German VAT, the Finanzamt, pricing.
Your questions, answered.

No. You can be based anywhere in the world. For non-EU sellers (e.g. UK post-Brexit, US, China) we act as your German tax correspondent so all tax-office mail is handled by us, in Germany.

Online VAT platforms typically subcontract the actual filing to a tax advisor you never meet. Vaytax IS the tax advisor: a named, licensed German tax firm whose advisors personally review and file every return.

No. Your subscription covers routine Finanzamt correspondence, Mahnungen, queries, registration follow-ups, anything our team handles in the normal course. The standalone letter intake at /finanzamt-letter is for foreign companies who aren't subscribers, or for complex cases (Schätzbescheide with back-year cleanup, audit notices) that fall outside routine subscription scope. If you're a subscriber and you've received a complex letter, just email us or use your dashboard inbox, we'll route it correctly and let you know if a separate quote is needed.

The general 19% and 7% rates are unchanged. New in 2026: restaurant and catering food dropped to 7% on 1 January, and the EU's €150 customs duty exemption ended on 1 July, replaced by a transitional €3 flat duty per parcel. E-invoicing phases in for Germany-established businesses in 2027 and 2028. Full overview: German VAT changes 2026.

We submit your application to the Finanzamt within 48 hours of receiving your registration. The Finanzamt typically takes 4–8 weeks to issue your Steuernummer and USt-IdNr. You can start selling immediately; we backfile the period once your Tax IDs arrive.

Wait for the number. German import VAT you pay while your company is not yet registered cannot be deducted at all, so importing early does not delay that money coming back, it loses it. From the day you are registered, import VAT on every future shipment is recoverable through your normal returns. The Finanzamt takes 4 to 8 weeks to issue the number, so if you know roughly when your first shipment lands, start the registration counting backwards from that date.

Yes. Storing stock in Germany triggers a German VAT obligation regardless of where your customers live. We file the German part: monthly UStVA, ZM, and the annual VAT return (Jahreserklärung). If you sell B2C to EU consumers, you'll also need OSS: filed through Germany if Germany is your member state of identification (we can file it), or in your home country if you're EU-established (your home-country accountant, running alongside Vaytax). If you sell only B2B to dealers in other EU countries, you don't need OSS at all (OSS is B2C-only), and German VAT plus ZM is everything, both included.

No, as long as your stock is only in Germany. What triggers a VAT registration in another country is goods being physically stored there, not a sale or a return routed through it. If you keep Amazon's Pan-EU programme switched off, your inventory stays in Germany and Germany stays your only registration. If you ever switch Pan-EU on, or use any other arrangement that places stock abroad, that country needs its own registration, so tell us before you do.

No. Germany does not require a fiscal representative for a standard VAT registration, unlike some other EU countries. Your company registers directly and we act as your authorised recipient for Finanzamt correspondence.

Normally no, and you do not need one. If your business is established in an EU member state, your EORI is issued by the customs authority of that member state and it is valid across the whole EU, including goods you import into Germany. A second German EORI is not normally issued to a company already established in the Union, so the application belongs at your own national customs authority, where it is free. What Germany does require separately is a German VAT registration as soon as you store goods there, whatever your turnover, and that is a tax matter independent of customs. Our €199 EORI add-on applies only where German customs is actually responsible for issuing the number, which for a company established outside the EU means it has its own staff and premises in Germany. Most sellers outside the EU need no EORI of their own either, because their freight forwarder declares as their indirect representative on its own number.

Usually yes. The marketplace "deemed supplier" rules can make Amazon or TikTok account for the German VAT on your B2C sales, but storing goods in a German warehouse still requires your own German VAT registration: for the movement of your stock, your reporting, and recovering import VAT. We confirm the exact treatment for your setup during onboarding so your returns are filed correctly.

No, because Germany does not require fiscal representation for standard VAT compliance in the first place. A foreign company registers directly and can appoint a licensed German tax advisor; no guarantee, deposit or bond is involved. See why no fiscal representative is needed.

