This information does not constitute tax, legal, or other professional advice and must not be used as such. If you have other questions, please contact your tax, legal, or other professional advisor.
Amendments to existing German VAT legislation become effective on July 1, 2021. On this page you will learn who is impacted by the amendments and what the new German tax legislation requires. All sellers with VAT obligations in Germany must obtain and provide AbeBooks with their German or EU Union-OSS VAT registration numbers. This will replace the copy of your Tax Certificate you previously submitted to us as required by the German VAT Code (Sec. 22f UStG). Sellers who ship goods to customers in Germany but are not VAT obligated in Germany need to submit a declaration to AbeBooks.
According to the amendments in the German VAT Code (“UStG”), online marketplace operators can be held liable for unpaid VAT generated by sellers trading on the marketplace and fulfilling orders from or to Germany. In order to avoid such liability, marketplaces must either obtain a German or EU Union-OSS VAT registration number or a declaration from sellers fulfilling orders from or to Germany.
Sellers legally-established inside the European Union who do not provide a German or EU Union-OSS VAT registration number, or do not submit a declaration will no longer be able to sell to customers in Germany via AbeBooks.
What to do if you don’t have VAT obligations in Germany
You need to acknowledge a declaration if you fulfill orders from or to Germany but you are not obligated to be tax registered in Germany. The following non-exhaustive list of facts indicate that you have no tax registration obligation in Germany: