A Brief Guide to VAT Obligations for Amazon Merchants Selling in Europe
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes.
The VAT rules changed for ecommerce sellers in June/July 2021.
If you’re an Amazon seller based in or selling into Europe, here’s what you need to know about VAT.
In this brief guide to your Amazon VAT obligations:
Table of Contents
Learn how to manage your Amazon accounting the right way
Amazon accounting can be complex. Between sales tax, different fee types and the sheer volume of transactions, there’s a lot going on. Discover the easy way to manage your Amazon accounting.
Download our free guide
You can find a much more in-depth guide to Amazon VAT here.
What is VAT?
“VAT (Value Added Tax) gets charged whenever “value” is added in the supply chain. When a supplier of raw materials sells goods to a manufacturer, for example, VAT is added to the sale. VAT is added again on the sale from the manufacturer to the wholesaler, and from the wholesaler to the retailer, and from the retailer to the consumer.”
- Claire Taylor, CEO of SimplyVAT.com
By charging VAT, government tax authorities are able to levy a tax on all value creation activities in their economy, thereby maximizing tax revenue and spreading the cost of taxation across all components of the supply chain.
How Much is VAT and Who do I Pay?
First off, it’s important to note that we aren’t qualified tax advisors, and all of the information provided here is intended to be taken as general guidance, not professional advice.
For advice specific to your situation, it’s best to consult a qualified tax advisor with experience in this field. We have a directory of our trusted accountant partners here.
Everyone selling goods on Amazon European marketplaces is obliged to pay VAT.
The amount of VAT that you are liable to pay (and which country you need to pay VAT to) varies according to a range of factors. The three primary factors for sellers based in the EU are:
- The country(s) where your goods are stored or shipped.
- How much you are selling in each country.
- Applicable VAT rates in the countries which you are registered for VAT.
VAT rates range from 8%-27% depending on which country you are in. You can find a complete tax table with rates and links to official sites here.
To begin with, you are required to be registered for VAT in your home country, and any other countries in which you store inventory.
Once your sales to any given EU country the pan-EU threshold of €10,000, you are required to register for VAT, and pay VAT on any applicable sales to consumers in that country.
For cross-border EU business transactions, VAT is paid by the receiving party. If your aggregate sales to consumers in any given EU country is below the threshold, you must pay VAT on these sales to your home country at the local rate.
The rules are different for sellers based outside of the EU - you will need to get an EORI (Economic Operations Registration and Identification) number that identifies you as the importer.
Importers are required to pay VAT at the first port of entry, which can be later reclaimed via a VAT return.
The 2021 Ecommerce VAT Package
The rules around VAT changes on July 1, 2021.
There were five key changes to impact ecommerce sellers:
- The pan-EU distance-selling threshold. Each EU member state used to have its own threshold to qualify for paying VAT there. Now, they all have the same €10,000 revenue threshold.
- A One-Stop Shop (OSS) centralized filing system. Now sellers that need to remit VAT to more than one EU member state can do so in one place. One process, one filing, and one amount.
- An Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS) centralized customs system. For low-value consignments (under €150), sellers can manage their customs and import duties in one place for a quicker, smoother transaction. Customers get a more transparent experience and faster deliveries.
- The Low-Value Consignment Relief (LVCR) is no more. All products are subject to VAT.
- The marketplace facilitators, like Amazon, have new responsibilities. Amazon may, in fact, collect and remit your VAT for you, depending on your unique circumstances.
Read more about the changes here.
We have a much more in-depth guide to VAT and strategy for Amazon sellers here.
The Best Warehousing and Fulfilment Services
Amazon offers merchants a variety of ways to get their goods to European customers:
- Merchant Fulfilled Network (MFN): otherwise known as fulfilment by merchant, this involves either fulfilling orders yourself or using a local third party logistics service. As long as your annual sales to any given country is below the applicable threshold, you only need to register for VAT in your home country.
- European Fulfilment Network (EFN): sellers using EFN store goods at one Amazon warehouse in the EU, and all orders placed through European Amazon sites are shipped from the same fulfilment center. With EFN, the same tax rules apply - you only need to be registered for VAT in the one country (plus any countries where you exceed the sales threshold).
- Multi Country Inventory (MCI): sellers using MCI, store inventory are in multiple Amazon warehouses around Europe, and get to choose which fulfilment centers are used. Sellers distributing goods this way are liable to register for, and pay VAT in any countries where goods are stored or their sales exceed the given threshold.
- Central European FBA: inventory is stored in Germany, and also holding warehouses in Poland and Czech Republic. Products are listed on the German Amazon marketplace. Sellers using Central European FBA are liable to register for VAT in Germany, Poland and Czech Republic, and to pay VAT on sales in Germany.
- Pan-European FBA: this is an EU-wide fulfilment service, which allows sellers to truly benefit from Amazon’s vast network of fulfilment centers. Inventory is moved around based on Amazon’s demand projection algorithms, orders are fulfilled faster, and happy customers results in more sales. Everyone wins. However, this does require sellers to be registered for VAT in every EU country where Amazon has warehouses, plus any other countries where sales exceed the threshold. Sellers have no control over where their goods are stored, so it must be assumed that they are stored everywhere.
Each country’s VAT filing frequency and compliance requirements differ, making it a complex and time-consuming process to manage. That is, if you’re not using the OSS system.
For example, if you are using the Pan-European FBA service to fulfil orders, you will need to file at least 64 tax returns every year!
Get in touch with Jonathan Matthews, one of the leading European Amazon tax experts for more information.
Keep Track of Your Taxes with A2X
When it comes time to file your taxes, you’ll need to know exactly what you have collected. A2X calculates this all for you automatically, giving you a time-saving head start at the end of the financial year - wherever you do business.
See how else A2X can streamline your business and start your free trial today!
Also on the blog
Learn how to manage your Amazon accounting the right way
Amazon accounting can be complex. Between sales tax, different fee types and the sheer volume of transactions, there’s a lot going on. Discover the easy way to manage your Amazon accounting.
Download our free guide
Ecommerce accounting is challenging, A2X makes it easy.
Discover how A2X can automatically take all of your accounting pain away.
