Etsy Ends Standalone Paypal For Most Sellers

Etsy have recently announced that from 15th May 2019, any seller in a country that is able to use the Etsy Payments system will no longer be able to use standalone Paypal payments instead.

For the past couple of years, all new sellers have automatically had this restriction. The customer can still pay with Paypal, but the payment is processed through Etsy.  This means that the seller does not get any money sent to their Paypal account, it is only in their Etsy account.

Grandfathered Accounts

However, many older shops were able to choose to have just Paypal to process their shop’s payments.

There are many reasons they have made this decision.  Naturally many such shops are now upset that this option has been taken from them.

From 15th May 2019, Etsy sellers who are able to accept Etsy Payments can no longer use Standalone PaypalClick To Tweet

Some Advantages of Using Etsy Payments

There are some benefits to using just Etsy Payments that should also be considered:

  • It can mean easier accounts as there is just one company handling all payments.  You can see your takings etc in one place on Etsy.
  • Etsy shoppers will be able to spend Etsy Gift Cards in your shop.  This is seamless for the shop owner. You will be paid exactly the same as if the customer had used Etsy Payments directly .
  • Well, the biggest one has to be that if you live in a country that accepts Etsy Payments, the biggest advantage of accepting them is you can keep you shop going.  Etsy will not allow you to do otherwise.
  • There are shoppers who dislike Paypal and may therefore only want to shop where they can use Etsy Payments.
  • Paypal have just changed their refund policies. If you refund from a standalone Paypal sale you will not get any listing or commission fees back.  Etsy WILL refund you these if you process a customer refund from an Etsy Payments sale. If you sell high priced items, this could be an important plus.
  • The customer can still pay with Paypal, it is just handled by Etsy rather than directly

Some Disadvantages of Using Etsy Payments

Here are some of the disadvantages that I have heard mentioned by sellers:

  • Concerns over Etsy’s security. There has been some rather serious issues over the years. Some sellers do not fully trust Etsy’s ability to handle their money.
  • Etsy pays out your takings to your bank account once a month (or less). You can not keep any money in the account for longer.
  • For many people, Etsy takes longer to process a payment from your Etsy Account than Paypal does from their accounts.
  • Paypal’s fees are lower than Etsy’s payment processing fees in many countries.
  • Sellers using Paypal’s Microtransactions will almost certainly see an increase in fees.
  • The accounts information supplied to sellers by Etsy is really not very clear.  There have been significant errors with this (some of which have still not been fixed after many months).  It is not easy to understand some basic facts about your Etsy accounts using their stats.
  • Etsy charge VAT on payments for most EU sellers – there is some debate on whether this is right or not
  • Many sellers use their Paypal account for purchasing supplies etc – there is no way to transfer money from an Etsy account to a Paypal one without going via your own bank first.
  • Some sellers have Paypal Working Capital loans which could be affected by not using Paypal as often
  • Some sellers benefit from earning points or rewards for using their Paypal accounts

Clearly some of these are pretty big and may affect some sellers significantly.

Countries that Can Not Use Etsy Payments

Sellers from countries that can not use Etsy Payments are still able to use Paypal instead.

Click here for a list of Etsy Payment Eligible Countries

What To Do

Check whether you are already enrolled in Etsy Payments.  Go to your shop Dashboard, then choose Finances from the menu on the left side, followed by Payment Settings (or click that link to go right to it).

If you are already in the scheme, you will see Etsy Payments as the first thing under the first tab.

“If you don’t enrol in Etsy Payments by 15th May 2019, your selling privileges will be suspended until you enrol. “

If you think you may be in an eligible country, please do check now.

Articles from Etsy about this Change

Etsy Payments Policy Update

How to Set up a PayPal for Your Etsy Shop

Etsy Ends Standalone Paypal for Most Sellers

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