Not if you store goods in Germany: registration is due from the first unit, with no threshold. The €10,000 EU-wide threshold only applies to EU-established sellers shipping cross-border B2C from another EU country. Non-EU companies (UK, US, China) selling from German stock need a registration from day one.

It is fixed. The €1,499 per year is the same whether you have a high-revenue month or file a nil return, and it renews at €1,499 each year. It covers your German VAT registration, every monthly VAT return (UStVA), and the annual return (Jahreserklärung), whatever your transaction volume. It does not change with your sales or activity level.

Monthly VAT return filings with the Finanzamt, the annual VAT return, the EU sales list (Zusammenfassende Meldung), all routine tax-office correspondence, and a dashboard in English. Not included: incoming-invoice review, tax advisory, and legal advice, those are tax advisory on request and billed at €200/hr. The EU One-Stop-Shop (OSS) is a separate add-on, not part of the €99/month.

No, OSS is a separate add-on: €300 one-time setup plus €200 per quarter, on top of your German VAT plan, charged when you add it. We switch it on when your EU-wide B2C crosses €10,000. The German plan (€1,499/year all-in or €99/month) covers your German registration and filings.

Only optional services you actively choose, never anything triggered automatically by your sales. The optional add-ons are: OSS for cross-border B2C sales to consumers in other EU countries (€300 to register, then €200 per quarter); a German EORI number for customs (€199 one-time, or free if you apply yourself at the Zoll), which applies only where German customs is responsible for issuing you one, meaning your company has its own staff and premises in Germany. Most sellers need no EORI of their own: an EU company already holds one from its own country that is valid across the EU, and a company outside the EU normally has its freight forwarder declare as indirect representative on the forwarder's number. Also available: one-off tax advisory or reviewing a single invoice (€200 per hour, quoted before any work); and catch-up filing of returns for periods before you joined (€99 per past return). None of these is required for a standard German VAT setup.

Yes. Notice runs to the end of the following month. We file any return whose period falls within your active subscription, then close your account and deregister you with the tax office if requested.

It depends on the case. A direct response to a single Mahnung typically sits at the lower end (from €200 net). A multi-year retroactive Schätzbescheid covering Amazon marketplace sales with prior-period filings can be €1,500-€2,500+. We quote based on what your specific case actually requires, not a tiered menu. You pay nothing to receive the quote and nothing if you decide not to proceed.

All routine filings: the monthly VAT return (UStVA) every month, plus the annual VAT return. There is no per-filing charge for this routine cadence. Two things sit outside the flat price: catch-up filings for periods before you joined (€99 per past return) and corrections to an already-submitted return (a Berichtigung), which we quote per case.

For a new registration, no. The registration is the bulk of the work and it happens at the start, before a single return is filed: we prepare and submit your registration and handle the Finanzamt until your numbers are issued. Because that work is delivered upfront, the €1,499 all-in plan is paid upfront. If you would rather spread the cost, you can register yourself and then join the €99/month filing plan once you hold your German VAT number, with no registration fee.

Union OSS (One-Stop-Shop) lets a non-EU-established seller with stock in Germany report B2C sales to other EU countries through one quarterly return, filed via Germany. It costs €300 one-time plus €200 per quarter. You need it as soon as you ship cross-border to consumers in other EU countries: the €10,000 EU-wide threshold is only available to sellers established inside the EU, so a non-EU seller has none and OSS applies from the first such sale. If you sell only within Germany, you do not need OSS. If your company is established in another EU country, your OSS registration belongs in your home country, not Germany.

Steuerberater: €200/hr, Manager: €150/hr, Senior: €125/hr, Assistant: €90/hr. Billed in 15-minute increments plus 19% VAT and a 4% expense surcharge (max €20). These rates apply to complex advisory work, Finanzamt inquiries, and audit support, not to your regular monthly filing.

