eBay restricts business accounts because of "false VAT ID information" | Members help members

jkshop24 · 2026-03-12T21:50:06.783000Z

WARNING AND REASSURANCE FOR ALL eBay users who are experiencing something similar these days! We received the following message today and eBay deactivated all our listings:############################################Good day xxxxxx,we work closely with the German tax authorities to ensure that our sellers meet their VAT obligations. According to §22f UStG, it is required that the registration data, including your valid German VAT identification number (USt-IdNr.), in your eBay account match the data stored with the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt). Please note that from 1 July 2021 you must provide your German VAT identification number at eBay.Your registration data, however, differs from the data at the Federal Central Tax Office.This has led us to place the following restrictions on your eBay account:- You cannot create any new listings on eBay.de.- You cannot create any new listings with the item location “Germany”.- All active and scheduled listings on eBay.de or with the item location “Germany” have been removed.- Your current eBay listings on other eBay websites will not be shown to buyers in Germany. Note: These restrictions do not apply to your eBay sales outside Germany.In order for us to lift these restrictions, please make sure that your data, including your valid German VAT ID, matches the data of the BZSt and that you store your German VAT identification number in your eBay account. More information can be found at: ( Link to VAT)Kind regardseBay Customer Service############################################################## Over the past few weeks and months, we had repeatedly received similar notices from eBay, to which we demonstrably ALWAYS responded and asked what was wrong here (we almost never got a reply), and every time we checked and found that all data had been entered correctly, only the system had taken over different data, even though it had been entered and stored by US 100% CORRECTLY.AND we were always told “sorry, it’s a system error” Your details are all correct, no action is needed on your part. TODAY we got the bill: ALL our listings were deactivated, with the above message. We immediately got back in touch with eBay and found out that there is STILL a long-known bug at eBay that unfortunately the technical department, despite knowing about it, does not fix or cannot fix.eBay customer service, in their own words: “we currently have many such reports where all the data is correct, but it is incorrectly taken over by the eBay system and therefore the comparison with the BZSt does not match” OH REALLY! In our case, the company name between the BZSt and the eBay system was different. BUT: the data has been entered correctly AND matches, by us, for 15 years. eBay is simply taking the wrong data for the comparison from the wrong fields and then determining deviations and, as a result, account suspension. So save yourselves the headache of wondering whether you did something wrong. NO, you didn’t, if nothing has changed recently! The lady from customer service was at least honest enough and confirmed to us that ALL data is 100% correct (yes, unchanged here at eBay for 15 years and there at the BZSt) But some IT person at eBay seems to have taken the wrong fields as parameters for the comparison, and so, of course, for example, the name of the managing director does NOT match the VAT ID of the company name. We will wait and see whether this is fixed as quickly as possible, eBay! and whether all our ended listings with the previous 10,000-fold sales will be reinstated. If not, it’s straight to a lawyer ...this is really getting to be too much of the amateurish handling eBay is giving us here, to our detriment and financial loss.But what’s really great is that on the phone they always say, “we thank you for selling on eBay for 20 years.” That really makes you feel WELL LOOKED AFTER! and supported!That’s bullshit!

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