Vinted, eBay or Depop asking for your National Insurance number?

Why is a marketplace asking for your National Insurance number?

People search this when Vinted, eBay or Depop asks for a National Insurance number after a clear-out.

GOV.UK says digital platforms have had to collect seller details since 1 January 2024. For a person who lives in the UK, the tax identification number they ask for is the National Insurance number. They can also ask for your name, your home address and your date of birth.

Give the number only inside the account you opened yourself. Do not send it by email or text.

GOV.UK says that from 1 January 2024 a digital platform may have to collect and check details, then report them to HMRC. An individual seller is asked for their full name, the address where they normally live, their date of birth, and their tax identification number. If they live in the UK, that number is their National Insurance number. Source

Does eBay report to HMRC, and when?

Yes, once you cross the line. HMRC’s news story says there is no new tax for online selling. It says a platform tells you if you sold at least 30 items or earned roughly £1,700, which is the sterling way of writing 2,000 euros.

GOV.UK lists the other side of that test as two lines, not one sentence. Your details will not be reported if you make fewer than 30 sales of goods in a calendar year. A second line is that you receive less than 2,000 euros (about £1,700) for those sales.

eBay prints its own sterling figures, and the two eBay pages checked here do not match. The digital sales reporting page still says about £1,740 after fees, commissions or taxes, or 30 completed sales. A later staff notice for 2026 moves that sterling line from £1,740 to £1,707. Cancelled sales are left out of the 30. Follow the notice inside your eBay account if the pages disagree.

The report goes to HMRC by the following January. You should get a copy.

HMRC’s news story, published 4 December 2024, says there is no new tax for online selling. It says that if you sold at least 30 items or earned roughly £1,700 (equivalent to €2,000) on platforms like eBay or Vinted, the platform tells you your information has been shared. Sharing that data does not automatically mean you need to complete a tax return. Source

GOV.UK says your details will not be reported if you make fewer than 30 sales of goods in a calendar year. It also lists a second line: you receive less than 2,000 euros (about £1,700) for those sales. HMRC’s news story says the platform tells you if you sold at least 30 items or earned roughly £1,700, so both lines sit together. Platforms send the yearly information to HMRC by the following January. A copy of what was reported does not automatically mean you owe tax. If you do need to tell HMRC, work out your income for the tax year, 6 April to 5 April. Source

eBay’s digital sales reporting page says it shares information if, in a calendar year, your total sales are equal to or around £1,740 after deducting fees, commissions or taxes, or you complete 30 or more sales. Cancelled transactions are not included. eBay asks for your National Insurance number, sends the report to HMRC in January of the following year, and sends you a copy. The same page says this is not a new tax, and that tax depends on your sales on all digital platforms, not only eBay. Source

eBay’s staff announcement on the 2026 threshold says HMRC’s exchange rate moved the sterling line from £1,740 to £1,707. If your total eBay sales in the 2026 calendar year are equal to or more than £1,707, or you complete 30 or more sales, eBay says to add your National Insurance number. It says your tax obligations have not changed, and that selling a few unwanted personal items is unlikely to mean you need to pay tax. Source

Is a report the same as a tax bill?

No. GOV.UK says the copy of the report does not automatically mean you owe tax. HMRC says sharing the data does not automatically mean you must complete a tax return.

You might still need to tell HMRC about income for other reasons. This page cannot tell you which side of that line you are on. Use the checkers linked below and, if you are unsure, check your own situation with HMRC.

GOV.UK’s platform guidance includes a tool to check if you need to tell HMRC about income from online platforms. It says that in some cases you may still need to tell HMRC about the income, even if you do not have to pay any tax on it. Source

GOV.UK’s additional-income checker covers income that is not from your employer, including selling things online. It says that if you have sold property, shares or other assets for a profit you may have to pay Capital Gains Tax. Use the checker for your own figures. Source

What about the £1,000 trading allowance and personal possessions?

Selling your own things is not the same as running a trade.

GOV.UK says you probably do not pay Income Tax on personal possessions. Clothes, a phone or furniture you owned for your own use sit in that group. If one item, or a set such as matching ornaments, sells for more than £6,000, you may need to look at Capital Gains Tax.

You are probably trading if you bought goods to resell at a profit, or you made the goods. Add that income to any other trading. If the total for the tax year is more than the £1,000 trading allowance, GOV.UK says you need to tell HMRC. The allowance page also says that £1,000 or less can still need a return in some cases, so do not treat £1,000 as a promise that nothing is due.

GOV.UK says personal possessions are items that belong to you for your own use. If you are selling personal possessions you probably do not have to pay Income Tax on them. If you sell an item for more than £6,000, you may need to pay Capital Gains Tax. The same £6,000 figure can apply to a set, such as matching ornaments. Source

GOV.UK says you are probably trading if you sell goods you bought intending to sell at a profit, or goods you made. Add that income to other trading, such as services or online content. If the total is more than the £1,000 trading allowance for the tax year (6 April to 5 April), you need to tell HMRC. Source

GOV.UK says you can get up to £1,000 of trading income tax-free in a tax year. If your annual gross trading income is £1,000 or less, you may not have to tell HMRC, but there are circumstances when you must still register for Self Assessment and declare the income. Source

Is the report a calendar year or a tax year?

The platform report is a calendar year, 1 January to 31 December. HMRC receives it by the end of the following January.

If you do need to declare income, you work it out for the tax year, 6 April to 5 April. The copy from Vinted, eBay or Depop does not replace your own records. Keep both.

Do SilentSale® and other platforms have to report as well?

Save the report and use the GOV.UK checkers for your own figures. The checkers are on this page. They are the right place to start. This explanation is not personal tax advice.

SilentSale® is a UK marketplace for private buyers and sellers. The same reporting thresholds apply on SilentSale®. Sales under them — fewer than 30 sales of goods in the calendar year and under €2,000 (about £1,700) — are not reported. Buyer and seller each contribute £0.30 + 3% of the item price to SilentCover® (£0.60 each on a £10 item), a discretionary protection service. Stripe processes payments and holds funds until the order is complete.

Read selling fees compared, how you get paid and SilentSale® and eBay. The fee bands are on what buyers pay on eBay. Payout waits are on why money sits in the balance.

Stripe processes payments and holds funds until the order completes.