eBay taxes in Germany: VAT for eBay sellers, advance return and OSS

Do you sell on eBay as a business? Small business owners (Kleinunternehmer; previous year up to €25,000, current year up to €100,000) show no VAT and usually file no advance return. Otherwise you file quarterly or monthly by the 10th. Above €10,000 of sales to private customers in other EU countries, the destination country's VAT applies, usually via the OSS.

Last updated: 27 October 2026

In short

BZSt reports: eBay reports sellers with 30+ sales or €2,000+ a year (after platform fees).
Small business owners: no VAT on invoices; a waiver binds you for at least five calendar years.
Used goods from private individuals: the margin scheme taxes only the margin, at 19%, never via the OSS.

Which taxes apply on eBay?

Which taxes become due on eBay sales depends, in eBay's own words, on your total sales activity – not only on eBay – and on whether you act privately or commercially. If your sales amount to a trade business (Gewerbebetrieb), that is, an independent, sustained activity with the intention to make a profit that presents itself as participation in general economic activity (§ 15 para. 2 EStG), these are generally the following taxes:

Tax	What is taxed	Return	More
VAT	Your sales subject to German VAT	Advance return by the 10th day after the end of the advance return period and the annual VAT return; small business owners generally not	Advance return online
VAT of other EU countries (OSS)	Sales to private customers in other EU countries above the €10,000 threshold	OSS return to the BZSt per quarter	OSS return
Income tax	For a trade business, the profit from the business	Income tax return after the end of the calendar year; 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, to be transmitted electronically	Trade tax return

The small business scheme only concerns VAT (§ 19 UStG); income tax and trade tax remain unaffected by it. The report to the BZSt does not change that either: according to eBay, the rules of the Platform Tax Transparency Act (Plattformen-Steuertransparenzgesetz) do not change your tax obligations – the only question is whether eBay has to report your data.

Am I an entrepreneur as an eBay seller?

That does not depend on the platform but on the law: an entrepreneur is anyone who independently carries out a commercial or professional activity. Any sustained activity to generate income is commercial or professional – even without an intention to make a profit (§ 2 para. 1 UStG). If you are unsure whether your sales already count, clarify it with a tax adviser.

Anyone who starts a trade must report it at the same time to the competent authority (trade registration, Gewerbeanzeige, § 14 GewO). For the tax number (Steuernummer) you then fill in the tax registration questionnaire – step by step: Applying for a tax number.

The platform reports to the BZSt. Platform operators report sellers to the Federal Central Tax Office. Sellers are exempt if they had fewer than 30 sales in the year on the same platform and received less than €2,000 in total for them. The remuneration is calculated after deducting the platform's fees and commissions. The report for a year goes to the BZSt by 31 January of the following year at the latest.

Small business owner or regular taxation?

	Small business owner (Kleinunternehmer)	Regular taxation (Regelbesteuerung)
Limit	Total turnover in the previous year no more than €25,000 and in the current year no more than €100,000	above that, or voluntary waiver
VAT on your sales	none, you must not show it	19% or 7%
Advance VAT return	not as a rule	yes, monthly or quarterly
Input VAT (Vorsteuer) from purchases and fees	no input VAT deduction, because your supplies are VAT-exempt	deduction in the advance return

What you need to know:

Year of founding: If you founded your business in the current year, the small business regulation (Kleinunternehmerregelung) ends with the sale that takes your total turnover above €25,000.
Above €100,000 during the year: From the sale with which you exceed the limit, regular taxation applies.
Waiver: You can waive the small business regulation, for example to deduct input VAT. The waiver binds you for at least five calendar years.
No VAT on the invoice: If you show VAT anyway as a small business owner, you owe the amount shown.
Exception – reverse charge: Even as a small business owner you owe the VAT if, for example, you receive services from a business in another EU country (§ 13b UStG). For these periods you submit an advance return.

How do I file the advance VAT return as an eBay seller?

With regular taxation you submit the advance return by the 10th day after the end of the quarter – or monthly if your VAT in the previous year was more than €9,000. Payment is due on the same day. With the permanent deadline extension (Dauerfristverlängerung) you get one month more; deadlines, weekends and the special advance payment (Sondervorauszahlung) are explained in Submitting the advance VAT return online.

This is how you assign your eBay sales:

Sale	Box (Kennzahl)
to buyers in Germany	81 (19%) or 86 (7%), net
to private customers in other EU countries, no more than €10,000 EU-wide	81 or 86
to private customers in other EU countries above the threshold (OSS)	45, net only
to businesses in other EU countries with a valid VAT ID number (USt-IdNr.)	41, plus the recapitulative statement (Zusammenfassende Meldung)
to countries outside the EU	43

How to transfer the figures from a marketplace report step by step is shown in Advance VAT return from the Amazon VAT Transactions Report (AVTR); the rules apply to eBay in the same way.

