Knowing the rules and policies on eBay can help you become a more successful seller. So before listing your item, make sure you read, understand, and regularly check our policies (including the rules for sellers and the eBay User Agreement and all applicable laws and regulations on the sale of your item. This can help you avoid potential issues down the road.
Policies and guidelines specifically related to selling an item involve:
When policy breaches occur, eBay emails the seller, as well as bidders, that a listing has been ended. Learning about eBay's selling policies before you list an item will help you to avoid unintentionally breaking rules (including the law). eBay’s selling policies are updated to respond to marketplace, community and security issues, so it is important to check them regularly for changes.
eBay’s policies are intended to:
Support government laws and regulations
Minimise risks to sellers
Provide equal opportunity to all sellers
Protect intellectual property rights
Provide an enjoyable buying experience
Support the values of the eBay Community
Breaches of eBay policies can result in a range of actions, including:
Forfeit of eBay fees on cancelled listings
Limits on account privileges
Loss of PowerSeller status
Prohibited and restricted items
Policies about listing items are often based on country and state laws. However, many restrictions involve the sale of controversial or sensitive items and are not necessarily prohibited by law. The limitations are a result of input by the eBay Community.
There are three aspects of item restrictions – prohibited, questionable, and potentially infringing items.
Prohibited –- These items may not be listed on eBay.
Examples of listings that are not allowed include:
Items that are illegal or that encourage illegal activity.
Listings that do not offer an item or service for sale.
Services that are illegal, sexual in nature or that breach eBay’s User Agreement.
Questionable –-These items may be listed under certain conditions.
Examples of listings that are not allowed include:
Listings of perishable items and do not identify in the item description the measures the seller will take to ensure that the goods are delivered to the buyer safely. For policy and examples, see Food.
Listing a reproduction of a Native American item and not listing it in the "Reproductions" section under the Native Americana category. For policy and examples, see Artefacts.
Potentially infringing –- These items may be in breach of certain copyrights, trademarks, or other rights. Some items are not allowed, even though they may be legal, because they almost always infringe copyright or trademark laws.
Examples of listings that are not allowed include:
Listings with counterfeit or bootleg items (counterfeits, replicas and unauthorised copies).
Note: Even if you offer to give away for "free" (rather than sell) a prohibited, questionable, or infringing item, this will not absolve you of potential liability. This applies to both seller and buyer.
See Prohibited and Restricted Items-Overview
Listing practices
For a satisfying and fun experience on eBay, we're helping sellers list their items in the most effective ways possible. As general rules, sellers have to:
Select a category that matches the item for sale.
Provide a clear, honest, and accurate description about the item.
Avoid tactics like keyword spamming because they make it hard for people to find what they're looking for.
However, it's against our policies to do anything that manipulates the search or browse experience on eBay. This applies to all parts of a listing, including the title, subtitle, product details, description, pictures, links, and meta tags. If a seller uses tactics that can inappropriately divert bidders and buyers to a listing, we will take action.
Before listing items, be sure to read our search and browse manipulation policy
Actions that misrepresent items – Misrepresented items result in a poor shopping and finding experience for buyers because their search results show listings in which the buyer may have no interest. These practices also result in an unlevel playing field for sellers who do not use these techniques and attract fewer potential buyers.
Examples of listing practices that are not allowed on eBay include:
Using brand names or other words inappropriately for the purpose of attracting buyers to a listing (called keyword spamming). For policy and examples, see Keyword Spam.
Creating titles for listings that do not accurately describe the item for sale. For policy and examples, see Misleading Titles.
Listing in an inappropriate category. Item listings that belong in the Mature Audiences category that are found outside of that category will be ended. For policy and examples, see Categorisation of Listings.
Listing items that include compilations and informational items that, for example, contain cross category information, are listed outside of the Everything Else, Information Products category, or are combined as bonus items with any other listing. For policy and more examples, see Compilation and Information.
Actions that avoid paying eBay fees – Selling fees help eBay support both buyers and sellers. Listing practices that circumvent (avoid) fees are unfair to sellers who pay the appropriate eBay fees and may provide a poor buying experience.
Examples of listing practices that are not allowed on eBay include:
Offering the opportunity to buy the listed item or other items outside the eBay online marketplace.
Offering low item prices but unreasonably high postage or packing charges.
Listing an item that requires an additional purchase.
Including contact information (eg, email addresses, domain names, phone numbers) in the listing title, subtitle, item location or images.
Listing an item where a seller allows buyers to choose from a selection of items.
To view the policy and more examples, see Circumventing Fees.
Completing the sale
If your item sells successfully, the sale needs to be completed. This includes contacting your buyer, accepting payment and posting the item.
Examples of actions that are not allowed on eBay:
Bidding on your own item, or having family members, flatmates or employees bid on your item (called shill bidding). For policy and examples, see Shill Bidding.
Accepting payment and sending an item that is significantly different from the item described in the item listing. For policy and examples, see Seller Non-performance.
Refusing to accept a buyer’s PayPal payment using a credit card when the seller included the PayPal logo in the listing. For policy and examples, see PayPal Payments Policy.
Charging buyers an additional fee for their use of ordinary forms of payment including acceptance of cheques, postal orders, electronic transfers or credit cards. For policy and examples, see Payment Surcharges.
If something goes wrong, including having problems with your buyer, there are options to help with your transaction problems. For more information, see the Transaction Problems and Protection section of Help.
Other Policies:
eBay allows discrete identification or ’credit‘ for third parties that provide services or products directly connected with the particular listing as long as they meet specific requirements. For policy and requirements, see Third-Party Acknowledgements, Credits and Links.
Reporting breaches of selling policies
If you see a listing that breaches eBay policies, please report it by clicking the Report item link in the listing, or by clicking the Report or Contact Us link located on most of our help pages.
When a policy breach occurs, we email the seller and the buyer to let them know that the listing has been removed from eBay.
Your participation and vigilance as part of the eBay community is invaluable in helping us help you be a more successful seller.
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