Amazon Associates and German VAT: how do you treat your commission?

Your commission from the Amazon affiliate programme is a service to a business. If your client is based in another EU country, no German VAT arises: the place of supply is where the recipient runs their business (§ 3a (2) UStG). If the client is based in Germany, you charge 19 percent, unless you are a small business.

Last updated: 29 October 2026

In short

Entrepreneur: Anyone who earns income on a continuing basis is an entrepreneur under the VAT Act (§ 2 (1) UStG), even with a small blog.
Place of supply: For a service to a business, the place is where the recipient runs their business (§ 3a (2) UStG). So what counts is who your contract partner is and where they are based.
EU abroad: You issue an invoice marked "reverse charge" (German wording: "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers") with both VAT IDs (§ 14a (1) UStG) and file an EC Sales List (Zusammenfassende Meldung, § 18a (2) UStG).

Who is your contract partner?

VAT does not depend on the country of your readers but on whom you supply the service to. You receive commission for referring sales. Your client is the company with which you concluded the affiliate contract. Where it runs its business is stated in the contract documents and in the statements; check there before you fill in an invoice or advance return. No specific company is named here on purpose, because the contract fixes it and it can change.

For services to a business: the place of supply is where the recipient runs their business (§ 3a (2) sentence 1 UStG). If you supply to a permanent establishment, its location counts (sentence 2).

What this means for you: Read in the contract who your client is and in which country they are based; everything else follows from that.

When do you charge VAT?

The three cases at a glance:

Client is based in	Place of supply	What applies to you
Germany	Germany	19 percent VAT (§ 12 (1) UStG), unless you are a small business (§ 19 UStG)
Another EU member state	There	No German VAT; the recipient owes the tax there; invoice with the wording, EC Sales List
Country outside the EU	There	No German VAT; no EC Sales List, because it covers only services in the rest of the Community territory

The EU case raises the most questions. Here the client owes the tax in their own country. In your advance return the service appears as a turnover not taxable in Germany; you find the box in the advance return form. How to file the return is in File your VAT return online.

What this means for you: With a German client 19 percent, with an EU client no German tax.

What must be on the invoice or statement?

If you are based in Germany and perform a service under § 3a (2) UStG in another member state, and the recipient owes the tax there, you need an invoice with the wording "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers" (§ 14a (1) sentence 1 UStG). This does not apply if settlement by credit note has been agreed. The invoice must be issued by the fifteenth day of the month after the month in which the service was performed. It contains your VAT ID and the recipient's (§ 14a (1) sentences 2 and 3 UStG).

So you need a VAT ID. How to apply for it is in Apply for a VAT ID at the BZSt.

What this means for you: In the EU case you write "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers" on the invoice and state both VAT IDs.

When must you file the EC Sales List?

An entrepreneur who performs taxable services under § 3a (2) UStG in the rest of the Community territory, for which the recipient based in another member state owes the tax there, submits an EC Sales List to the BZSt (§ 18a (2) UStG). The reporting period is the calendar quarter; the deadline is the 25th day after the quarter ends.

Small businesses are an exception: paragraphs 1 to 3 do not apply to entrepreneurs who apply § 19 (1) UStG (§ 18a (4) UStG).

What this means for you: As a regular taxpayer you report EU commissions to the BZSt every quarter; as a small business the report falls away.

What applies to small businesses?

If you apply the small business scheme, you do not show VAT (§ 19 UStG). Which limits apply and how to check them is in Small business scheme 2026: limits. How the invoice then looks is shown in Invoice as a small business.

What this means for you: Small businesses charge no VAT and file no EC Sales List.

Which mistakes happen often?

Charging VAT although the client is based in another EU country. Then the place of supply is abroad (§ 3a (2) UStG).
Not checking the client. What counts is the contract partner, not the platform you link to.
Forgetting the wording "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers". It is mandatory in the EU case (§ 14a (1) UStG).
Having no VAT ID. Without it a detail is missing on the invoice and the report.
Forgetting the EC Sales List. It is due quarterly by the 25th day (§ 18a (2) UStG).

What this means for you: Check your contract partner first; invoice and report follow from that.

How does VAT GPT help here?

VAT GPT is the tax software for online sellers, self-employed people and small businesses in Germany – OSS return first, then VAT, EÜR, trade tax and income tax, calculated and filed in one place. You get the figures for your advance return with the method "Upload – check – send":

Upload: You upload your reports and invoices. The AI reads amounts and countries.
Check: VAT GPT calculates the VAT and creates the advance return. You check and confirm.
Send: With VAT GPT Pro you send the advance return through ELSTER. You file the EC Sales List yourself.

Plans are Free, Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro. Try it free

What this means for you: Your documents become the advance return in three steps.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to pay VAT on Amazon Associates commission? It depends on your client: 19 percent in Germany (§ 12 (1) UStG), no German VAT in another EU country (§ 3a (2) UStG), none at all as a small business (§ 19 UStG).

Which invoice wording do I need in the EU case? "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers", plus your VAT ID and the recipient's (§ 14a (1) UStG).

By when must I issue the invoice? By the fifteenth day of the month after the service (§ 14a (1) sentence 2 UStG).

Must I file an EC Sales List? As a regular taxpayer, for services to businesses in the rest of the Community territory, yes: quarterly by the 25th day after the quarter (§ 18a (2) UStG). Small businesses are exempt (§ 18a (4) UStG).

Am I an entrepreneur with a small blog? If you earn income on a continuing basis, yes, even without an intention to make a profit (§ 2 (1) UStG).