When do I start filing German VAT?

What is the filing cycle for VAT in Germany?

According to German tax law, companies are required to file tax returns for the previous month by the 10th of each month. At the end of the year, the summary is made and the declaration is adjusted. i.e. 12+1 filings.

When do you start filing your German VAT?

Declare from the first sale shipped in Germany. Here sellers need to pay special attention: this has nothing to do with the site where the user placed the order.

For example, if a customer on Amazon purchases a product, and the product is shipped from a German warehouse, then the product falls under one of the categories of declaration of VAT in Germany; If you encounter any problems in the process of filing German VAT declaration, you can go to the Dingmai cross-border tax service platform.

Find out. For example, my goods have never been shipped into the German warehouse, but why are my goods shipped from the German warehouse? This situation is Amazon's self-adjustment based on sales, and if you have opened the pan-European program, Amazon will randomly arrange the storage location of your goods.

Therefore, when Amazon adjusts the warehouse location of your goods on its own, you need to pay attention to the origin of the sale.

a.Tax Power of Attorney;

b.Articles of Association (original copy and German translation);

c.Business license (original copy and German translation);

d.Proof of registration with the Chinese tax bureau and German translation (if you are a Hong Kong company, you do not need to translate the latest bilingual industrial and commercial registration form in both Chinese and English);

g.VAT application information**; Desired VAT effective date.

h.Sample letterhead with company name, logo and other information, pdf format;

i.A scanned copy of the ID card and passport of the legal representative (chairman) of the Chinese company;

j.If you use a third-party overseas warehouse other than Amazon, you need to provide an overseas warehouse service contract.

1.Tax Power of Attorney: Used to appoint a dedicated tax representative to handle the tax filing and payment in a timely manner.

2.German Articles of Association: The German style is rigorous and rigid, and the articles of association are the necessary documents for the application of administrative affairs as the management rules of the applicant company.

Since Germany allows foreign companies to operate in Germany, the articles of association must be a copy of the original with a German translation.

3.Business license: The business license is naturally indispensable as proof of the legal existence of the applicant company.

As with the Articles of Association, a copy of the original is also required with a German translation attached. It should be noted that if the applicant company is a Hong Kong company, the latest Business Registration Certificate and Certificate of Incorporation can be submitted directly without translation.

4.Applying for information on the company's shareholders and directors: The company's shareholders and directors, as the direct responsible persons of the business entity, need to prepare a copy of their ID card and passport and file them with the German tax authorities.

5.E-commerce platform information: Since the e-commerce platform has reached a tax supervision agreement with the German tax authority, the applicant needs to submit the company's name, number, warehouse (including FBA warehouse) address and other information on the e-commerce platform.

6.Other documents: In addition to the above information, the applicant company is also required to provide a sample letterhead (pdf format) with the company name, logo and other information.

1.Contact a service consultant to sign a German VAT service cooperation contract and fill in the relevant application**;

2.Submission of documents required for the German VAT application as well as company or personal documents and applications**;

3.The application time depends on the documents submitted and the efficiency of the German tax office, which is generally 2-3 weeks and as fast as 10 days.

4.After receiving the VAT application documents, the German tax office will give feedback and issue an acceptance number;

5.The German tax office will approve the process, and additional information may be required to be submitted to the German tax authorities after the information has been submitted to the German tax authorities. For example, providing banks, **, selling products, etc.;

6.Obtain the VAT certificate document and tax ID, and then you need to bind the tax ID to Amazon Seller Central;

7.The entire application process is over.

1. Import tax rebate.

If you do not have a VAT number in the local country of the operating company, you will not be eligible for an import VAT refund.

2. Compliance customs clearance.

If it is found that the VAT number of the local country is borrowed from others or the VAT tax number is invalid, the goods may be detained and cannot be cleared, which will affect the normal operation of the company.

3. VAT invoice.

If you do not have a VAT number in your local country, you are not eligible to issue VAT invoices to your customers. If you can't provide a valid VAT invoice to your overseas customers, there is a chance that the customer will cancel the transaction or even give a bad review.

With a valid VAT, legal operation can be protected by the laws of the country where its products are sold, which is conducive to building customer trust, ensuring normal transactions, and greatly increasing the transaction rate and praise rate.

