Ko-fi does not provide tax advice. Tax rules differ among countries and states. We recommend you seek professional advice about your specific tax obligations before using Ko-fi.
In a nutshell
Income earned on Ko-fi is almost always subject to income tax and should be reported in the normal way you report other income. Ko-fi provides the tools to add GST (sales tax) or VAT to purchases. It is your responsibility to calculate and remit the appropriate sales tax or VAT due on sales.
Income tax
All income received on Ko-fi is likely to be subject to income tax.
We suggest you check the tax rules on receiving donations in your country to determine how to declare your donation income.
1099-K forms can be downloaded from PayPal by following these instructions or for Stripe using these instructions.
You can also download a CSV of all your Ko-fi payments in Payment History
How to charge sales tax or VAT
Ko-fi is a direct payment platform where buyers/supporters pay creators directly into their own PayPal or Stripe accounts. As such, Ko-fi does not collect and remit sales tax or VAT on your behalf. Instead, you are responsible for determining if and where they need to register, charge, and pay sales tax or VAT.
Ko-fi provides tools to allow you to add sales tax or VAT to the sale price of Shop items, Memberships or Commissions.
Visit ko-fi.com/manage/salestax to add the location where sales tax or VAT is due. Enter the percentage of tax that should be added to the sale price at the payment summary screen.
When someone makes a purchase, you will receive the full amount including any sales tax in your PayPal or Stripe account. It is then up to you to report and pay any sales tax due.
An export of all of your sales including any sales tax collected can be downloaded from your Payment History.
Do I have to add all the locations of my buyers when setting up sales tax?
It depends on your location and where you are selling from. At a minimum, you need to add tax for the country or location where you are selling or based. There are different thresholds that determine when you should register, collect, and remit sales tax or VAT in additional territories.
Here is a helpful guide to VAT and sales rules worldwide.
Will I have to pay taxes on donations received on Ko-fi?
We are unable to provide tax advice, so it is always recommended to consult with a tax advisor. However, it is generally understood that donation income is typically subject to income tax. You would be responsible for reporting the donation income and paying any applicable income tax in your own country.
Further questions
We hope this article has helped you understand how Ko-fi tax works. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact Ko-fi Support.