I am a jewelry trader (wholesale buying/reselling), am I subject to the HBJOAT tax?

Short answer

No. Wholesale trade and trading — that is, the resale of goods as is between professionals — are not not taxable to the HBJOAT tax.

What is a trader for the purposes of the HBJOAT tax?

A trader is a company that buys jewelry or HBJOAT items from manufacturers or other suppliers, and the resells as is to retailers or other professionals, without any transformation or manufacturing. It is a purely commercial intermediary in the B2B (business to business) distribution chain.

Why is trade not taxable?

The HBJOAT tax targets operators who introduce products into the economic chain: manufacturers, importers, and retailers selling to the end consumer. Wholesale traders are also affected. between professionals, as things stand, is not considered liable for the tax because it does not realize added value on the product and does not sell to the final consumer.

Concrete examples

• ✅ Not taxable : a company buys gold necklaces from a manufacturer and resells them to retail jewelers, without any modification.
• ✅ Not taxable : a wholesaler imports watches and distributes them to professional resellers in France.
• ❌ Taxable : this same wholesaler sells directly to individuals (retail) — this part of its turnover then becomes taxable.
• ❌ Taxable : if the trader makes changes to the products before reselling them (assembly, personalization, engraving, etc.), he goes outside the scope of pure trade and may become liable.

Points to be aware of

The exemption for trading applies only on the condition that:

• The resale takes place between professionals (B2B), and not to the end consumer.
• The products are then resold. as it stands, without transformation or manufacturing.
• The activity is exclusively trading (no retail sales in parallel).

If your company engages in both trading (non-taxable) and retail or manufacturing (taxable), you will need to clearly distinguish these two flows in your accounting and declare only the taxable portion of your turnover.

In case of doubt

If you are unsure whether your activity falls under the category of exempt pure trading, contact Francéclat directly via the platform. teletax.fr to obtain confirmation regarding your specific situation.