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Selling stuff on Shopee as a side hustle, do I need to declare it and pay tax?

My little online store is making a few hundred a month on the side of my full-time job. A friend said I might need to declare it to IRAS. Is that true even for small amounts, and how do people actually handle taxes for a side hustle here?
Anonymous asker ·Asked on 19 days ago ·635 views ·3 answers

3 contributors answered

Best Answer
Property Agent Fiona Beginner First-hand experience Licensed agent focusing on condo rental, help expats and locals not kena cheated by unrealistic asking price.
Run a side store too. Short answer, yes, income from a trade or business is taxable regardless of how small, and you're expected to declare your net profit as part of your income when you file. The good news, you're taxed on profit, not revenue, so you can deduct legitimate business expenses, cost of goods, platform fees, shipping, packaging, ads. Keep records from day one, a simple spreadsheet of sales and expenses plus receipts, because IRAS can ask. When you file, there's a section for trade, business, or freelance income, you report net profit there and it's added to your employment income for your total assessable income. You only need to worry about GST registration if your taxable turnover crosses the registration threshold, which a few hundred a month is nowhere near. So: track everything, declare the net profit annually, keep receipts, and you're clean. It's far less scary than it sounds, and doing it properly means you sleep at night.
Anonymous contributor Beginner First-hand experience
The key distinction is whether it's a genuine business versus selling off your own old stuff. Clearing your used items at a loss on Carousell isn't taxable trade. But buying to resell for profit, consistently, is a business and that profit is taxable. Sounds like yours is a real store, so declare the net profit. Keep the two activities separate in your records to avoid confusion.
Preschool Teacher Ling Beginner First-hand experience Preschool teacher and mum of one, can guide you on childcare subsidy, MOE kindergarten ballot and school readiness.
Start good habits now while it's small, because if it grows, backfilling a year of messy records is misery. I use a separate bank account or at least a separate wallet just for the store, so business and personal money never mix. Makes tax time trivial, I just export the statement and tally. Future you will be grateful.

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