Amazon Business and Reverse Charge: Which VAT Applies to B2B Sales?

You sell to companies on Amazon Business and wonder whether you must apply reverse charge? For goods to a German company, usually not: you show the VAT. To a company in another EU country with a valid VAT ID you supply VAT-exempt instead. There the customer owes the tax in their own country. In everyday speech, "reverse charge" often means this second case.

Last updated: 29 October 2026

In short

German company: You show 19% or 7%; reverse charge under section 13b UStG applies only to the supplies listed there.
EU company with a valid VAT ID: The supply is VAT-exempt if dispatch and evidence are in order (section 4 no. 1 b, section 6a UStG).
Duties afterwards: An invoice with both VAT IDs by the 15th of the following month and a report in the recapitulative statement.

Which VAT applies to which customer?

Customer on Amazon Business	Shipped to	VAT	What goes on the invoice
Company in Germany	Germany	German VAT (19% or 7%)	Net amount, rate, VAT amount
Company in another EU country, valid VAT ID	Another EU country	VAT-exempt intra-Community supply	Both VAT IDs; note on the exemption
Company in the EU, VAT ID missing or invalid	Another EU country	Not exempt (section 6a(1) no. 4 UStG) and no distance sale if it buys for its business (section 3c(1) sentence 3 UStG): German VAT (19% or 7%)	Net amount, rate, VAT amount
Private person	Germany or another EU country	In Germany German VAT; to another EU country a distance sale: VAT of the destination country (OSS) or German VAT below the 10,000 euro threshold (section 3c UStG)	No German invoice duty for goods (section 14(2) UStG); if destination VAT applies and you do not use the OSS, that country's invoice rules apply

What this means for you: The country and VAT ID of the customer decide, not the fact that they buy through Amazon Business.

When does reverse charge apply to goods in Germany?

On a domestic supply you, the seller, normally owe the VAT. The recipient owes it only in the cases of section 13b UStG. For goods these include supplies of mobile phones, tablet computers and games consoles as well as certain integrated circuits when the total consideration in one economic transaction is at least 5,000 euros (section 13b(2) no. 10 UStG), and the goods in Annex 4 from the same total (no. 11). The recipient then owes the tax if they are a business (section 13b(5) UStG), and your invoice states "Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers" (section 14a(5) UStG).

For the usual Amazon Business order (office supplies, accessories, spare parts) this does not apply. For electronics in larger quantities, check whether you fall under these cases.

What this means for you: For normal goods to German companies you keep showing VAT; reverse charge only in the cases of section 13b.

When is a supply to an EU company VAT-exempt?

An intra-Community supply exists if you or your customer transport or dispatch the goods to another EU country, the customer is a business registered for VAT there, the acquisition is subject to VAT there and the customer uses a valid VAT ID issued by another Member State (section 6a(1) UStG). You must prove these conditions (section 6a(3) UStG). The supply is then exempt, but only if you file your recapitulative statement correctly and completely (section 4 no. 1 b UStG).

The Federal Central Tax Office confirms the validity of a VAT ID on request (section 18e UStG). If the exemption rests on incorrect information from the customer that you could not have detected with the care of a prudent businessperson, the supply stays exempt and the customer owes the tax (section 6a(4) UStG).

What this means for you: Collect the customer's VAT ID, have it confirmed and keep the shipping evidence.

What must you do after an exempt supply?

Invoice: Issue it by the 15th day of the month following the month of supply, with your VAT ID and the customer's (section 14a(3) UStG).
Advance return: Enter the amount as an exempt intra-Community supply (box 41).
Recapitulative statement: Report the customer's VAT ID and the total tax base to the BZSt (section 18a UStG).

Example: In November you supply goods worth 1,200 euros net to a company in Austria with a valid VAT ID. The invoice shows no German VAT and goes out by 15 December. The November return (or the quarter) shows 1,200 euros in box 41, the recapitulative statement 1,200 euros with the Austrian VAT ID.

What this means for you: An exempt supply means doing all three steps above.

What does Amazon do, and what do you do?

Whether Amazon creates invoices for you through the VAT Calculation Service is explained, with the set-up, in Amazon VAT Calculation Service. When you write an invoice yourself: Do you need an invoice for an Amazon order?. The reporting duties stay with you. More on the multi-country case: Intra-Community supply B2B.

What this means for you: The reporting stays your job, even if Amazon creates invoices.

Which mistakes are common?

Applying reverse charge to every B2B order. In Germany it applies only in the cases of section 13b.
Supplying tax-free without a valid VAT ID. One condition of section 6a(1) is then missing.
Forgetting the recapitulative statement. Without a correct statement the exemption lapses (section 4 no. 1 b UStG).
Not keeping dispatch evidence. You must prove the conditions (section 6a(3) UStG).

What this means for you: Check VAT ID, dispatch and reporting before you issue an invoice without tax.

How VAT GPT helps

Upload: You upload the Amazon transaction report (AVTR) as CSV; VAT GPT recognises it by the column TAXABLE_JURISDICTION.
Check: VAT GPT sorts the sales and calculates the advance return and the OSS return; you check and confirm.
Send: You send the advance return and the OSS return with VAT GPT Pro via ELSTER. VAT GPT does not create a recapitulative statement.

There is Free (basic features, free of charge), Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro. Sending to ELSTER is part of Pro. Try for Free Now

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to apply reverse charge on Amazon Business? For goods to German companies usually not; only in the cases of section 13b UStG.

When is a supply to an EU company VAT-exempt? When the conditions of section 6a(1) UStG are met and you can prove them.

How do I check a VAT ID? The BZSt confirms validity on request (section 18e UStG).

By when must the invoice go out? For intra-Community supplies by the 15th of the following month (section 14a(3) UStG).

Does this apply to small businesses? No, the exemption for intra-Community supplies does not apply under section 19(1) sentence 2 UStG. Details: Amazon as a small business.