Selling Used Goods and Tax: What’s the Limit in 2025?
Published: April 23, 2025
Are you decluttering your closet or garage and deciding to sell some unneeded items online? It’s a great way to earn extra money and give objects a second life. At some point, however, a question arises: do I have to pay tax on such sales? What is the limit for selling private items without worrying about the tax office?
The good news is that the answer is, in most cases, favorable for the seller. The key to understanding when a tax obligation arises is one simple rule. This article explains everything about selling used goods and tax on personal income.
Private Sales vs. Business Activity – Where’s the Line?
First of all, we must distinguish between two situations:
- Occasional Sales: This is the sale of your personal, used items that were not purchased for the purpose of reselling them for a profit.
- Business Activity: This is selling that is continuous and organized, aimed at making a profit (e.g., regularly buying and selling clothes with a markup).
This article deals exclusively with occasional sales. If your activity becomes regular, you should familiarize yourself with the rules of [Unregistered Activity](<- Internal Link).
Selling Used Goods and Tax: The Key 6-Month Rule
This is the most important rule you need to remember. According to the [Polish Personal Income Tax Act](<- External Link), the sale of movable property (e.g., clothes, electronics, furniture, and even a car) is not subject to taxation if:
- It is not conducted as part of a business activity, AND
- The sale takes place after six months have passed, counting from the end of the month in which you acquired the item.
What does this mean in practice? If you sell an item that you have owned for more than 6 months, you do not pay any income tax on this transaction! You don’t even have to report it anywhere.
Example:
- You bought a bicycle on March 10, 2025.
- The 6-month period is counted from the end of March. It ends on September 30, 2025.
- Any sale of this bicycle from October 1, 2025, onwards will be completely tax-free.
Selling Before 6 Months and Tax: How to Settle It?
If you sell an item before 6 months have passed since its acquisition and you make a profit on the transaction (i.e., you sell it for more than you bought it for), you must pay tax on that income.
- How to settle it? You must report the income from such a sale on your annual PIT-36 tax return, in the “Other sources” section.
- What tax will you pay? You will tax this income according to the [Progressive Tax Scale](<- Internal Link) (12% up to the 120,000 PLN threshold).
Important: You are taxed on the income, not the revenue. This means you can deduct the purchase price and any related costs (e.g., shipping, platform commission) from the sales price. If you sold it for less than you bought it for, there is no income, and therefore no tax.
Is There a Monetary Sales Limit? (The Answer Will Surprise You)
This is the most common question and the source of many myths. Is there an annual monetary limit up to which I can sell my things without tax?
The answer is: NO. In the case of selling private items owned for more than 6 months, there is no monetary limit whatsoever. You can sell a car for 100,000 PLN and a handbag for 5,000 PLN. If you owned them for more than half a year, these transactions are exempt from income tax.
Selling Used Goods and Tax – A Checklist
Wondering if you need to pay tax? Answer these questions:
- Is the sale organized and continuous?
- YES ➡️ Your activity might be considered a business.
- NO (you sell occasionally) ➡️ Proceed to question 2.
- Have 6 months passed since the end of the month you acquired the item?
- YES ➡️ You pay no tax! Regardless of the amount.
- NO ➡️ Proceed to question 3.
- Did you sell the item for a profit (did you have an income)?
- NO ➡️ You do not pay tax.
- YES ➡️ You must declare this income on your annual PIT-36 return.
As you can see, in most cases, selling used goods and tax is not something you need to worry about. The 6-month rule is key.
