Collect and verify digital platform seller information
Find out what seller information you need to collect and verify as part of your due diligence as a reporting platform operator.
As a reporting platform operator, you need to tell HMRC about reportable sellers. Find out which sellers you need to report.
You need to carry out due diligence by:
- collecting information about sellers on your platform
- verifying the information collected
- identifying sellers you need to report to HMRC
Information you need to collect
You need to collect some information about sellers that may not already be available as part of your normal business activities.
Information you must collect about individual sellers
You need to collect an individual seller’s:
- full name
- home address, including the postcode
- date of birth
- National Insurance number if they live in the UK — if they live outside the UK, collect the tax identification number and the country where it was issued (find out about tax identification numbers in the International Exchange of Information Manual: IEIM902330)
- rental property address listed on your platform (if applicable)
Information you must collect about entities such as companies, partnerships, trusts or charities
You need to collect an entity’s:
- legal business name
- main business address, including the postcode
- company registration number for a UK company — if the company is outside the UK, collect the tax identification number and the country where it was issued (find out about tax identification numbers in the International Exchange of Information Manual: IEIM902330)
- partnership Unique Taxpayer Reference if the seller is a UK partnership
- company registration number if the seller is a limited liability partnership
- company registration number if the seller is a charity — if the charity does not have a company registration number, collect the charity reference number
- Unique Taxpayer Reference if the seller is a trust
- rental property address listed on your platform (if applicable)
When you need to collect the information
As a reporting platform operator you need to collect seller information by 31 December of the reportable period, which runs from 1 January to 31 December.
If a seller refuses to provide information, you may decide to take action to get the information. For example, you may temporarily limit their access to your platform until they have provided the correct information.
Updating seller information
You can use most information from an earlier reporting period if you do not know that the information has changed.
If you regularly check certain seller information as part of your platform’s business, then you need to collect any updated information. For example, if you regularly collect sellers’ driving licences to check that they are valid, then you will know if they have changed their name. In this case you will need to update your platform with the seller’s new name.
The seller’s primary address is valid for 36 months. If it has not been updated within this period, after 36 months you will need to get a statement from the seller to confirm that the primary address is still valid.
If you find that a seller’s details are no longer reliable or correct, you must collect and verify that information again.
Verifying seller information
It is your responsibility to verify seller information, even if you use a third party.
You need to use all the information that is available to you to check if it is reliable and correct.
Information is considered to be available if you:
- already have the information
- can get the information directly — for example, from a computer system
- can get the information indirectly — for example, from a third party
You may have to pay a penalty if you do not verify seller information.
Verifying National Insurance numbers and tax identification numbers
Use publicly available information along with information that is privately available to you to verify a seller’s National Insurance number or tax identification number.
You only need to collect more information to verify a National Insurance number or tax identification number if:
- you are unsure that it is reliable — for example, if a National Insurance number is missing a character
- HMRC has informed you that it is not correct
Find out more about verifying seller information in the International Exchange of Information Manual: IEIM902400.
Verifying only active sellers
Active sellers are those that supply or are paid for goods or services during the reportable period, which runs from 1 January to 31 December.
You can choose to verify only active sellers by adding a reporting notification in the online reporting service to tell HMRC by 31 December each year.
Verifying pre-existing sellers
You have until the end of the second reportable period from the date when you become a digital platform operator to collect and verify information for pre-existing sellers on your platform. Pre-existing sellers are those who registered on your platform before you became a digital platform operator.
This gives you an extra year to collect and verify information for pre-existing sellers.
If you do this, you’ll need to add a notification in the digital platform reporting service to tell HMRC.
For example, if you became a digital platform operator on 1 January 2025, you need to collect and verify information for pre-existing sellers (those who registered on your platform before 1 January 2025) by 31 December 2026.
Information you need to report
You need to report all information collected, along with:
- other tax identification numbers (like a VAT number) and where they were issued — if available
- the total amount paid to the seller for each quarter of the reporting year after all deductions
- any fees, commissions, or taxes you have withheld or charged
- the number of transactions the seller received payment for
- bank account details to which amounts were paid — if available (if amounts were not paid to the seller’s account, give the name of the account holder and other identifying details about them, such as address and date of birth)
The total amount paid to the seller is the amount actually received by, or credited to, the seller in a reportable period. The total amount should also include payments made to the seller even if the goods or services have not yet been provided.
After you collect and verify seller information
You need to use the digital schema and business rules to create XML files to report sellers to HMRC.