In the waning days of this year’s congressional session, lawmakers in both parties discussed raising the $600 threshold or delaying implementation. After those efforts failed this week, the IRS stepped in with the delay. Treasury and IRS officials said Friday that they hope to work with industry groups over the next year to make sure the forms go to the right taxpayers. -WSJ
The rule was set to affect millions of gig workers who are independent contractors and haven't been reporting income on their tax returns. What's more, the law didn't differentiate between people running a business, and those who are "casual" sellers who are cleaning out closets and attics.
What's more, the gross revenue on the form isn't necessarily all income depending on the cost basis of the items being sold, or whether the items were inherited and are now worth less than their value on the date of the death.
The delay doesn't change what income is taxable, however, just what information the IRS will receive. Gig workers are still required to track and report all income, they just won't have e-commerce sales platforms ratting them out.
Some years back, when I did taxes seasonally, a guy came in. He was in a panic. The IRS told him he owed on 100,000 of income! BTW - He was an E-4 in the military. I passed him on to a lady who did tax returns but who also had a masters in accounting. The IRS based it on the total sales reported on eBay.
The young airman had terrible records but over 10 hours of work made it possible to document the COSTS as well. His “income” from sales on eBay went down to $4,000.
I did enough sole proprietor type returns for industrious young people to have pointed out, many times, that these hard working people were actually LOSING money in their business. Some adjusted their business model while others quit.
A lot of wives neglected to think about their supplemental earnings compared to the child care costs AND that, since their earnings were in addition to their husband, the earning were taxes at the top marginal rate - often 20%. Many then realized they were working for less than $2/hour total gain.
But yes, there are a ton of people who sell ten thousand dollars of goods on eBay and have expenses that mean their additional income is 1-2,000. But they also won’t report ANY income until someone tells on them.