I was talking about it with my mom and she told me that if you’re under 18, it’s illegal for you to sell your art online. She refuses to let me sell it on eBay, Amazon, or deviantArt. Is it true that if I’m not 18, I can’t sell my art online?
5 Answers
It is perfectly legal for someone under the age of 18 to sell art online. You will, however, have to pay income taxes if you make more than a few hundred dollars selling stuff.
Ignore those that say you can’t enter into a business contract under 18. While it is true that a contract with a minor is not valid, this does not mean that you cannot sell stuff. All this would mean is that if you enter into a contract by selling something, and one end of the sale is not upheld (they do not pay, or you do not ship the item), if the other party sues, the contract won’t hold up in court. So let’s say you sold a piece online for $100, and the buyer doesn’t pay. Normally, you could sue and he would have to give you the $100 for the painting. However, in this case, the sale would just be ignored because you can’t enter into a contract and you would have to sell it again.
Not sure about Canada. In the USA, contracts aren’t enforceable for minors. So no one would enter into a contract to buy with a minor. That doesn’t make it illegal, it makes it a high-trust transaction.
But if you found someone willing to do business with you as a minor, then it’s not illegal. (With the exception of ‘explicit’ material. That could definitely land someone in hot water.)
Those are your issues… not to mention the issues with your mom. Best of luck!
You cannot enter into any sort of business contracts until you reach 18.
it is illegal. However you could ask your mum to do it for you (or any other adult)
Please answer mine, also art related