No. We do not sell the German VAT registration on its own. It is included in the €1,499/year all-in plan, which covers preparation of your tax registration questionnaire (Fragebogen zur steuerlichen Erfassung), submission to the Finanzamt, and all correspondence until your Steuernummer is issued, plus every monthly and annual filing for the year. If you already hold a German VAT number you do not need registration at all: that is the €99/month or €1,099/year filing-only plan.

Yes. If you already have a German VAT number, annual billing is €1,099/year, roughly 7% off compared to €99/month. Same service, same cancellation terms. New registrations use the €1,499/year all-in plan, which is billed yearly and already includes the registration.

Yes. You receive an email reminder ahead of every filing deadline, so nothing is missed. You enter your figures into the portal and we review and submit the return on time.

Two ways, and card is not one of them: German tax authorities do not accept card payment. Either the Finanzamt collects the amount by direct debit from a bank account that supports it, so you do nothing each month, or you transfer it yourself and we give you the exact amount, the payment reference and the deadline. If your company banks outside the SEPA area, expect to be on the transfer route.

Both. The portal captures your figures and runs plausibility checks; a licensed German Steuerberater then reviews and files every return. The review covers the VAT return itself (correct treatment and plausibility), not full bookkeeping or a line-by-line review of your underlying invoices, which would be a separate service.

Filing on time is our job. We are a licensed German tax advisory firm and we carry professional liability insurance, as German law requires of every Steuerberater. A penalty caused by a mistake on our side is our responsibility. A penalty caused by figures that reach us late or incorrect sits with you. We hold the power of attorney (Vollmacht), so the Finanzamt's letters come to us and we respond to them.

Without a tax advisor, the 2025 Umsatzsteuer-Jahreserklärung is due by 31 July 2026. Filed through a licensed tax advisor, the deadline extends automatically to 1 March 2027 (the legal date, 28 February 2027, falls on a Sunday). Every 2026 date is in our printable calendar.

Quarterly preliminary returns are due on the 10th of the month after each quarter: 10 April (Q1), 10 July (Q2), 12 October (Q3, shifted from a Saturday) and 11 January 2027 (Q4). With Dauerfristverlängerung each deadline moves one month later. Quarterly filing applies when your prior-year German VAT was between €2,000 and €9,000.

Yes, German domestic deadlines shift to the next working day (§108(3) AO). The exception is the EU One-Stop-Shop: OSS returns and payments stay due on the last day of the month after the quarter even when that date is a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday.

Usually not directly. German returns are filed electronically via ELSTER in German, and representation before the Finanzamt is restricted by German law (StBerG) to authorised persons, in practice a licensed German Steuerberater. Most foreign accountants hand the German piece to one; that is the role Vaytax fills, in English.

Yes. If you already hold a Dauerfristverlängerung (the permanent one-month extension on every German VAT deadline), tell us at signup and every deadline in your account shifts by a month automatically, so you never track two sets of dates. Routine filings under the extension are included in your plan. If you want to set one up, we arrange it with your licensed German tax advisor. Full explainer: German VAT deadline extension, explained.

The Amazon VAT Transactions Report, exported for the month you are filing. In Seller Central: Reports → Fulfilment by Amazon → Tax section → Amazon VAT Transactions Report → Request .csv Download. Not the "All Orders" report, and nothing under the discontinued "VAT Services on Amazon". Upload the file exactly as it downloaded, without opening and re-saving it in Excel.

Full guide →

The Rechnungsausgangsbuch (outgoing-invoice ledger), exported as CSV. In easybill: Auswertungen → Rechnungsausgangsbuch → set the date range to your filing month → Ergebnis exportieren → Ergebnistabelle als CSV. Not the accounting-software formats under the separate Export tab (DATEV, Lexware, and similar); we cannot read your VAT figures from those.

Full guide →

The Amazon and easybill reports are your outgoing invoices, which is what the sales side of your return is built from. Input VAT (Vorsteuer) on your German purchases is added separately, by you or by us, so the return is complete.

