Do you pay tax on what you sell on Depop?
If you're clearing out your own wardrobe on Depop, the clothes and bits you bought to wear and have moved on from, you almost certainly owe nothing, however much it adds up to. Tax only comes into it if you're buying or making things to sell on for a profit, which is common on Depop. Here's how to tell which one you are.
Clearing out, or running a little shop?
The thing that decides whether you owe income tax isn't how much you make, it's why you're selling. Selling your own used clothes, things you originally bought to wear, isn't taxed. That holds however much it comes to.
You're trading if you're buying or making things mainly to sell them on at a profit. Sourcing vintage and charity-shop finds to flip, buying in bulk to resell, making clothes or jewellery to order. HMRC weighs up whether you're in it for profit, how regularly and methodically you sell, and whether you bought the items to use or to resell. Selling the jacket you wore last winter isn't trading. Buying a rail of vintage to flip is.
Depop reports to HMRC too: the 30-items rule
Since January 2024, Depop, like every big platform, has had to send HMRC a yearly report on its larger sellers. You're included if, over a calendar year, you make 30 or more sales, or take around £1,700 (about €2,000) or more. (Depop is owned by Etsy, and both report.)
Why Depop asked for your National Insurance number
If you hit that 30-sales or £1,700 mark, Depop asks for a few details, including your National Insurance number, so it can finish its report. It feels alarming, but it's just admin. Your NI number is the reference HMRC uses to tie the report to the right person. It doesn't mean Depop or HMRC thinks you owe anything.
If you're reselling or making to sell
If you are trading, the first £1,000 of sales each tax year is covered by the trading allowance, so there's nothing to do below that. Once you go over £1,000, you'll usually need to:
- register for Self Assessment, by 5 October after the tax year you started, and
- file your return and pay any tax by the 31 January after that.
You're taxed on profit, not turnover. So you take what you sold and subtract what it cost you to buy and sell it: the stock itself, Depop's fees, postage and packaging. (Or you subtract the flat £1,000 allowance instead, if that comes to more than your real costs.) Whatever's left is taxed at your normal rate. The checker estimates the figure for you.
The rare exception: a single item over £6,000
One thing sits outside all of this. If you sell a single personal item, or a matching set, for more than £6,000, say a rare designer piece, that can bring in Capital Gains Tax, which is separate from income tax. Everyday clothes are nowhere near it, so this won't touch a normal Depop clear-out.
The "£3,000 change" you might have heard about
You may have seen talk of a £3,000 threshold. It's real but widely misreported. The plan is to raise the point where you have to fill in a full Self Assessment return, from £1,000 to £3,000 of gross trading income, with a simpler online way to pay any tax instead. It has no start date yet, so it doesn't apply today. And it only changes how you report, not how much tax you owe. It does not make £3,000 of profit tax-free.
Clear-outer or trader? Find out for sure.
Soldly asks a few plain questions and tells you straight: are you trading, do you need to register, and roughly what (if anything) you'd owe. Two minutes, no sign-up, nothing saved.
Check where I stand →Common questions
Do I pay tax on selling clothes on Depop?
Not if they're your own used clothes. Selling your own belongings isn't taxable income, no matter how much it comes to. You only pay income tax if you're trading, meaning buying or making things to sell on for profit and going over the £1,000 trading allowance.
Does Depop report my sales to HMRC?
Yes. If you make 30 or more sales in a calendar year, or take around £1,700 (about €2,000) or more, Depop reports you to HMRC under the platform-reporting rules that began in January 2024. Being reported doesn't mean you owe tax.
How much can I sell on Depop before paying tax?
If it's your own stuff, there's no limit, because it isn't taxed. If you're reselling or making to sell, the first £1,000 of sales a year is covered by the trading allowance, and above that you're taxed on your profit.
Why does Depop want my National Insurance number?
It's the reference HMRC uses to match Depop's report to the right person. It's admin, not a sign you owe tax.