The people searching "sell scrap gold" in Australia, about 110 times a month according to Ubersuggest, "sell silver gold" about 70 and "sell silver scrap" about 50, are a mixed group. Some hold a few broken chains, and others run a workshop, a dental practice, a recycler or a repair business with an accumulating stock of metal. This guide is for the second group. It covers sorting, weighing and assay, the GST reverse charge that applies between registered businesses, the reporting rules that began in 2026 and the routes for selling a lot. It is part of our guide to selling old gold, silver and jewellery. We quote no prices, because we found no reliable current figures, and ScrapTrade has a commercial interest in the scrap trade.
Where bulk scrap comes from
Jewellers and repairers accumulate broken chain, findings, filings and sweeps. Dental practices and laboratories may hold gold alloys. Electronics recyclers hold boards and connectors with gold and silver content, which we describe in Where Old Electronics Go After You Hand Them In, and vehicle recyclers hold catalytic converters with platinum group metals, covered in Where an Old Catalytic Converter Goes. Each stream has its own purity, form and buyer, so keep them separate.
Step 1: Separate and record
Keep metals apart, and keep karat grades apart where you can. Weigh each batch on a calibrated scale, record the weight, the date and the source, and photograph it. Hold scrap in a secured place with a log of what goes in and out. A record of where metal came from protects you and makes it easier to sell.
Step 2: Sampling and assay
Mixed or unknown scrap cannot be priced precisely until its content is known. We found no source on how Australian refiners sample, or on assay fees and turnaround, so ask each buyer how they establish content, who witnesses it and how a dispute is settled. A buyer that prices on a visual guess may be building a margin in for the uncertainty.
Step 3: Tax treatment
Two points matter for a registered business. First, since 1 April 2017, when a GST-registered business sells scrap gold, silver or platinum to another registered business, the buyer accounts for the GST under the reverse charge, according to the Australian Taxation Office page summarised in our searches. Second, investment-form metals, meaning gold of at least 99.5 percent, silver of at least 99.9 percent and platinum of at least 99 percent in investment form, are GST-free, and palladium does not qualify. Jewellery is a taxable supply. A trader who mixes GST-free bullion with taxable supplies has extra issues, because the turnover counts toward the registration threshold. These points come from search summaries of ATO pages and secondary sources, and some sources conflicted, so confirm with your accountant and the ATO ruling on precious metals.
Step 4: The 2026 reporting rules
According to compliance-vendor pages, dealers in precious metals and stones became reporting entities under Australia's anti-money-laundering regime on 1 July 2026. A cash transaction of A$10,000 or more, or a linked series, requires a threshold transaction report within 10 business days, and splitting a payment to stay under the threshold is itself a red flag. Sources conflicted on whether bullion has a lower identification trigger of A$5,000, and one vendor said bullion has no threshold. None of the sources was AUSTRAC itself, so check austrac.gov.au for the definitive rules and enrolment dates. State second-hand dealer rules, covered in Sell Unwanted or Broken Jewellery in Australia, are separate again. For the wider scrap rules, see our state-by-state guide.
Step 5: Choose a buyer
- A local refiner or buyer. Direct, with assay on the premises and cash or transfer on the day.
- A bullion dealer. For refined or high-purity material.
- A scrap or e-waste recycler. For mixed streams with precious content.
- A trade marketplace. To reach several buyers at once and agree terms in writing.
Where ScrapTrade fits
This is the group ScrapTrade is made for. A seller with a lot can list it once and let verified traders in more than 50 countries bid, instead of phoning around, and the listing records the weight, the purity marks and the photos. Precious metals are one of its twelve categories, listing is free and no commission is charged, and sellers are verified, which also fits a regulated trade. You negotiate in real time and set collection or shipping terms in the listing, including insurance. When a bid is accepted, the buyer's 5 percent deposit is held in escrow. Businesses and individuals can both sell after verification. Before you list a high-value lot, ask cs@scraptrade.com.au how assay is arranged, who carries transit risk and how the deposit and final payment work, because we could not confirm those details.
What we could not verify
- Current metal prices. We found no reliable source.
- Assay fees and turnaround in Australia.
- The detail of the 2026 reporting rules. We relied on compliance-vendor pages.
- Your GST position. We relied on search summaries of ATO pages.
- How ScrapTrade arranges assay, insurance and transit risk.
- ScrapTrade's verification steps. Ask support at cs@scraptrade.com.au.
Frequently asked questions
Do I charge GST when I sell scrap gold to another business?
Between two GST-registered businesses, the buyer accounts for the GST under the reverse charge for scrap gold, silver and platinum, according to the ATO page we found. Check with your accountant.
What is the cash reporting threshold for precious metals?
Compliance sites say A$10,000 in cash triggers a threshold transaction report from 1 July 2026. Confirm with AUSTRAC.
Can a business sell scrap gold on ScrapTrade?
Yes. Precious metals are a category, and businesses and individuals can sell after verification.
How do I know what my scrap is worth?
Weigh it by metal, then have a sample assayed. Mixed scrap cannot be priced precisely without a test.
Sources
- Ubersuggest keyword data for Australia, queried November 2026.
- Australian Taxation Office GST guidance on precious metals and the valuable metals reverse charge, as summarised in search results.
- Compliance-vendor summaries of AUSTRAC rules for dealers in precious metals and stones, 2026.
- ScrapTrade website, accessed November 2026.
This is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice. Reporting and tax rules change, so confirm with the ATO, AUSTRAC and your adviser. ScrapTrade is a scrap marketplace.