No. The Finanzamt letter intake at /finanzamt-letter is a separate one-shot service. Send us the letter, a licensed German tax advisor reviews it, and you get a fixed-price quote within 24 hours (weekdays). No subscription, no ongoing commitment.

Send your letter →

It depends on your sales. Storing stock in Germany requires a German VAT registration from the first euro. OSS is the second layer: it covers your B2C sales to consumers in other EU countries, once your EU-wide B2C passes €10,000 a year. A seller with German stock selling EU-wide usually needs both, and we file both.

Yes, in a way many sellers don't realise. The Union scheme is usually described as EU-established only, but if your goods ship from a German warehouse, Germany becomes your OSS member state of identification, so you file Union OSS through Germany. No EU subsidiary required.

Three steps. (1) Upload the letter and describe your situation on our intake form at /finanzamt-letter. (2) Within 24 hours (weekdays), a licensed German tax advisor replies with a fixed-price quote covering the response, plus any prior-period filings the case requires. (3) Accept the quote, pay via Stripe, and we handle the response with the Finanzamt directly. You never need to interact with the German tax office in German.

Schätzbescheid (estimated assessment), Mahnung (reminder/dunning notice), Anhörung (formal hearing notice), Nachforderung (request for additional documents), late-filing surcharges, registration queries, UStVA reminders, and most other foreign-seller-targeted Finanzamt correspondence. If your case is outside our scope (e.g. tax litigation requiring a specialised lawyer), we'll tell you upfront and recommend a referral, no charge.

Yes, when Germany is your OSS member state of identification. If you're a non-EU or German-based seller storing stock in a German warehouse, your Union OSS is filed through Germany, and we file it for you (€300 setup + €200/quarter, added to your German plan). If you're EU-established, your OSS is filed in your home country, typically by your existing accountant, and runs alongside the German VAT we handle. Either way, a German warehouse plus EU-wide B2C customers means you need both the German registration and OSS.

Yes. Routine correspondence about your filings (acknowledgements, standard queries, routine letters) is included. More complex matters, a full audit, or substantive tax advice are quoted separately before any work starts.

OSS normally takes effect from the start of the next calendar quarter after we notify the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) on your behalf. Notify in August or September and it applies from 1 October. There is one earlier route: if your first cross-border sale to an EU consumer happens before that, OSS can apply from the date of that sale, as long as the notification is made by the 10th of the following month. No provider can guarantee you a specific date, because the start is fixed by law, not by how fast the paperwork is filed.

No. When your OSS is run through Germany, your identifier is the German VAT number you already hold, so there is no separate new number to wait for. We register you for the One-Stop-Shop (OSS) scheme against that existing number.

No. The e-invoicing issuing mandate applies to businesses established in Germany. A foreign company that is only VAT-registered, with no German establishment, does not have to issue XRechnung or ZUGFeRD invoices. You should still be able to receive and archive e-invoices from German suppliers.

Not if your stock sits in Germany. Marketplaces collect German VAT on many sales by non-EU sellers as deemed suppliers, but storing goods in a German warehouse still triggers your own registration and filing obligation, and marketplaces demand proof of it. Details: TikTok Shop and Amazon FBA.

Nothing separate: the change of representation is handled as part of onboarding. If past returns are still unfiled when you switch, we catch them up at €99 per past return. There is no lock-in on our side either.

Almost always a period mismatch: the invoices in the file are dated outside the filing period you selected. Only invoices dated inside the selected period count. Export the report for the period you are filing and upload that. Our uploader reads one month per file, so if you file quarterly, send us the months for that quarter and we will combine them.

CSV is simplest and most reliable. Excel works too. The important part: send the file exactly as it came from Amazon or easybill. Opening it and re-saving it in Excel changes the formatting and we can no longer read the figures.

The free checker at /amazon-vat-calculator reads your file in your browser; nothing is uploaded there. When you file with Vaytax, you upload the report to us so we can prepare and file your return: it is stored on EU servers (Frankfurt region) and handled by the team of a licensed German Steuerberater, bound by professional secrecy.