HMRC's Digital Platform Reporting: What Online Sellers and Content Creators Need to Know
Updated: Oct 24
What's happening
If you sell through online marketplaces, take payments through a selling platform, or earn money via a platform-based side hustle, HMRC is now getting information about your sales directly from the platform itself — not just from you.
Since 1 January 2024, UK digital platforms have been required to collect, verify, and report seller information to HMRC under an OECD-wide framework known as the Reporting Rules for Digital Platforms. Platforms report this data annually, and HMRC uses it to cross-check against what sellers have actually declared on their tax returns.
Importantly, this is not a new tax. If you already declare and pay tax on your online income, nothing changes for you.
Who's exempt
You're outside the reporting requirement if you meet the relevant thresholds — broadly:
Fewer than 30 sales of goods in the year, and
Less than the equivalent of roughly £1,700 (2,000 euros) in sales in the year
Selling your own unwanted personal items occasionally is very unlikely to create a tax bill in the first place.
The £1,000 trading allowance
Separately from the platform reporting rules, everyone gets a £1,000 trading allowance each tax year. If your total side-income from things like reselling, freelance content work, or online sales stays under £1,000, you generally don't need to tell HMRC about it at all. Go over £1,000 and you need to register and report the excess — you can either claim the £1,000 allowance against your income, or deduct your actual expenses, but not both.
What to do now
Pull together a rough total of what you've sold or earned through platforms so far this tax year
Check whether you're over the £1,000 trading allowance, and if so, make sure you're registered for Self Assessment
Keep your own records rather than relying solely on platform data — the figures a platform reports to HMRC may not match your actual profit once costs are deducted
If you're a content creator receiving gifted products, sponsorship, or ad revenue alongside marketplace sales, remember all of it normally counts as taxable income
FAQ
Does this apply to me if I only sell occasionally?
If you're just clearing out your wardrobe or garage now and again, HMRC says it's unlikely you'll owe any tax. The rules are aimed at people running a genuine trade through a platform.
Which platforms are covered?
The rules apply broadly to online marketplaces and platforms connecting buyers and sellers of goods, services, and property or transport rentals — not just to platforms that simply advertise or redirect elsewhere.
Will HMRC contact me directly if there's a mismatch?
HMRC can and does use this data to open compliance checks where declared income doesn't match what's been reported by a platform, so it's worth getting ahead of any gap rather than waiting to be asked.
What's the deadline I should have in mind?
Platforms report annually, covering the previous calendar year. If you're selling through platforms during 2026, get your records in order now rather than leaving it until the reporting cycle is looming.
Get it right before HMRC asks
If you're an online seller, ecommerce business, or content creator and you're not sure whether your platform income is being correctly reported and taxed, Jackson Lee Accountants can help you get your records straight. Contact Jackson Lee Accountants (https://www.jacksonleeaccountants.co.uk/contact-me).
Sources:
Reporting Rules for Digital Platforms – messages for sellers - LITRG (https://www.litrg.org.uk/news/reporting-rules-digital-platforms-messages-sellers)
HMRC's new reporting requirements for digital platforms - Whyfield (https://www.whyfield.co.uk/hmrcs-new-reporting-requirements-for-digital-platforms/)
Extra income - Tax Confident (GOV.UK campaign) (https://taxconfident.campaign.gov.uk/working-life/changing-work-income/extra-income)
Need a hand with this? We're accountants in Bury, and our VAT and Making Tax Digital service covers it for a fixed fee.
Talk it through with us
If this affects you, book a free, no-obligation 30-minute chat by phone, Teams or at our Bury office, or see your fixed fee online in 2 minutes. Prefer to talk now? Call 0161 327 0047.
Comments