I love thrifting and used to thrift frequently in my home country. I still do 古着 from time to time but I used to both buy and sell online back home. In fact, the resale part is how I funded a lot of my best second hand purchases (selling old/outdated pieces to purchase new ones).
Here’s where the problem comes in. I’ve never used Mercari or Rakuten Ichiba and from what I understand, you must declare any income you make – even if it’s immediately spent. In my country, there’s a minimum you have to sell before you must declare for taxes.
Does anyone who has sold and bought online have any insight into if I must withhold for taxes or is it a bit unregulated? TIA!
2 comments
Japan is a buyer’s market for second hand goods, it’s probably going to be a difficult time for you.
Your Mercari income is first made into points (which is not technically money AFAIK) that you can optionally cash-in as Japanese Yen.
You can use Mercari points as currency in convenience stores and shops as well as Mercari.
So, keep your Mercari points as points, and nobody will find out your income.