Selling on Not On The High Street — Tax Guide

Not On The High Street (NOTHS) has carved out a brilliant niche in the UK e-commerce landscape — a marketplace for independent sellers offering unique, personalised, and handmade products. If you are one of the thousands of makers and small businesses selling through the platform, you are running a real business, and that means dealing with real tax obligations.

This guide covers how UK tax applies to NOTHS sellers, what expenses you can claim, how VAT works, and how to keep your records in order so that tax season does not become a source of dread.

Do I need to register as self-employed?

If you are selling products on Not On The High Street and your total gross trading income exceeds £1,000 per tax year, you need to register as self-employed with HMRC. Given that NOTHS charges a joining fee and takes a commission on every sale, most sellers are already investing enough to suggest they intend to trade commercially — which means registration is almost certainly required.

You can register as self-employed online through the government website. Once registered, you file a Self Assessment tax return each year by 31 January, reporting your NOTHS income alongside any other earnings.

If you also sell through other channels — your own website, Etsy, craft fairs, or local shops — all of that income needs to be included too. HMRC is interested in your total trading income, not just what comes through one platform.

How is NOTHS income taxed?

Your NOTHS income is taxed as self-employed trading income. The calculation is:

Gross sales revenue – Allowable expenses = Taxable profit

You pay income tax on this profit at the standard rates:

• 0% on the first £12,570 (personal allowance, if available)
• 20% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270
• 40% on profits between £50,270 and £125,140
• 45% on profits above £125,140

You also pay Class 2 National Insurance (a small flat-rate contribution) and Class 4 National Insurance (a percentage of your profits above the lower profits limit).

If NOTHS is a side business alongside a full-time job, your personal allowance is likely already used by your salary. That means your NOTHS profits are taxed from the first pound, at whatever rate band your total income falls into. Our side hustle tax guide explains how this stacking works.

Understanding NOTHS fees and commission

Not On The High Street's fee structure has a direct impact on your profitability and your tax calculations. As of 2026, the key costs are:

• Joining fee — a one-off payment to become a partner on the platform (currently around £199 + VAT)
• Commission — NOTHS takes 25% (plus VAT on the commission) of each sale price, including the delivery charge
• Payment processing — handled through the platform's payment system

For tax purposes, your gross income is the full amount the customer pays (including delivery charges). The NOTHS commission and any other fees are then claimed as expenses. So if a customer pays £40 for a product plus £4.50 delivery, your gross income is £44.50. The 25% commission (£11.13 plus VAT) is an expense.

This is an important distinction. Some sellers mistakenly report only the net amount they receive as income, but HMRC wants to see the full picture — gross income on one side, itemised expenses on the other.

Expenses you can claim

NOTHS sellers, particularly those making handmade products, tend to have a wide range of deductible expenses:

Materials and supplies:

• Fabric, yarn, paper, wood, metal, beads, and other raw materials
• Packaging materials (boxes, tissue paper, ribbon, branded stickers)
• Printing supplies (ink, paper, labels)

NOTHS-specific costs:

• The joining fee (deductible in the year you pay it)
• Commission on every sale
• Any promotional costs through the NOTHS platform (featured listings, seasonal campaigns)

Equipment:

• Sewing machines, laser cutters, 3D printers, or other production equipment
• Camera and lighting for product photography
• Computer or tablet for managing your shop

Software and tools:

• Design software (Adobe, Canva)
• Accounting software
• Email marketing platforms
• Social media scheduling tools

Postage and delivery:

• Royal Mail or courier costs
• Packaging supplies
• Scales and label printers

Home workspace:

• If you make products at home, you can claim a proportion of your rent or mortgage interest, council tax, electricity, heating, and water
• The simplified method allows flat-rate claims based on hours worked from home
• If you have a dedicated room used exclusively for business, you can claim the actual proportion of costs

Professional costs:

• Product photography (if you hire a photographer)
• Accountancy fees
• Business insurance (product liability, public liability)
• Intellectual property registration (trademarks for your brand)

Marketing:

• Social media advertising (Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook)
• Business cards and promotional materials
• Craft fair entry fees (if you also sell in person)
• Website costs (if you maintain your own site alongside NOTHS)

Penny in Accounted is particularly useful for NOTHS sellers because it can automatically categorise your materials purchases, postage costs, and platform fees as they flow through your bank account — saving you from having to manually sort through dozens of small transactions each month.

VAT for NOTHS sellers

VAT adds another dimension to your tax obligations. The basics:

Below the threshold: If your taxable turnover (total sales, not profit) is below the VAT registration threshold of £90,000, you do not need to register for VAT. Most NOTHS sellers fall into this category.

Above the threshold: If your sales exceed £90,000 over a rolling 12-month period, you must register for VAT and charge 20% on your products. This can be tricky on NOTHS because the platform's commission structure is already eating into your margins — adding 20% to your prices might make your products less competitive unless your competitors are also VAT-registered.

Voluntary registration: You can register for VAT voluntarily even if you are below the threshold. This allows you to reclaim VAT on your business expenses (including the VAT on NOTHS commission). It makes sense if you have significant VAT-bearing expenses and sell mainly to VAT-registered businesses. For B2C sellers, voluntary registration usually just means higher prices for your customers.

NOTHS commission and VAT: NOTHS charges VAT on top of their 25% commission. If you are not VAT-registered, this is simply an additional cost. If you are VAT-registered, you can reclaim this VAT on your VAT return.

Record-keeping tips

Good records are the foundation of stress-free tax returns. Here is what to keep track of:

• Sales records — every order, including date, product, price, delivery charge, and NOTHS commission
• Expense receipts — for every business purchase, no matter how small (that £3.50 reel of ribbon counts)
• Bank statements — showing NOTHS payouts and all business expenses
• Mileage logs — if you drive to collect supplies, deliver items, or attend craft fairs
• Stock records — the value of materials and finished products you hold at the end of each tax year (relevant for accrual accounting)

NOTHS provides sales reports that you can download from your partner dashboard. Download these monthly and reconcile them against your bank statements. Connect your business bank account to Accounted to automate much of this reconciliation.

Pricing your products correctly

Tax is not just something you deal with at the end of the year — it should factor into how you price your products. A simple pricing framework for NOTHS sellers:

1. Materials cost per item
2. Plus labour — pay yourself a fair hourly rate for production time
3. Plus overheads — a proportional share of fixed costs (software, equipment depreciation, workspace)
4. Plus NOTHS commission — 25% of the selling price (work backwards: if you want to net £30, the selling price needs to be £40 before commission)
5. Plus VAT on commission — another 5% effectively
6. Plus a margin for profit and tax

Many NOTHS sellers undercharge because they forget to account for their own time and the tax they will owe on their profits. Building tax into your pricing from the start prevents nasty surprises in January.

Growing your NOTHS business

As your NOTHS shop grows, keep these milestones in mind:

• Payments on account start when your tax bill exceeds £1,000
• VAT registration becomes mandatory at £90,000 turnover
• Hiring help (even part-time or freelance) introduces employer obligations
• Making Tax Digital will require digital record-keeping and quarterly updates for qualifying sole traders

The sellers who thrive on NOTHS are the ones who treat it as a proper business from day one — with proper pricing, proper bookkeeping, and a proper understanding of their numbers. Get those foundations right, and you can focus on what you do best: creating beautiful products.

Related reading:

• Tax guide for Etsy sellers
• Selling on Amazon as a side hustle — tax guide
• How much can you earn before telling HMRC?

Accounted helps UK sole traders stay on top of their bookkeeping and tax. Start your free 30-day trial at getaccounted.co.uk.

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