Shipping labels on Amazon and eBay: input VAT and the receipt

You buy shipping labels through Amazon or eBay and want to deduct the VAT in them as input VAT. In short: you can if German VAT is owed on the service, you hold an invoice that shows it and you do not use the small-business scheme. Postal universal services are exempt under conditions (section 4 no. 11b UStG), and then there is no input VAT. Whether your label falls under that is shown by the receipt for the label. The cost is a business expense either way.

Last updated: October 27, 2026

In brief

Input VAT requires that another business has charged you tax that is owed by law and that you hold an invoice for it (section 15 (1) no. 1 UStG).
Exempt are postal universal services under the conditions of section 4 no. 11b UStG. There is no input VAT on exempt services.
EÜR: the label costs count as a business expense (section 4 (4) EStG), even when you cannot deduct input VAT.

Does a shipping label carry VAT?

It depends on the service you buy, not on the fact that you order the label on Amazon or eBay. In section 4 no. 11b UStG the law exempts from VAT "universal services under Article 3(4) of Directive 97/67/EC" (in the German text: "Universaldienstleistungen nach Artikel 3 Absatz 4 der Richtlinie 97/67/EG"). Conditions apply:

The provider has committed itself, in line with a certificate of the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt), to offer the universal services or a part of them nationwide across Germany.
The exemption does not apply to services based on individually negotiated agreements.
It does not apply either to services at different quality terms or at lower prices than the publicly available tariffs or the approved charges.

Whether a given provider and tariff fall under it cannot be read from the law alone. What counts is what the receipt for your label shows: is VAT stated, or is it missing?

Where do you find the receipt?

The receipt itself shows who issues the invoice. Read the issuer, the service, the amount and any tax amount. Look for the receipt for the label purchase in your Amazon or eBay account. Menu names change; the help inside your own account applies.

In the eBay transaction report, label purchases appear as their own entry. eBay describes the entry "Versandetikett" (shipping label) as "Gebühren oder Gutschriften, die sich auf Käufe von Versandetiketten und Rückerstattungen beziehen" (fees or credits relating to purchases of shipping labels and refunds). How to download the report: Download your eBay transaction report. The report shows the payment. For the input VAT deduction you need the invoice (section 15 (1) no. 1 UStG).

When can you deduct input VAT?

If the receipt shows VAT and contains the mandatory details of an invoice, you enter the tax amount as input VAT in the VAT return. If there is no tax because the service is exempt, you enter nothing. If there is none because a business in another EU country issues the invoice, you owe the tax yourself (section 13b (1) and (5) UStG) and, if you apply standard VAT, deduct it as input VAT at the same time (section 15 (1) sentence 1 no. 4 UStG); as a small business you declare it in a VAT return (section 18 (4a) UStG) and do not deduct it. More: Reverse charge in Germany: section 13b UStG explained. Where input VAT goes in the return: Entering input VAT in the German VAT return.

If you use the small-business scheme, your supplies are exempt (section 19 (1) UStG), and the tax on services used for them is excluded from input VAT deduction (section 15 (2) sentence 1 no. 1 UStG): you deduct no input VAT. More on the limit: Small-business rule 2026: the limit.

How do you book the label costs in the EÜR?

Business expenses are "the expenses caused by the business" (section 4 (4) EStG; German: "die Aufwendungen, die durch den Betrieb veranlasst sind"). Labels for parcels to your customers are caused by the business. If you deduct the input VAT, you enter the label costs in the EÜR at the net amount and the deductible input VAT in the line "Gezahlte Vorsteuerbeträge" (input VAT paid; Anlage EÜR 2025: line 57). If you deduct no input VAT, for example as a small business, you enter the full amount paid. More on which expenses belong there: EÜR business expenses list.

What about the postage you charge the buyer?

That is a different question: it is about the price you receive from your customer, not the label cost you pay. For sales to private customers in other EU countries it is covered here: Shipping costs and the OSS.

Common mistakes

Deducting input VAT without a receipt. The deduction requires an invoice (section 15 (1) no. 1 UStG).
Assuming the label price is gross. If the service is exempt, the price contains no VAT.
Not booking labels at all. They are a business expense, even without input VAT.
Mixing up the report line and the invoice. The eBay report shows the payment, the receipt shows the tax.

How VAT GPT helps

VAT GPT is the tax software for Amazon and eBay sellers in Germany: your OSS return first, then VAT, EÜR, trade tax and income tax, calculated and filed in one place.

You upload your invoices.
The AI reads amounts, countries and tax rates. You check and confirm.
VAT GPT creates the VAT return and the EÜR from your figures; with VAT GPT Pro you send them through ELSTER.

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Not tax advice: the content does not replace individual advice.

Frequently asked questions

Can I deduct input VAT on shipping labels from Amazon or eBay? Yes, if your receipt shows VAT that is owed by law, it is an invoice (section 15 (1) no. 1 UStG) and you do not use the small-business scheme (section 15 (2) sentence 1 no. 1 UStG).

Are shipping labels exempt from VAT? Postal universal services are exempt under the conditions of section 4 no. 11b UStG. Whether a label falls under that is shown by the receipt.

Are shipping labels a business expense? Yes, if they are caused by the business (section 4 (4) EStG).

Where is the label purchase in the eBay report? As the entry "Versandetikett" in the transaction report.