Amazon seller tax in Germany: an overview for online sellers

Do you sell on Amazon, eBay or in your own shop and wonder which taxes apply? If you sell independently, on a sustained basis and for profit, you generally run a trade business (§ 15 (2) EStG): you register it, file VAT returns, determine your profit and, where applicable, pay trade tax. Sales to other EU countries add the OSS.

Last updated: 27 October 2026

In short

VAT: advance return by the 10th day after the period ends, plus an annual return (§ 18 UStG).
Trade tax: For individuals, the first €24,500 of the trade income remain tax-free (§ 11 (1) GewStG).
Retention: books and records ten years, accounting vouchers eight years, other documents six years (§ 147 AO).

Which taxes do Amazon sellers pay in Germany?

You report the start of a trade to the competent authority (§ 14 (1) GewO); you tell the tax office about the opening of the business within one month using the tax registration questionnaire (Fragebogen zur steuerlichen Erfassung) (ELSTER help). Income tax is assessed after the end of the calendar year (§ 25 (1) EStG).

Amazon itself writes: “Each seller on Amazon is responsible for complying with applicable VAT regulations.” The tax laws also address the entrepreneur: they have to transmit the advance return (§ 18 (1) UStG), and the debtor of trade tax is the entrepreneur (§ 5 (1) GewStG). For Amazon sellers in Germany, these are generally the following taxes:

Tax	What is taxed	Return and deadline	More
VAT	Your sales subject to German VAT	Advance return by the 10th day after the end of the quarter or month, plus the annual VAT return; small business owners generally not	Amazon VAT report
VAT of other EU countries (OSS)	Distance sales to private customers in other EU countries above the €10,000 threshold	OSS return to the BZSt per quarter, by 30 April, 31 July, 31 October and 31 January	OSS return
Income tax	Your income, for a trade business your profit from the business	Income tax return, seven months after the end of the year without a tax advisor; profit determination by EÜR if you are not obliged to keep books	EÜR
Trade tax	Your trade income; for individuals €24,500 remain tax-free	Trade tax return electronically (§ 14a GewStG), seven months after the end of the year without a tax advisor	Trade tax return

The small business scheme only concerns VAT (§ 19 UStG); income tax and trade tax remain unaffected by it.

How does VAT work for Amazon sellers in Germany?

You declare VAT yourself. The advance return has to be transmitted via the officially designated interface by the tenth day after the end of the advance return period; the prepayment is due on the same day (§ 18 (1) UStG).

The advance return period is the calendar quarter. If the tax for the previous calendar year was more than €9,000, it is the calendar month. Special rules apply to entrepreneurs who are just starting their activity (§ 18 (2) UStG). How they work and how you extend the deadlines is explained in the article German advance VAT return (UStVA): filing online, deadlines and permanent extension.

In addition, you file an annual VAT return for the calendar year (§ 18 (3) UStG). Without a tax advisor you have seven months after the end of the calendar year for it (§ 149 (2) sentence 1 AO); if a tax advisor prepares the return, a longer deadline generally applies (§ 149 (3) AO).

As a small business owner you generally file neither an advance return nor an annual VAT return (§ 19 (1) sentence 2 UStG). The exceptions and the trap when waiving the scheme are explained in the article VAT return for a small business in Germany: do I have to file?.

For its VAT reporting, Amazon supports you with the Amazon VAT Transactions Report (AVTR). Amazon describes it as a monthly report with detailed data on all taxable transactions on the European marketplaces and in Amazon's logistics network; it is available on the third day of the following month. How you transfer the values to the advance return is explained in the article Advance VAT return from the Amazon VAT Transactions Report (AVTR).

If you sell to private customers in other EU countries, the VAT depends on the threshold. If you are established only in Germany, the following applies: if your distance sales – together with certain services to private customers in other EU countries and across all sales channels – exceeded €10,000 net in the previous calendar year or exceed it in the current calendar year, the place of supply is the country where the goods arrive, with that country's tax rate (§ 3c (1) sentence 1 and (4) sentence 1 UStG). Below that, the German tax rate applies and you declare the sales to the tax office. You can declare the VAT of the other countries centrally through the OSS at the BZSt instead of registering in every country. All the details are in the articles Distance sales in Germany (§ 3c UStG): what online sellers must report, How to submit an OSS VAT return in Germany: threshold, deadlines and steps for online sellers and Amazon OSS VAT: what applies to EU sales.

What changes with Amazon FBA?

Even with Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA), every seller remains responsible for VAT themselves. Amazon requires sellers who are subject to tax in Germany to provide in Seller Central either a German VAT ID number or a VAT ID number from another EU country with proof that you are registered with the OSS. According to Amazon's non-exhaustive list, the cases affected include: you are established in Germany, you hold stock in Germany, you ship from Germany, or your distance sales within Europe across all sales channels together amount to more than €10,000 a year.

Name and address must match. The company name and address in Seller Central must match the details stored for the VAT ID number, and for a German VAT ID number also the name and address in the BZSt register. If you do not correct discrepancies, Amazon may, according to its page, reject the VAT ID number and temporarily withdraw your selling privileges on Amazon.de.
Tax number first, then VAT ID number. To apply for a German VAT ID number you need a valid tax number (Amazon). The BZSt issues the VAT ID number on application (§ 27a (1) UStG). How you get the tax number is explained in the article Tax number in Germany: applying with the tax registration questionnaire online.
Warehouses in other EU countries. If you move your own goods from Germany to a warehouse in another EU country, this is generally treated as a supply (transfer, § 3 (1a) UStG). Sales from the warehouse to customers in the same country are not distance sales and do not belong in the OSS return. For warehouses abroad, a tax advisor can help in the individual case; the context is explained in the article Amazon OSS VAT: what applies to EU sales.

