VAT Individual Seller
My wife and I are retired Booksellers selling off the remnants of our ex-shop stock and now my personal collection from our home in the UK in between short holidays now and then and hospital visits we also choose to sell the UK Only on Amazon in fact our Shipping Default is Domestic Only.
I am confused about the recent changes Amazon has made regarding VAT and ask if anyone can help, in plain English, as our sales are very, very much below the UK VAT Registration Figure. Any advice suggestions etc would be welcome
Gordon
12 replies
Seller_7VbclcPFFRTnc
Those should only be applicable to non domestic sales
Are you selling in uk only?
Seller_64jziShTiTjOq
There is no VAT chargeable on books in the UK, whether new or secondhand, so you don’t need to be concerned with it. You will pay VAT on Amazon’s selling fees but that’s no different from the VAT you pay on most other things you buy: you pay it and lump it!
The only advantage in voluntarily registering for VAT would be to reclaim the VAT paid on your business expenses - stock, stationery etc - but you won’t have paid VAT on the books you bought (and presumably would no longer have any invoices or receipts for them anyway), so any other VAT refund would not be worth the time and effort to account for and claim it
Seller_HIAF1f8ZYcY5w
Hi @Virginia_Bank_Books
Thank you for reaching out to the forums community and appreciate inputs from @The_Little_Shop and @olderithian
VAT stands for Value Added Tax. It applies to most goods and services that are bought and sold for use or consumption in Europe, where a Seller is required to register for VAT. VAT is a general consumption tax on (i) the supply of goods and certain movements of goods, (ii) the supply of services, and (iii) the importation of goods into a European country in certain specific circumstances.
The UK ceased to be a member of the European Union from 23:00 GMT on 31 December 2020 and is therefore no longer part of the EU for VAT purposes. The UK operates its own UK VAT regime independently from the EU which still bears many similarities.
Do you need a VAT number?
If you sell or store goods or sell services in any European country, it is likely that you may be required to register for VAT in each country you sell within or sell to. In addition, you will only be able to recover the VAT you have paid on your purchases and charge VAT on your sales if you are VAT registered.
When do you need to register for VAT in the UK?
- Importing goods into the UK – You are based outside the UK and ship goods to the UK. For example, you are a Seller based in China and ship goods from China to a fulfillment center in the UK.
- Storing goods in the UK – Storing goods includes either you or Amazon (or other third parties) on your behalf your inventory in Fulfillment Centers in the UK. This means that being enrolled in the UK FBA program or Pan-Europe FBA program, which allows Amazon to distribute your goods across the UK marketplace, triggers a requirement to be VAT registered in the respective countries of storage.
- Selling to UK business customers – You sell to business customers based in the UK from UK inventory. Find out more about our VAT Calculation Services and Invoicing Support here.
- Domestic sales by a UK established Seller – If your business is established in the UK and you sell to customers within the UK, and your sales exceed the ‘Domestic Selling Threshold’ of £85,000, you may be required to register for VAT in that count’
To know more on value added tax click here
(Note- Information on this post does not constitute tax, legal, or other professional advice and must not be used as such. You should consult your professional advisers if you have any questions.)
Regards,
Xavier
Seller_NziLt9scUlZlr
Thank you Xavier for your time. When the wife and I had our Book shop for 22 years we were registered for VAT in the UK because we sold Greetings Cards which were vatable, our sales of books were exempt. My problem these days is being retired for 20 years now I am out of touch and have no desire to get back in touch with business worries we just wish to sell off the remnants of our ex shop stock from our home and now my private collection, due to health issues, with minimum hassle to subsidise our pensions. Thanks Gordon. Cope. Virginia bank Books
Seller_vfnke6NQW8bja
I have recently started selling in UK Amazon market but I am still confused about VAT Registration in UK and EU Region I have registered my company in UK but no VAT register because according to UK VAT Terms & Conditions Company turnover should be over £85000 in a year .
Should I registered for VAT or No need ??? Anyone with information please answer
Regards
