Selling on Amazon as a small business: VAT rules

You sell on Amazon and pay no VAT so far? Then you probably use the small business scheme: as a business established in Germany, your sales are VAT-exempt with no more than 25,000 euros in the previous year and at most 100,000 euros in the current year (section 19(1) UStG). For EU sales to private customers, a separate limit applies.

Last updated: 27 October 2026

In brief

Limits: a total turnover of 25,000 euros in the previous year and 100,000 euros in the current year (section 19(1) UStG). In the year you start, the 25,000 euro limit applies to the current year.
It applies by itself: the exemption comes from the law; you do not switch it on at Amazon. If you do not want it, you waive it towards the tax office (section 19(3) UStG).
Invoices: without separately shown VAT and with a note on the exemption under section 19 UStG.
EU abroad: for sales to private customers in other EU countries, the 10,000 euro limit applies (section 3c(4) UStG).
Crossing a limit: the sale that takes you over the limit and all later sales are taxable.

Which two limits apply to you?

The law names two figures, and both must hold (section 19(1) UStG):

Previous year: your total turnover in the previous calendar year was no more than 25,000 euros.
Current year: your total turnover in the current calendar year stays at 100,000 euros or less.

Total turnover is the sum of your taxable sales, counted by the payments you actually received, so by your sales proceeds (section 19(2) UStG). Because Amazon deducts fees from your payout, the payout is not automatically your turnover; count the sales proceeds.

For the year of founding, the Hessen tax administration states: your sales are exempt up to 25,000 euros, and you no longer need to project the turnover to the full year.

An example with made-up numbers: your sales proceeds in 2026 were 21,000 euros. Then you are a small business in 2027 as long as you stay at 100,000 euros or less in 2027. If you had 28,000 euros in 2026, you no longer use the scheme from January 2027, even if you sell less in 2027.

Do I have to set anything up at Amazon?

The exemption under section 19 UStG is a rule of the law. You do not declare it at Amazon, and you do not get it through a setting. What matters is that your details at the tax office are right. If you would rather be taxed under the regular scheme, for example to deduct input VAT, you can waive the small business scheme; when you start a business, you can do this right in the registration questionnaire. The waiver cannot be taken back and binds you for at least five calendar years (section 19(3) UStG).

How a regularly taxed seller stores a VAT ID in Seller Central is explained in Add your VAT ID in Amazon Seller Central. On Amazon fees, the VAT stays a cost for you; input VAT deduction is excluded while you use the scheme. More in Deduct Amazon fees.

How do you write invoices without VAT?

As a small business you must not show VAT separately on your invoices, and you must refer to the exemption under section 19(1) UStG. Simplified invoices under section 34a UStDV are possible. If you show a tax amount anyway, you owe it (section 14c(2) UStG). Small businesses are not obliged to issue e-invoices, but you must be able to receive them; an email inbox is enough.

The mandatory details and wording are in Small business invoice in Germany. How invoices arise for Amazon orders is explained in Amazon: showing VAT on the invoice.

Where does the rule stop for sales to other EU countries?

The small business scheme frees you from German VAT. If you sell goods to private customers in other EU countries, a separate limit applies: if these sales, together with electronic services to private customers in other EU countries, add up to more than 10,000 euros (in the previous year or the current year), the place of supply is the buyer's country (section 3c(1) and (4) UStG). Below the limit you can waive it towards the tax office; the waiver binds you for at least two calendar years. You check this limit as a small business, too.

For reporting there is the OSS procedure. The EU Commission writes in its OSS guide that a business using the special scheme for small enterprises can use the Union OSS scheme without leaving that special scheme. All routes at a glance: OSS for small businesses.

If Amazon stores your goods in another EU country, that is a case of its own, covered in Amazon Pan-EU and stock abroad.

What happens if you cross a limit?

If you exceed 100,000 euros in the current year, the small business scheme ends immediately. The sale that takes you over the limit and all later sales are taxable. The sales before stay exempt. If you were above 25,000 euros but not above 100,000 euros in the previous year, you move to regular taxation at the start of the current year.

How you then change prices, invoices and returns is in Small business limit exceeded. The figures for the current year are in Small business rule 2026: the limits.

How VAT GPT helps

VAT GPT is the tax software for Amazon and eBay sellers in Germany: your OSS return first, then every other tax you owe, calculated and filed in one place. For the small business scheme that means:

In the questionnaire you state whether you use the small business scheme or have waived it.
VAT GPT compares the previous-year and current-year turnover from your profile with the limits.
You upload your Amazon sales as a CSV report; VAT GPT shows the small business revenue separately in the EÜR review.

VAT GPT compares the limits using your details; whether you waive or stay in the small business scheme is your decision. There is Free, Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro (€49 per month or €444 per year, including VAT). Try for free now

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to pay VAT as an Amazon small business? No, as long as you stay within the limits, your sales are exempt (section 19(1) UStG). As a rule you file no VAT returns, with exceptions, for example if you owe the VAT as the recipient of a service.

May I write an Amazon invoice without VAT? Yes, that is intended: without separately shown tax and with a note on section 19 UStG.

What are the limits? 25,000 euros in the previous year and 100,000 euros in the current year (section 19(1) UStG).

Does the 10,000 euro limit apply to me, too? Yes, for sales to private customers in other EU countries you check it as a small business as well (section 3c(4) UStG).

Can I become a small business again later? After a waiver, only after the binding period of at least five calendar years and if the turnover limits are met (section 19(3) UStG).