{"id":12184,"date":"2025-03-06T16:25:38","date_gmt":"2025-03-06T16:25:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/?p=12184"},"modified":"2025-03-11T10:20:06","modified_gmt":"2025-03-11T10:20:06","slug":"eu-weiter-handel-ueber-deutschland-wann-gilt-das-reverse-charge-verfahren","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/eu-weiter-handel-ueber-deutschland-wann-gilt-das-reverse-charge-verfahren\/","title":{"rendered":"EU-wide trade via Germany: When does the reverse charge procedure apply?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Reverse charge procedure<\/strong> (reverse charge mechanism) is a special regulation in VAT law that is used in particular for cross-border transactions within the EU. It means that it is not the Performing party (seller)<\/strong>but the Beneficiary (buyer)<\/strong> pays the sales tax in his country.<\/p>\n

1 When does the reverse charge procedure apply in Germany?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The reverse charge procedure applies in Germany for certain transactions, in particular:<\/p>\n

- Intra-Community B2B deliveries<\/strong> (sale of goods between companies in different EU countries)
- Intra-Community services<\/strong> (e.g. consulting, software development, marketing)
– <\/span>Certain sales in Germany if the recipient of the service is liable to pay VAT in Germany<\/strong>
– <\/span>Supplies and services from foreign companies to German companies<\/strong><\/p>\n

Important:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  • The reverse charge procedure only applies to B2B transactions<\/strong> between two companies subject to VAT<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
  • The beneficiary must have a have a valid sales tax identification number (VAT ID)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    2. reverse charge for deliveries of goods within the EU<\/strong><\/h2>\n

    The reverse charge procedure applies to intra-Community supplies<\/strong>if:
    - The seller a Company in an EU country<\/strong> is.
    - The buyer a Company in another EU country<\/strong> with valid VAT ID<\/strong> is.
    - The goods are physically transported from one EU country to another.<\/p>\n

    How is the invoice issued?<\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    • The seller shall provide a Net invoice (without sales tax)<\/strong> from.<\/li>\n
    • Reference to the reverse charge procedure (e.g. \"tax liability of the recipient of the service\").<\/li>\n
    • Buyer must charge & pay VAT in his country.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Example:<\/strong>
      A company in Germany<\/strong> sells goods to a company in France<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

        \n
      • The seller in Germany issues an invoice without 19 % German sales tax<\/strong> from.<\/li>\n
      • The buyer in France must calculate the French VAT & report it to the tax office.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        3. reverse charge for services within the EU<\/strong><\/h2>\n

        With cross-border services<\/strong> the reverse charge procedure applies if:
        – <\/span>Service is provided to a company in another EU country.<\/strong>
        - The service recipient is an entrepreneur with a valid VAT ID.<\/strong>
        – <\/span>Services fall under the \"general clause\" of Art. 44 of the VAT System Directive (VAT Directive).<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Which services are affected?<\/strong><\/p>\n

          \n
        • Consulting services (e.g. legal advice, management consulting)<\/li>\n
        • Marketing & advertising services<\/li>\n
        • Software & IT services<\/li>\n
        • Agency services<\/li>\n
        • Leasing of machines<\/li>\n
        • Electronic services (e.g. cloud software)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          How is the invoice issued?<\/strong><\/p>\n

            \n
          • The service provider shall provide a Net invoice (without sales tax)<\/strong> from.<\/li>\n
          • Reference to reverse charge, e.g: \"Tax liability of the recipient of the service\" in accordance with \u00a7 13b UStG.<\/strong><\/li>\n
          • The recipient must calculate & report the VAT in his country.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            Example:<\/strong>
            A Spanish marketing company<\/strong> provides a service for a German company<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

              \n
            • The Spanish company issues an invoice without sales tax<\/strong> from.<\/li>\n
            • The German company must use the German 19 % Value added tax<\/strong> calculate yourself & report to the tax office.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              4. reverse charge for foreign companies in Germany<\/strong><\/h2>\n

              If a Foreign company without registered office in Germany<\/strong> provides a service, the reverse charge procedure applies if:
              - The receiver a Companies in Germany<\/strong> is.
              - The benefit would be taxable in Germany.
              - The Service provider not based in Germany<\/strong> is.<\/p>\n