When do I need the OSS for EU sales?

If your sales to private customers in other EU countries – for all countries together and without VAT – were above €10,000 in the previous year or in the current year, the VAT of the destination country applies. Instead of registering in every country, you register for the OSS with the BZSt and submit one OSS return per quarter, due by 30 April, 31 July, 31 October and 31 January. Everything about it: OSS return for online sellers. How the OSS works specifically for eBay sellers: OSS for eBay sellers: when it applies and how to file.

What applies to used goods (margin scheme)?

If you buy used goods from private individuals and resell them, resellers have the margin scheme (§ 25a UStG):

Requirement: You trade commercially in movable goods, and no VAT was owed on the purchase in the EU – for example because you bought from a private individual – or your supplier already applied the margin scheme. Precious stones and precious metals are excluded.
Taxable amount: Only the amount by which the selling price exceeds the purchase price is taxed – at the standard rate of 19%; the VAT itself is not part of the taxable amount.
Invoice: The invoice must carry the note “Gebrauchtgegenstände/Sonderregelung” (second-hand goods/special scheme); the VAT must not be shown separately.
EU sales: The distance sales rules do not apply to goods taxed under the margin scheme. So these sales do not belong in the OSS. The tax exemption for intra-Community supplies to businesses is also excluded under the margin scheme.

How VAT GPT helps

Many eBay sellers work this out in Excel today and have a tax adviser check it. With VAT GPT:

Upload: your eBay CSV report 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 and, if necessary, the OSS return. You check and confirm.
Send: With VAT GPT Pro, the advance return goes via ELSTER to the tax office, the OSS return directly to the BZSt.

Everything is in one place, for the year as well: annual VAT return, EÜR, trade tax and income tax returns. No tax number yet? You also fill in the tax registration questionnaire for sole proprietorships in VAT GPT and send it to the tax office. 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?

Showing VAT as a small business owner. Then you owe the amount shown.
Overlooking the €100,000 limit in the current year. From the sale that exceeds the limit, regular taxation applies – in the year of founding already from €25,000.
Calculating the €10,000 threshold per country. The threshold applies to all EU countries together.
Taxing OSS sales twice. In the advance return they appear only as a net amount in box 45.
Selling margin-scheme goods with VAT shown. Under the margin scheme the tax must not appear on the invoice.
Not checking fee invoices. If no German VAT is shown on it and the invoice comes from a business in another EU country, you may owe the tax yourself (box 46/47).
Putting off the trade registration and the questionnaire. The trade registration is due at the start, the tax registration questionnaire within one month.

Frequently asked questions

Which taxes do I have to pay as an eBay seller? That depends on whether you act privately or commercially and on your total sales activity, not only on eBay. For a trade business these are generally VAT (not as a small business owner), income tax on the profit and, where applicable, trade tax; for sales to private customers in other EU countries above the threshold, the OSS is added. The overview is in the section “Which taxes apply on eBay?”.

Does eBay report my sales to the tax office? Platform operators report sellers to the BZSt if they had 30 or more sales in the year on the same platform or received €2,000 or more for them (after deducting platform fees). The report for a year goes to the BZSt by 31 January of the following year. According to eBay, the report does not necessarily mean that you have to pay taxes.

From when do I have to pay VAT as an eBay seller? As soon as you are an entrepreneur and are not covered by the small business regulation: that is, if your total turnover in the previous year was above €25,000, exceeds €100,000 in the current year, or you have waived it. In the year of founding the limit of €25,000 applies.

Do I have to submit an advance VAT return as a small business owner? As a rule, no. Exception: periods in which you owe VAT as the recipient of a service, for example for services from a business in another EU country.

I sell to buyers in Austria and France. Do I need the OSS? Only when your sales to private customers in all other EU countries together were above €10,000 net in the previous year or in the current year – or if you voluntarily waive the threshold. Below that you sell with German VAT.

Does the margin scheme also apply to sales to other EU countries? Yes. The distance sales rules do not apply to goods taxed under the margin scheme: the supply takes place where the shipping begins, that is in Germany, and does not belong in the OSS. The tax exemption for intra-Community supplies to businesses is also excluded.

Can I deduct input VAT from eBay fees? With regular taxation, yes: with a proper invoice showing German VAT, in box 66. If you owe the tax as the recipient of the service (box 46/47), you deduct it again in box 67.