eBay Adds Surcharge for International Sales

by: Really? I mean really?

Boston Tea Party anybody?

by: Marie

There is nothing unusual here.  PP charges a higher fee for international sales I am unsure why anyone would think that Ebay isn't going to.  That would not make sense at all.

With that said, Ebay still has not answered questions regarding the Simplified Fee on international sales that have been asked many times by many different sellers on many different threads over the last 3 months.

In regular Ebay we have a rule that reads as follows:
Final values fees on shipping are based on the cost of the shipping service the buyer chooses. However, if you offer 1-day or international shipping as well as a cheaper or free option (like domestic shipping), the final value fee is calculated based on the cheapest domestic option you offer.

There is no answer as to how the Simplified Fee is going to be applied.  Is it going to take the above into consideration or is it not.  No one seems to want to answer that question.

This could significantly raise the fees sellers pay specifically on International sales.  That coupled with is Ebay going to charge the Simplified fee on VAT/Taxes that an international buyer has on their payment.  The answer is likely  yes, but Ebay doesn't seem to want to address this as the questions go unanswered even on the private board.

This will be an issue for GSP seller and non GSP sellers alike.  While GSP sellers may get hit a bit harder.

For me, unless there is some clear guidance on this from Ebay, the day they put me active in MP will be the day I bulk edit all my listings to ship US only.  I'm unsure of what else to do since Ebay clearly doesn't want to clarify.

by: Chicago48

Just don't sell internationally....or increase your price by 1.65% to cover it.

by: rfm

No more international for me...........

by: spooky

I have sold international for 22 years and never really paid attention to the extra fees. I have no idea if I have made a good or bad business decision.  

by: toyman

That would have been a real problem...3 years ago. We used to have a strong International business, especially to Europe and Australia. Now, with the USPS, really poorly thought through, decision to increase their International rates to match the competition, no one can afford the price increase. What was a $30 - $35 shipping charge is now $60 - $65 for the same item, so no International business, no worry over higher fees.

I'll give eBay the pass, here. It's the poorly run Postal Service that I'd like to have a go at.

by: Ric

So, the question is how long before eBay makes virtually all categories automatically open to international sales and prohibits sellers from opting out?

The only exception will be for certain categories where items might be prohibited by law from being sold to foreign countries.

I can almost read the inevitable self serving announcement...

" Did you know that eBay shipping and managed payments pair to make international sales of your items a breeze?  Today, eBay announces that effective ( insert date here ), all items listed on eBay USA will automatically be displayed on all eBay sites worldwide and sellers will be required to honor all sales and ship internationally as a condition for listing with us. "

by: toolguy

No Problem

I sell and ship to US accounts only!

by: RL15

fleecebay keeps sticking their slimy hands deeper in to sellers pockets.

by: Marie

@chicago48

The 1.65% should not be that big of a deal as it is barely an increase over what PP currently charges.  But all the other stuff I said above sure does make a difference.  And to cover all that, you'd have to raise your pricing or your shipping rates for international by quite a bit.

@Ric

Ebay can't do that as not all products can ship internationally.  Nor can Ebay force sellers to ship internationally.  Lots of countries have various restrictions on lots of different items.  It can't necessarily go by category as sometimes it is sub categories that are banned in certain countries.  Some categories are pretty complicated.  But with that said, they just can't force sellers to ship internationally if a seller does not choose to do that.

by: Ric

@ marie....    My post included the following:

" The only exception will be for certain categories where items might be prohibited by law from being sold to foreign countries."

by: Marie

@ric

I get that.  But like I said, sometimes it is not a category in its entirety but a sub category only.  In some categories it is complicated to say the least.  Others it is pretty straight forward.  

by: RKTOYS

They just don't want American small businesses selling internationally, do they?  If it's not the ludicrously one-sided postal rates, it's these mystery transaction fees (yeah yeah, I know, PayPal did it before eBay, so what).  I haven't even sold to Canada over a decade thanks to a flat $30+ fee just for crossing the border.

Good Lord, between jobs going overseas and visa abuse and relentless attacks on any form of self employment, WTF are people supposed to do for a living these days?

by: iheartjacksparrow

So much for eBay's assertions that Mangled Payments will save you money over PayPal's fees. Now that eBay has their sellers trapped, they can add on any fees they want.  

by: ebayout

With PP, the shipping fee to a foreign buyer was based on the highest fee to a domestic buyer using the seller's stated carrier and shipping class.

Will that change with MP? So, we'll be paying 11.65% on, say, $45 instead of $12?

by: Marie

@ebayout

I'm not at all sure but I suspect you are right.  I've tried and failed to get Ebay to answer any questions in detail regarding international sales.  So for me, when I do get activated in MP, I will bulk edit my listings and ship USA only.  They leave me no choice.  I'm not going into that blind, that could end up costing me a bunch of money in fees.

by: Geetar

I stopped selling intl. about 3-4 years ago. Too much involved. High shipping fee's, buyers have to pay VERY high tax (witch when they see they refuse delivery sometimes). Besides, in most cases they can get items elsewhere for less on the shipping cost, so demand is low.

But I think the deal breaker for me was, they include the shipping in your sales.
To me it is not a sale. But it inflates my sales numbers, and we all know ebay allows $XX amount of sales in a month. Weather or not they take it into account that it is shipping and not a sale when calculating your (hidden) monthly sales limit I dont know. But that with all the other crap, and this, why bother?

by: dans parts

Anybody notice that eBay is adding on (presumably either VAT or Customs Duties) to sales to Australia?  It winds up in the same column on the downloadable .csv (from Seller Hub>Manage Orders>Download report) as the US domestic sales tax they are collecting.

Wouldn't be so bad, except we're paying FVF on that amount.

Sold 2 items the other day to one buyer.  $44.00 for the both of them, and eBay collected $9.51 "tax".

Seems to me that works out to about a 22% "tax rate" which we then pay FVF on.

I may also be one of the ones who eliminates International, but only because I can't control when eBay decides to start charging in another country, or can't add on my own "surcharge" to specific countries when something sells there to account for eBay's egregious FVF additions.

While on a similar subject, did anyone see that eBay's effectively "hidden" the way to edit your blocked countries list?  I can't see any way to get to it to edit it now, except by going through Business Policies.  Too bad I have about 800 Shipping Business Polices eBay has stored for me (and yes, they've been "cleaned up" recently).  I wanted to add one country the other day that I had a nasty problem with their Customs holding a package from my Buyer for virtual ransom and wound up with a Neg from him because I was powerless to do anything with his Customs agency.

by: Marie

@dans parts

The tax for Australia is called GST.

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-policies/tax-po
licy?id=4348

While I absolutely agree with you that once we are in MP, that a FVF should not be charged on tax of any kind for any state or country.  I certainly agree with that.  

But you know that is isn't "ebay decides to start charging" this stuff.  They are required to.  

As to the countries you want to block.  Try this link.

https://www.ebay.com/ship/prf

If that doesn't work, go to your Site Preferences, then to Shipping.  There is no edit button on the shipping but there is a link to where they moved the blocks for countries if you look at the shipping area closely.

by: Geetar

1.65% surcharge - even if the buyer is registered in another country but is having you mail the item within the United States.

WOAH what the hell is this. I have quite a few buyers buy and send to a forwarder. I guess I will be cancelling their orders.

Inch, push and nuddle on fee's, it just never ends.