4. E-commerce platform.

Without a VAT tax number in the local country, cross-border e-commerce platforms may restrict sales permissions. Having a valid VAT account makes it easier to pass the relevant audits of the e-commerce platform, prevent the e-commerce platform from being blocked, and allow investors to conduct business normally on the e-commerce platform.

If you meet one of the following criteria, you must register for the German VAT!

First, the use of German local warehousing.

If the seller's goods have overseas warehousing in Germany or use a local warehouse in Germany, that is, the seller's goods are stored in a German warehouse and then transferred from Germany to various places, you need to register for a German VAT number!

2. Sellers who use Amazon FBA warehouses.

If the seller uses Amazon FBA (Amazon Warehousing and Dropshipping Service), the goods are sent from overseas to Amazon's warehouse in Germany for storage and sale, and must also apply for a VAT number in Germany and file a tax return.

3. Remote sales of more than 100,000 euros.

If the distance selling model is adopted, where the goods are stored in a European country other than Germany, such as the United Kingdom, and then the goods are sent directly to the end consumer in Germany, if the annual sales exceed 100,000 euros, you must also apply for a VAT number in Germany and file a tax return.

Fourth, the self-delivery exceeds the specified value.

The self-shipping model may also result in the need to pay VAT, and for small parcels sent directly from China, there is no customs duty and VAT for small parcels under 22 euros.

However, if the value of the goods exceeds 150 euros, strictly speaking, this is subject to customs declaration and payment of customs duties and import VAT, and 22 to 150 euros are subject to customs declaration, but no customs duties are paid, and import VAT is paid (less than 5 euros are exempted).

If you meet one of the above requirements or do not want to give up the German market, please register and upload your German VAT number as soon as possible to avoid being closed or prohibited from leaving or entering the warehouse.

Advantages of registering a German company 1. Registering a German company can quickly enhance the corporate brand image, with a high international legal status and protection by the European Union 2. Non-German citizens can freely operate at home or abroad after registering a German company, and can open a bank in Hong Kong at home and abroad 3. Use the name of a German company to buy and sell property, international, free capital in and out, and high credibility 4. Good investment environment. Nowadays, Germany is becoming a new hot spot for Chinese people to work, invest and live abroad with its perfect investment environment, preferential policies and excellent quality of life 5. Strong flexibility. The company can be registered by 2 people, and both of them can get a German visa 6. Small investment and low risk.

Compared with some other investment projects that will be implemented in China, millions of capital investments, which will last for several years of freezing time, will cause a large amount of funds to be precipitated for a long time for investors. The registered capital required to register a German company is only 5-60,000 euros (once the company is successfully registered, this capital can be freely used to travel freely in the country. After the company is registered, it can obtain a long-term business visa in Germany, which can freely travel to 25 Schengen countries (the Netherlands, France, Germany, Austria, Spain, Portugal, Luxembourg, Belgium, Greece, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, Finland and Sweden, etc.) 8. Children can enjoy free education to create a good living environment for the family 9. Apply for the trademark and brand established by the local enterprise in the domestic market in the name of the German company in Germany.

Help enterprises quickly create well-known trademarks and occupy the international market 10. Register a company in Germany and obtain a long-term business residence visa. German law allows foreigners to apply for a company in Germany, and after the company is established, they can obtain the right of residence in Germany with a Chinese passport, and after three years of successful operation, they can change from a long-term residence permit to permanent residence.

Once you have registered for VAT, you will be given a VAT number, which is your unique VAT number, and you will need to file a tax return with the tax office every three months from the date of VAT registration. The specific declaration method depends on your sales.

Declare once every three months Many tax agencies with lower fees may declare once every six months, and everyone should pay attention to brightening their eyes when selecting ** institutions in the early stage, and friends who need to be recommended can send private messages.

In the UK, it is filed once a quarter, that is, once every 3 months.

Germany is a monthly report, which is filed once a month.

Italy can choose to report quarterly or monthly, the quarterly report is filed once every three months, and the monthly report is declared once a month.

French monthly newspaper, declared once a month.

Spanish quarterly report, filed once every 3 months.

Small-scale direct sales are enough.

There are three forms for general taxpayers. Purchases and sales must be reported.

Declare before the 15th of each month. It will be postponed if it is a holiday.