Automated receipt generation for VAT registration exempt sellers: frequently asked questions

What features and benefits do I get by declaring my exemption?

By self-declaring your VAT registration exemption status to Amazon, you confirm that you are not required to register for VAT in the 27 EU member states and in the UK, and therefore have no obligation to generate VAT invoices for your customers.

This will help you:

1. Reduce the manual effort of receipt generation. Amazon will automatically generate and issue a receipt (“proof of purchase”) for all your sales on your behalf and will make them directly available to customers via their Amazon account.

2. Increase your offers visibility to business customers. No VAT will be calculated on the offer listing price and the "Downloadable Receipt" badge will let business customers know that a receipt is available for download, which can help you to increase your sales.

3. Comply with your Amazon Business Invoicing policy. Sellers not required to register for VAT and issue VAT invoices on their sales still have to provide a receipt within one business day after shipment confirmation for orders placed by Amazon Business customers.

Who is eligible to declare the VAT registration exemption?

A business established in the EU that:

• Supplies goods and the total annual amount is below the domestic threshold of the country where it is primarily established and dispatching from.
• Does not store inventory (and/or ship goods from) outside the country of its primary business.
• Does not have a VAT registration obligation as per point (a) and does not exceed a cross EU annual threshold of EUR 10.000 in cross border B2C distance sales shipped from its country of establishment.
• Does not act as the importer of records when dispatching goods to customers in the UK.

A business primarily established and dispatching only from the UK:

• Sell goods below the current domestic registration threshold.
• Only sells goods that are exempt/not subject to VAT.
• Does not store inventory (and/or dispatch goods from) outside the UK.
• Does not act as the importer of records when dispatching goods to an EU-based customer.

A business established outside the EU and the UK that:

• Exclusively ships goods directly from outside the EU and the UK.
• Does not have any inventory stored in any of the EU 27 member states and the UK.
• Does not act as the importer of the goods in the EU and the UK.

Am I required to provide a receipt if I am not registered?

According to the Amazon Business invoicing policy, sellers not required to register for VAT and issue VAT invoices on their sales still have to provide a receipt for orders placed by Amazon Business customers within one business day after order dispatch is confirmed.

Is there an incremental fee to use Amazon’s receipt generation solution?

No, Amazon’s receipt generation solution is available at no cost to all the eligible VAT registration exempt sellers as long as they fulfill the eligibility requirements.

Where can I find the receipt that Amazon generated on my behalf?

Once you declare your VAT exemption status to Amazon, you will be able to download the Amazon generated receipt in Manage Orders page in Seller Central. You should find receipts for each of the orders by clicking Manage invoice under the Action tab.

What do I do if I am no longer exempt from VAT registration?

If you are required to or have registered for VAT, you need to withdraw your VAT registration exemption status and issue VAT invoices. Please review with your tax advisor and consider enrolling in Amazon's free VAT Calculation service. Review VAT registration exemption Terms and Conditions for further details.

Will I receive the benefits immediately after my exemption declaration?

Note the Amazon’s receipt generation solution requires approximately 30 minutes for the changes to take into effect in the system. Sellers are advised to monitor their transactions for the period the activation is being made and make corrections as required.

Where can my customer find the receipt generated by Amazon?

Once Amazon generates a receipt on behalf of the sellers, customers will be able to download the receipt on Your Orders page.