When will this occur?
Changes will be introduced in two stages:

1. All items listed for sale on eBay.com.au on or after 21 May 2008 must offer PayPal as one of the payment methods.
2. All items appearing on eBay.com.au as of 17 June 2008 must be paid for using one of the following:
1. PayPal
2. Pay on pick up (i.e. paid for when picking up the item)
3. Visa/MasterCard (with transactions processed by PayPal).

No other payment methods will be permitted.

Please note a small number of categories are excluded from these changes. Find out about these exclusions.

• Increased PayPal Buyer Protection – up to AU$20,000
  For eligible items purchased on or after 17 June 2008, PayPal Buyer Protection will increase to a maximum of $20,000 (based on the full value of your purchase, including postage).

• New PayPal Seller Protection
  PayPal Seller Protection has also recently been introduced to provide sellers with an unprecedented level of protection in the unlikely event of a claim or chargeback arising from an item not received buyer dispute or an unauthorised payment (eg from a stolen credit card).

Why is eBay making changes?
These changes are part of our ongoing commitment to protect our members. We believe buyers will be more confident shopping on eBay if only the safest payment methods are permitted.

In 2007 on eBay.com.au those who paid with PayPal were much less likely to enter a dispute. In fact those using PayPal were almost four times less likely to have a dispute over their purchase than people who paid with bank deposit. Plus, PayPal sellers were almost half as likely to experience an unpaid item as sellers who did not accept PayPal.

The data clearly shows that PayPal is a safer way to buy and a more reliable way to sell on eBay.com.au.

Buyers and sellers don’t have to share their financial details when using PayPal, which is one of the biggest fears consumers have when transacting online. PayPal eliminates this concern, making it one of the most secure ways to transact online. In fact PayPal topped the list of preferred online payment methods according to the Nielsen Consumer Report 2H 2007.

By addressing the main causes of disputes on eBay.com.au we will see a lift in consumer confidence. This will help strengthen the eBay community ultimately benefiting buyers and sellers, as well as eBay.

We realise that these changes are going to impact how you transact on eBay.com.au and we trust they will achieve the desired result of protecting our members and providing an even safer place to buy and sell online.

We will be hosting a number of online workshops during April and May plus you’ll have the opportunity to meet with us face to face in a series of Q&A events being held in May. Register your interest in attending an event.

For more details, read the nitty gritty on what's changing on eBay.com.au.

Regards
The eBay team

A message from our lawyers:
The PayPal service is provided by PayPal Australia Pty Limited (ABN 93 111 195 389) which holds an Australian Financial Services Licence, number 304962. eBay is an authorised representative of PayPal for the purpose of providing information about PayPal and is not acting as your agent. eBay is not providing personal financial advice to you and does not take your individual circumstances into account in providing information about PayPal. You should consider the Product Disclosure Statement and Financial Services Guide before deciding to sign-up for or use the PayPal online payment service at https://www.paypal.com.au

PayPal Buyer Protection and PayPal Seller Protection are also subject to the terms and conditions in PayPal's User Agreement, incorporating the Buyer Protection policy and Seller Protection policy which include details on eligibility criteria and the discretionary nature of the Policies.