deliberately acquires goods in order to resell them should therefore check whether this is still private asset management or has become a commercial activity.
For classification as an entrepreneur under civil law, section 14 BGB must also be considered. Under that provision, a person acts as an entrepreneur when entering into a legal transaction in the course of their commercial or self-employed professional activity.
6. Private services and other income
The sale of goods is not the only activity that may be relevant for tax purposes.
For example, a person who occasionally provides paid services or rents out movable items may earn income under section 22 no. 3 EStG, unless that income is attributable to another category of income.
Under section 22 no. 3 EStG, such income is not subject to income tax if it is less than EUR 256 in the calendar year. This, too, is a statutory threshold.
For regular services, it must also be assessed whether the activity is self-employed or commercial.
7. Keep supporting documents
For higher-value or more frequent sales, it may be useful to keep documents showing, in particular:
original purchase price,
date of acquisition,
date of sale,
sale price,
incurred costs, and
where applicable, the item's private use.
Purchase receipts, invoices, proof of payment and communications about the sale may be helpful for this purpose.
This makes it possible to establish in response to later questions whether any profit arose and how the transaction should be classified for tax purposes.
8. PStTG thresholds are not tax thresholds
The limits of 30 sales and EUR 2,000 under the Platform Tax Transparency Act are often confused with tax-free allowances.
That is incorrect.
For sales of goods, section 4(5) no. 4 PStTG concerns only when a provider is treated as an excluded provider for platform reporting purposes. To qualify, during the reporting period on the same platform both of the following must apply:
fewer than 30 relevant sales of goods took place, and
a total of less than EUR 2,000 in remuneration was paid or credited.
Both conditions must be met at the same time.
These values do not determine the amount from which income tax becomes payable.
A sale may be relevant for tax purposes even if no PStTG report is made. Conversely, a PStTG report does not automatically mean that tax is due.
We explain the details of the PStTG and the specific way Suchen.Expert operates separately under “PStTG / DAC7 on Suchen.Expert”.
9. Tax responsibility
Suchen.Expert does not calculate income tax, VAT or trade tax for private users and does not decide how an individual sale should be classified for tax purposes.
Each user remains responsible for meeting their own tax obligations.
Anyone who sells regularly, acquires goods for resale, provides paid services or makes substantial profits should check whether this gives rise to tax or commercial obligations.
This information is for general guidance and does not replace a tax assessment of the specific individual case.
