This is not tax advice or a lawyer's opinion. It is just the steps to get set up on 3DAPI and stay on the right side of the rules we are required to enforce as a marketplace. For anything about your own taxes, business registration, or personal legal situation, talk to an accountant or lawyer in your country.
What you need to sell on 3DAPI
You have to be a business, not a private person. That includes being self-employed, a sole trader, or whatever your country calls it (auto-entrepreneur, PFA, Einzelunternehmer, sole proprietor, ditta individuale, and so on). If you are already earning any kind of business income, a side hustle, an Etsy shop, a freelance gig, you are set. Just tell us honestly what you are when you sign up.
At signup we ask for
- Your legal name and business name
- Your country, address, and phone
- Your tax ID for your country (VAT number, EIN, UTR, SIRET, CUI, ABN, or whatever applies where you live)
- A quick identity check on the person opening the account
- Your payout details
One document to sign at the end: the Seller Framework, which covers our Seller Agreement, Terms, Privacy Policy, and Cookie Policy. One click covers all four.
That is it. You are in.
What you need to do per product
Every time you publish a product, you will see a short compliance statement above the Publish button. Read it. Check the box. Publish.
By checking the box, you confirm for this product:
- You designed it (or had it designed on your behalf) and it is sold under your brand
- It is safe and legal in the countries you have enabled for it
- You have the rights to sell it: no Disney, Marvel, Pokemon, big-sports logos, or someone else's design
- You take responsibility if there is a problem
That is the whole gate. If you are publishing something you would be embarrassed to defend in front of a rights-holder or a safety inspector, this is your reminder not to publish it.
Good to know: if you later enable EU shipping on the product, or turn on your 3DAPI Store, the statement gets a bit longer (European rules add a few requirements) and you will be asked to re-confirm. That is normal, nothing to worry about.
Who takes care of what
3DAPI takes care of
Consumption tax on 3DAPI Store orders
For customers buying directly on dapi.digital: VAT, sales tax, GST, whatever applies to the customer's country. We calculate it, charge it, and pay it. Your payout is your share after tax.
Tax documents
We provide the documents you need for your tax filings.
Product safety reports, customer side
If someone reports one of your listings, we handle it, tell you what is going on, and give you a chance to respond.
Payments, refunds, and warranty on 3DAPI Store orders
We run the customer conversation. Production defects in the first 30 days are on us; after that, warranty costs are yours.
Stays your responsibility
Your income tax and local business filings
Anything about your own taxes and registration.
Your own store
If you sell on Shopify, Etsy, or your own site, that is your world. We only invoice you for the manufacturing.
Being honest about your products
If your listing says something is safe for a 3-year-old and it is not, that is on you.
The IP question
Is this design yours to sell? Only you know.
If you want to sell to European or UK customers
You can, but there are two extra requirements, both handled in your seller dashboard.
1. An EU Responsible Person, if you are not based in the EU or UK
An EU-based contact who handles regulatory questions about your products. Appoint your own, or use one of the third-party services linked in your dashboard (typical cost: 60 to 300 EUR per year, paid directly to them, not to us). Without one, your 3DAPI store is not shown to buyers in the EU and UK.
Already based in the EU or UK? You are your own Responsible Person, and there is nothing extra to set up.
2. A slightly fuller product form
Your manufacturer name and address will show on the listing (that is the law, we cannot hide it), and warnings need to be provided.
Do not want to deal with any of that? Just do not enable EU or UK shipping, and set your products to ship to the countries you want. Everything else in this guide works exactly the same.
A few common IP pitfalls
To make it concrete, these are the ones we take down most often:
- Copyrighted characters (Disney, Marvel, Pokemon, Nintendo, Harry Potter, anime IP)
- Sports team and league logos (NFL, NBA, Premier League, La Liga, Formula 1, etc.)
- Celebrity likenesses without a license
- Copies of another designer's model
- Models from Thingiverse or elsewhere with "non-commercial" or "personal use only" licenses
If you are not sure whether something is yours to sell, it usually is not. When in doubt, do not publish it.
When something goes wrong
A customer complaint on a 3DAPI Store order
We contact you through your dashboard. Respond within 48 hours.
Someone reports your listing as unsafe or infringing
You get an email with the reason and a chance to respond or appeal.
A product safety issue
We may temporarily pause the listing while we look at it. You will always hear from us; we never take action silently.
Getting help
Account, orders, or the platform
support@dapi.digitalTax or legal questions about your situation
Talk to an accountant or lawyer where you live. We really cannot help with that: it is not our lane, and getting it wrong would hurt you.