German VAT registration
A warehouse in Germany, distance sales to German customers or trading inside the country — any of these can trigger an obligation to register, with no establishment involved.
The VAT identification number
Anyone moving goods across borders or supplying services to businesses in other EU member states needs a VAT identification number (USt-IdNr.). It is the precondition for invoicing intra-Community supplies free of VAT and for applying the reverse charge mechanism.
It is not the same as the tax number issued by the tax office on registration. The two are regularly confused — with the result that invoices carry the wrong number and the customer's input VAT deduction fails.
The rates
The standard rate is 19%. The reduced rate of 7% applies to a closed list — food, books, newspapers, local public transport and certain artistic and journalistic services. Letting and selling property, medical services and export supplies are exempt altogether.
When registration becomes necessary
Typical situations in which a foreign business has to register in Germany:
- You are a distance seller shipping to German consumers, for example through Amazon FBA
- You hold consignment stock on the premises of your German customer
- You hold stock in a German warehouse — your own or a logistics provider's
- You buy and sell goods within Germany
- You import goods into Germany from another EU state or from a third country
- You organise trade fairs, conferences or sales events in Germany
The classic case: a seller uses Amazon FBA, Amazon moves the stock into a German warehouse — and the obligation to register arises without anyone having made a decision.
What we take on
- Checking whether there is an obligation to register at all in your case
- Obtaining and assembling all documents for the registration
- The application itself and all correspondence with the competent tax office
- Ongoing preliminary VAT returns
- The annual VAT return
- EC sales lists for intra-Community supplies
- Reviewing your outgoing invoices against the mandatory content required by § 14 of the German VAT Act
For foreign businesses the competent office in Germany is not the one where the activity takes place, but an office assigned according to the country of establishment. An application to the wrong office costs weeks — one of the most common mistakes in do-it-yourself registrations.
Frequently asked questions
How often do I have to file preliminary VAT returns?
It follows the previous year's tax (§ 18 UStG):
- more than €9,000 — monthly
- between €2,000 and €9,000 — quarterly
- up to €2,000 — the tax office may waive preliminary returns entirely
Each is due by the 10th of the following month. A permanent extension moves that by one month; monthly filers pay a special advance payment for it. The annual return remains due in any case.
Is there a threshold below which I do not have to charge VAT?
Yes — the small business scheme under § 19 UStG. It applies if turnover in the previous year did not exceed €25,000 and is expected to stay below €100,000 in the current year. If the second figure is exceeded during the year, the exemption ends immediately — from the transaction that breaks it.
The price is no input VAT deduction. If you invest, or supply mainly businesses, standard taxation is usually better. For a business established abroad the scheme is not available at all.
Do I have to register as soon as I ship to Germany for the first time?
Not necessarily. Since 2021 a single EU-wide threshold of €10,000 a year applies to distance sales to consumers, aggregated across all EU countries. Below it you account in your home state; above it VAT is due in the country of destination, either through your own registration or through the One-Stop-Shop scheme.
Once you store goods in Germany, though, the threshold no longer helps: the place of supply is then domestic and registration is due from the very first transaction. That is the point at which Amazon FBA settles the question.
Is a sale recognised on delivery or on payment?
German VAT law allows both. The default is accrual accounting (Sollversteuerung): the tax arises at the end of the month in which the supply was made, whether or not the customer has paid. Under certain conditions cash accounting (Istversteuerung) can be applied for, where receipt of payment is what counts — often considerably better for cash flow.
Can I reclaim German input VAT on invoices addressed to my company?
Yes, provided the supply was for your business and you hold a proper invoice with all mandatory content. If your business is registered in Germany, this runs through the preliminary return; without a registration there is a separate VAT refund procedure with its own deadlines.
Do I need a fiscal representative?
In Germany fiscal representation is possible only in narrow circumstances — essentially where exclusively exempt supplies are made and no input VAT is claimed. In all other cases the route is your own registration.
Not sure whether you have to register?
Describe your business model — the route the goods take, where stock is held, who your customers are. We will check it.