Amazon payouts and tax: what counts as income
What is taxed is not the payout that lands in your bank account but your profit and, for VAT, your revenue. The payout is neither: it is your revenue plus VAT, minus fees and refunds. If you take the payout as income, you are working with a figure that is the right one for no tax at all.
Only VAT GPT sends all three returns itself. Of the tools we compare, according to the providers' own pages (checked 3 November 2026), only VAT GPT submits the OSS return itself to the BZSt, plus the VAT advance return and the annual VAT return via ELSTER to the tax office, calculated from your Amazon and eBay reports. You do not have to go into Mein ELSTER or the BZStOnline portal yourself. With the others, you upload the OSS file in the BZStOnline portal yourself, or a tax adviser or the provider's service files it for you. Sending needs Pro. OSS software compared
Last updated: 29 October 2026
In brief
- Revenue: what customers pay you for goods, counted without VAT; the basis of VAT.
- Profit: income minus business expenses; the basis of income tax (section 2(2) no. 1 EStG) and, with adjustments, of trade tax (section 7 GewStG).
- Payout: what reaches you after fees, refunds and amounts held back. It also contains the VAT you pass on to the tax office.
- Proof for the tax: the sales lines and the fee invoices, not the bank statement.
Payout, revenue and profit: three different figures
An example with invented numbers, one month, a seller under the regular VAT scheme at 19 percent (section 12(1) UStG):
| Item | Amount in euros |
|---|---|
| Customers pay in total | 1,190.00 (1,000.00 net and 190.00 VAT) |
| Refund to a customer | minus 119.00 (100.00 net and 19.00 VAT) |
| Amazon fees | minus 238.00 (200.00 net and 38.00 input VAT) |
| Payout | 833.00 |
These figures result:
| Figure | Calculation | Euros |
|---|---|---|
| Net revenue | 1,000.00 minus 100.00 | 900.00 |
| VAT payable | 190.00 minus 19.00 minus 38.00 input VAT | 133.00 |
| Profit before other costs | 900.00 minus 200.00 fees | 700.00 |
The payout of 833.00 euros is made up like this: 900.00 revenue plus 171.00 VAT, minus 238.00 fees. After you pay 133.00 euros to the tax office, 700.00 euros remain, which is the profit. The VAT is only passing through. Your cost of goods and other costs are not included yet and reduce the profit further.
What this means for you: Do not use the payout as income; payout, revenue and profit are three different figures.
Which tax hangs on which figure?
- VAT: It arises on your taxable supplies, not on the payout. The tax is 19 percent of the tax base for each taxable supply, and the reduced rate is 7 percent (section 12 UStG). If the tax base changes, for instance through a refund, you correct the tax (section 17(1) UStG).
- Income tax: It hangs on profit. With the EÜR that is the surplus of business income over business expenses (section 4(3) EStG).
- Trade tax: It builds on the trade earnings, which are the profit from the business determined under the Income Tax Act, with additions and deductions (section 7 GewStG). More in Trade tax for Amazon sellers.
As a small business (Kleinunternehmer) you do not charge VAT; for income tax, profit counts for you as well.
What this means for you: VAT hangs on your taxable supplies and income tax on your profit, not on the payout.
What about reserves, holdbacks and chargebacks?
If Amazon holds back part of your balance, for example as a security, the money is not yet in your account. Whether it has already flowed to you for tax purposes depends on the individual case: what matters is whether you have economic control over it (section 11(1) EStG). Talk to your tax adviser about larger held-back amounts at year end.
If a customer demands their money back, you pay it back. That reduces your income and, through section 17 UStG, your VAT. The amount appears in the payout as a deduction. Where the items belong in the EÜR is shown in Amazon seller EÜR: booking income and expenses.
What this means for you: Money Amazon holds back is not yet in your account; whether it counts as received depends on the individual case.
How do you calculate correctly?
- Take the sales lines from the VAT Transactions Report (reports at a glance).
- Work out net revenue and VAT per country.
- Take the fees from the fee invoices (deduct fees).
- Use the settlement report only to reconcile: does the payout equal revenue plus tax minus fees? (settlement report explained)
- Work out the profit as income minus expenses.
Once you know your profit, adjusting your income tax prepayments explains how the prepayments can follow.
What this means for you: Take the sales lines from the VAT Transactions Report and work out net revenue and VAT per country.
Common mistakes
- Recording the payout as income. Fees and refunds are then missing from the calculation.
- Seeing the VAT as your own profit. The amount payable goes to the tax office.
- Deriving expenses only from the bank statement. You need the invoice for input VAT.
- Ignoring held-back amounts without checking. Whether there has been an inflow is a question for the individual case.
What this means for you: Never record the payout as income and do not treat the VAT as your own profit.
How VAT GPT helps
VAT GPT works in three steps:
- Upload: You upload the Amazon CSV.
- Check: VAT GPT sorts the sales rows by tax scheme and country (Germany or EU/OSS) and books the fee rows (AMAZON_FEE) as expenses. You check and confirm.
- Send: With VAT GPT Pro you send the VAT return, the EÜR, the trade tax return and the income tax return through ELSTER and the OSS return to the BZSt. There is Free, Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro. Try for free now
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to pay tax on the Amazon payout? Not on the payout, but on your profit and, for VAT, on your revenue.
Why is my payout lower than my revenue? Amazon deducts fees and refunds; the payout also contains the VAT.
Is the VAT in the payout my money? No, you pass it on to the tax office. You deduct the input VAT from it.
What about money Amazon holds back? Whether it has already flowed to you depends on whether you have economic control over it (section 11 EStG). That is an individual case.
Do I pay tax on the payout as a small business? No, here too profit counts, not the payout; you do not charge VAT.
Read next
- Amazon seller EÜR: booking income and expenses
- Income tax for Amazon sellers
- Amazon FBA and taxes in Germany
- All taxes for Amazon and eBay sellers in one place
- German VAT rates: 19, 7 and reduced
- Add your VAT ID in Amazon Seller Central: path, errors
- Amazon: showing VAT and writing invoices (Germany)
- Amazon VAT Calculation Service (VCS): how to register
Not tax advice: the content does not replace individual advice.