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E-commerce and available payment gateways

It’s important to understand what payment gateways are available to you based on your country’s laws and availability of the service due to your location.

As an example, given where I live, I can’t use Stripe as a payment gateway which can be limiting.

However some platforms have built-in gateways which take care of all transaction related processes, including VAT, and pay you monthly, making it possible for customers to pay using a wide variety of options. They often deal with card fraud and other transactional problems which can take an additional weight off your entrepreneurial shoulders. But this obviously comes at a cost.

When it comes to VAT, depending on your location, you might need to employ the services of an accountant or online service that automates the VAT collection and payment on your behalf.

Dealing with VAT (and tax for that matter) can seem overwhelming! But please don’t let that stop you from pursing your own shop. The early days of dealing with the business-y side of things can be off putting, but if you calmly tackle it and take one step at a time to find a solution, you’ll be set for a long time! It’s worth the effort.