Which records and retention periods apply?

Besides the returns, tax law requires records and the retention of documents:

Records for VAT. The entrepreneur must keep records to determine the tax and the bases for calculating it (§ 22 (1) sentence 1 UStG).
Profit determination by EÜR. Taxpayers who are not obliged by law to keep books and prepare regular financial statements, and who do not do so voluntarily, may determine their profit as the surplus of business income over business expenses (§ 4 (3) sentence 1 EStG). More on this: EÜR template: preparing and sending the income surplus statement in ELSTER.
Obligation to keep books. It can arise from other laws and then also applies for tax purposes (§ 140 AO). In addition, commercial businesses must keep books if the tax authority finds that the business had total turnover of more than €800,000 in the calendar year or profit from the trade business of more than €80,000 in the financial year (§ 141 (1) AO). The obligation begins with the financial year following the tax office's notification (§ 141 (2) sentence 1 AO).
Retention. Books and records are kept for ten years, accounting vouchers for eight years and other documents – for example received commercial and business letters – for six years (§ 147 (1) and (3) AO). The period does not expire as long as the documents are relevant for taxes for which the assessment period has not yet expired (§ 147 (3) sentence 5 AO).

In VAT GPT you assign your income and expenses to categories and see your profit or loss for every time period.

How VAT GPT helps

Many sellers do this in Excel today and have a tax adviser check it. Just starting out? You fill in the tax registration questionnaire for sole proprietorships directly in VAT GPT and send it to the tax office to get your tax number. After that it takes three steps:

Upload: your Amazon or eBay CSV reports and your invoices. The AI reads amounts, countries and tax rates.
Check: VAT GPT breaks down the VAT for Germany and the EU (OSS) and prepares the advance return – monthly or quarterly. You check and confirm.
Send: With VAT GPT Pro, the advance return goes via ELSTER directly to the tax office.

Everything is in one place: advance VAT return, annual VAT return, OSS return, EÜR, trade tax and income tax returns. There is Free (basic features, free of charge), Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro (€49 per month or €444 per year, each including VAT). Try for Free Now

Which mistakes happen often?

Assuming Amazon takes care of your taxes. Amazon itself writes that every seller is responsible for complying with the VAT rules.
Not reporting the start. The opening of the business has to be reported to the tax office within one month using the tax registration questionnaire.
Looking only at VAT. A trade business also involves profit determination and the income tax return and, for example with trade income over €24,500, the trade tax return (§ 25 (1) GewStDV).
Calculating the threshold with Amazon sales only. § 3c (4) UStG looks at the total amount of your distance sales – eBay and your own shop count as well.
Not keeping the name or address in Seller Central in line with the VAT ID number. If you do not correct discrepancies, Amazon may reject the VAT ID number.
Filing an advance return as a small business owner to be on the safe side. Under standard taxation it generally counts as a waiver of the small business scheme (Finanzamt Hessen).
Throwing away documents too early. The retention periods are six, eight or ten years (§ 147 AO).

Frequently asked questions

Which taxes do I have to pay as an Amazon seller? Generally VAT (not as a small business owner), income tax and – if the trade income of an individual exceeds the allowance of €24,500 – trade tax. If your distance sales to other EU countries exceed the threshold of €10,000 net, the VAT of those countries is added, which you can declare through the OSS.

Do I need a VAT ID number for Amazon? Amazon requires sellers who are subject to tax in Germany to provide a German VAT ID number or an EU VAT ID number with proof of OSS registration in Seller Central. The BZSt issues the German VAT ID number on application (§ 27a (1) UStG); for that you first need a tax number from the tax office.

By when do I file the advance VAT return? By the tenth day after the end of the advance return period, i.e. the quarter or – with more than €9,000 of tax in the previous year – the month (§ 18 (1) and (2) UStG). For the annual VAT return, a deadline of seven months after the end of the year applies without a tax advisor (§ 149 (2) AO).

Do I have to file an advance return as a small business owner? Generally not (§ 19 (1) sentence 2 UStG). Exceptions, for example if you owe the tax as the recipient of a service, are explained in the article VAT return for a small business in Germany: do I have to file?.

Do I need bookkeeping or is the EÜR enough? Without an obligation to keep books, the EÜR is enough (§ 4 (3) EStG). Commercial businesses must keep books if the tax authority finds total turnover of more than €800,000 in the calendar year or profit from the trade business of more than €80,000 in the financial year and points this out to them (§ 141 AO); an obligation under other laws also applies for tax purposes (§ 140 AO).

How long do I have to keep documents? Books and records ten years, accounting vouchers eight years, other documents such as received commercial and business letters six years (§ 147 (1) and (3) AO). The period does not expire as long as the assessment period for the taxes concerned is still running.

Does this also apply to eBay sellers? The provisions mentioned on advance returns, profit determination and trade tax address you as an entrepreneur, not a particular marketplace. How VAT works on eBay is explained in the article eBay taxes in Germany: VAT for eBay sellers, advance return and OSS.