Australia · Etsy sellers

Etsy does not require an ABN. The ATO's "in business" test does.

There is no Etsy-specific rule forcing you to register anything. The real question is whether the ATO would say you are "carrying on a business" -- and most ongoing Etsy shops meet that bar well before they feel like a real business to the person running them.

Start my ABN application See the four-factor test

From $39, the ABR's own ABN fee is $0. Same service as our main ABN application page, this page is just about the Etsy-specific question.

A person packing a handmade product order next to a laptop showing an online storefront

The four factors that actually decide it

Not your category, not your revenue on its own -- these are what the ATO weighs when deciding whether your Etsy shop counts as a business.

Profit-making intention

Are you pricing to make money, not just to cover materials as a one-off? Intent to profit is the first thing weighed, and most Etsy sellers who set prices with a margin already clear this.

Repetition and regularity

A single sale of an old item is not a business. Restocking, listing new products, and selling on an ongoing basis looks like one -- and is treated like one.

Businesslike manner

Deliberate pricing, marketing, branding and record-keeping all point toward "in business," even if your Etsy shop is still small and part-time.

The category does not matter. Handmade goods, vintage finds, print-on-demand and digital downloads are all judged by the same test. Whether you are "in business" comes down to your conduct and intent, not what's in the listing.

The honest "just trying it out" answer

If you genuinely list a few things with no real profit motive -- clearing out old craft supplies, testing an idea with zero marketing -- you may not need an ABN immediately. That window closes fast. The moment you start restocking, pricing deliberately, or reinvesting proceeds into more stock, you have crossed into "carrying on a business" whether or not it feels that way yet.

Trading without an ABN when you're supposed to have one creates real friction before it creates a legal problem: you can't invoice properly, and some wholesale suppliers will not deal with an unregistered buyer at all.

What changes at $75,000

GST registration becomes mandatory once your GST turnover reaches $75,000 in a 12-month period. Below that line it's optional -- worth doing anyway if you have significant GST credits on materials and supplies, otherwise safe to skip until you're closer to the threshold.

Once registered, you charge 10% GST on taxable Australian sales and lodge a Business Activity Statement (BAS) on a schedule the ATO sets. Digital downloads and overseas sales have their own nuances here -- worth a real accountant's input once you're near the threshold, not a guess.

Common questions

Etsy and your ABN, answered.

Do I legally need an ABN to sell on Etsy in Australia?
There is no Etsy-specific requirement. The legal question is whether you're "carrying on a business" under general Australian law -- judged on profit intent, repetition, businesslike manner and scale. Most ongoing shops meet that bar; a genuine one-off hobby sale usually does not.
Does Etsy check if I have an ABN?
Etsy does not gate opening a shop on having an ABN. It's your obligation under Australian tax law, independent of what Etsy's own signup flow requires.
Handmade, vintage or digital -- does the category change anything?
No. The test is the same regardless of what you sell. Your conduct and intent decide it, not the listing category.
Can I use an existing ABN if I already have one?
Yes, if you already hold an ABN as a sole trader for other work, you can generally trade your Etsy shop under it rather than getting a second one -- talk to your accountant about whether that fits your situation.
What if I only sell occasionally?
Occasional, non-commercial selling with no real profit motive may not require an ABN yet. Once you're restocking, marketing deliberately, or pricing for margin on an ongoing basis, it's time to register -- retrofitting it later is more work than doing it once, early.