              Examples of services for which reverse charge applies in Germany:<\/strong><\/p>\n

                \n
              • Construction services<\/strong> for German companies (\u00a7 13b para. 2 no. 4 UStG)<\/li>\n
              • Supply of gas & electricity<\/strong><\/li>\n
              • Telecommunications services<\/strong><\/li>\n
              • Certain assemblies & work deliveries<\/strong><\/li>\n
              • Digital services from non-EU providers (e.g. Google Ads, Facebook advertising)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                Important for foreign dealers:<\/strong><\/p>\n

                  \n
                • If you you store physical goods in Germany or sell them to German customers<\/strong>applies no reverse charge<\/strong> - you must register for VAT in Germany!<\/li>\n
                • If you digital services to German private customers<\/strong> sell, the OSS procedure<\/strong> (one-stop store).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                  5. reverse charge for marketplace sellers (Amazon, eBay, Shopify)<\/strong><\/h2>\n

                  If you are a foreign online retailer via Amazon FBA or eBay<\/strong> goods to Germany, the following applies no reverse charge<\/strong>. Instead, you must:
                  – <\/span>Apply for a German VAT ID.<\/strong>
                  – <\/span>Calculate & pay the 19 % sales tax yourself.<\/strong>
                  - If you have sell a marketplace<\/strong>a Certificate according to \u00a7 22f UStG<\/strong> submit.<\/p>\n

                  Exception:<\/strong> If you are a EU dealers via the OSS procedure<\/strong> (one-stop store), you can process German VAT via your home country.<\/p>\n

                  6 When does reverse charge not apply?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
                    \n
                  • No reverse charge for sales to private customers (B2C)<\/strong><\/li>\n
                  • No reverse charge for storage in Germany (e.g. Amazon FBA)<\/strong><\/li>\n
                  • No reverse charge for domestic German transactions<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                    7. reporting & accounting for the reverse charge procedure<\/strong><\/h2>\n

                    For the seller:<\/strong><\/p>\n

                      \n
                    • Issue invoice without VAT<\/li>\n
                    • Reverse charge in the Advance sales tax return<\/strong> enter (line 41 ELSTER)<\/li>\n
                    • Intra-Community supply in the Summary declaration (ZM)<\/strong> specify<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                      For the buyer:<\/strong><\/p>\n

                        \n
                      • Calculate VAT in your own tax return & pay it to the tax office<\/li>\n
                      • If entitled to deduct input tax \u2192 the tax can be deducted directly as Deduct input tax<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                        Tip:<\/strong> If you regularly do international business<\/strong>a Automated tax solution such as Taxdoo, Avalara or Hellotax<\/strong> help.<\/p>\n

                        When do you have to apply the reverse charge procedure?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

                        – <\/span>Intra-Community supplies & services (B2B within the EU)<\/strong>
                        – <\/span>Services provided by foreign companies to German companies<\/strong>
                        – <\/span>Certain construction & telecommunications services in Germany<\/strong>
                        – <\/span>Digital services from non-EU companies to German companies<\/strong><\/p>\n

                        No reverse charge for sales to private customers (B2C)<\/strong>
                        No reverse charge if you store & sell goods in Germany (Amazon FBA, Shopify, eBay)<\/strong><\/p>\n

                          \n
                        • \n

                          No reverse charge for sales to private customers (B2C)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

                        • \n

                          No reverse charge if you store & sell goods in Germany (Amazon FBA, Shopify, eBay)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                          Do you have a specific question about reverse charge for your business model?<\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                          Das Reverse-Charge-Verfahren (Umkehr der Steuerschuldnerschaft) ist eine Sonderregelung im Umsatzsteuerrecht, die besonders bei grenz\u00fcberschreitenden Transaktionen innerhalb der EU angewendet wird. Es bedeutet, dass nicht der Leistende (Verk\u00e4ufer), sondern der Leistungsempf\u00e4nger […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,188],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-buerokratie-und-behoerdenwege-fuer-unternehmen","category-eu-weiter-handel-ueber-deutschland-wann-gilt-das-reverse-charge-verfahren"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12184"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12184\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12185,"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12184\/revisions\/12185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bosporus24.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}