Amazon seller: which taxes do you pay to the tax office, and when?

Selling on Amazon: what goes to the tax office, and when? Outside the small business scheme, you calculate VAT in the advance return and pay by the tenth day after the period (§ 18 (1) UStG). Income tax advance payments, once set, are due on 10 March, 10 June, 10 September and 10 December (§ 37 (1) and (3) EStG).

Last updated: 29 October 2026

In short

Amazon and VAT: You pay the VAT on your sales yourself; Amazon does so only in the cases of § 3 (3a) UStG, where Amazon counts as the supplier.
Return period: calendar quarter; calendar month if last year's tax was above €9,000 (§ 18 (2) UStG).
Trade tax: The municipality levies it; for natural persons, €24,500 of trade income stays out (§ 11 (1) GewStG).
Annual returns and late payment: generally seven months after year end; paying late costs 1 percent per month begun.

Does Amazon pay the VAT for me?

Usually not. You calculate the VAT on your sales yourself and report it in the advance return (§ 18 (1) UStG). Amazon pays the tax itself only in the cases set by law, because the marketplace is then treated as the supplier (§ 3 (3a) UStG): when a seller based outside the EU sells goods within the EU to private customers, and when goods from a third country go to private customers in the EU in a consignment of up to 150 euro. In all other cases the marketplace is liable only for tax that was not paid (§ 25e (1) UStG). That liability falls away under the conditions of § 25e (2) UStG, for example if the seller has a valid VAT ID. You still owe the tax. If Amazon restricts your account over tax data, see an Amazon account blocked over tax data.

What this means for you: Plan on calculating and reporting your VAT yourself: Amazon pays it only in the cases set by law.

When and how do I pay VAT?

You calculate the VAT yourself. By the tenth day after the end of each advance-return period you submit an advance return in the officially prescribed data format through the official interface, and in it you calculate the tax for the period. The advance payment is due on the tenth day after the period ends and must be paid by then (§ 18 (1) UStG). On application the tax office extends both deadlines by one month (Dauerfristverlängerung, § 46 UStDV). Monthly filers pay a special advance payment of one eleventh of the previous year's advance payments for it (§ 47 (1) UStDV).

The advance-return period is the calendar quarter. If the tax for the previous calendar year was more than €9,000, the calendar month is the period; if it was no more than €2,000, the tax office can release you from advance returns and advance payments (§ 18 (2) sentences 1 to 3 UStG). If you start your activity in the current calendar year, for the tax periods 2021 to 2026 the expected tax of the current year decides; if you worked only part of the previous year, you convert the actual tax into an annual figure (§ 18 (2) sentence 6 UStG). If you start in 2026, by the current wording you file monthly for 2027 (§ 18 (2) sentence 4 UStG). More: advance VAT return for Amazon sellers.

After the calendar year you also submit a tax return in which you calculate the tax for the year yourself (§ 18 (3) UStG). If it differs from the sum of your advance payments, the difference in favour of the tax office is due one month after the return is received (§ 18 (4) UStG).

Sales to other EU countries that you report under OSS are not paid with the advance return. Under OSS the tax is due on the last day of the month following the taxation period (§ 18j (4) UStG); more in OSS return for online sellers and Amazon OSS VAT.

What this means for you: Submit the advance return by the tenth day after the period and pay by the same date.

When do I pay income tax?

Taxpayers must make advance payments of income tax on 10 March, 10 June, 10 September and 10 December on the tax they are expected to owe for the current year (§ 37 (1) EStG). The tax office sets them by a notice and generally bases them on the income tax of the last assessment (§ 37 (3) EStG). Advance payments are set only if they amount to at least €400 per calendar year and at least €100 for a due date (§ 37 (5) EStG). For the payment records, see downloading PayPal reports for your tax records.

The income tax return for a calendar year must, unless tax laws say otherwise, be filed no later than seven months after the end of the calendar year (§ 149 (2) AO). You work out your income and expenses as a seller in the EÜR: create the EÜR in ELSTER.

What this means for you: Expect advance payments on 10 March, 10 June, 10 September and 10 December once the tax office has set them.

How does trade tax work?

For trade tax, a base amount (Steuermessbetrag) is set first (§ 14 GewStG); the municipality then applies its multiplier (Hebesatz), sets the tax and collects it (§ 16 (1) GewStG). For natural persons and partnerships, trade income is reduced by an allowance of €24,500 (§ 11 (1) GewStG); the base rate is 3.5 percent (§ 11 (2) GewStG). How the return works: trade tax return in Germany. The same topic for the other platform is in how much tax eBay sellers pay in Germany.

What this means for you: The tax office sets a base amount first and your municipality applies its multiplier, so the final trade tax depends on that multiplier.

Who counts as a small business owner?

As a small business owner your turnover is tax-exempt if the total turnover was no more than €25,000 in the previous calendar year and is no more than €100,000 in the current calendar year (§ 19 (1) sentence 1 UStG). The provisions on filing duties (§ 18 (1) to (4) UStG) then do not apply; § 18 (4a) UStG remains unaffected (§ 19 (1) sentence 2 UStG). If you receive a service from a business in another EU country that is taxable in Germany under § 3a (2) UStG, you owe the tax (§ 13b (1) and (5) UStG) and file advance returns for those periods and an annual return (§ 18 (4a) UStG). Income tax and trade tax remain unaffected. More: VAT return for a small business in Germany.

VAT that you owe as the recipient of a service you still pay (§ 13b (5) UStG).

What this means for you: Stay within €25,000 in the previous year and €100,000 in the current year to be exempt, but VAT you owe as the recipient of a service you still pay.

What happens if I pay late?

If a tax is not paid by the due date, a late-payment surcharge of 1 percent of the rounded-down outstanding tax is due for every month begun (§ 240 (1) AO). It is not charged for a delay of up to three days; this does not apply to payment under § 224 (2) no. 1 AO (§ 240 (3) AO).

What this means for you: Pay on time: every month begun after the due date costs 1 percent of the outstanding tax.

Which mistakes happen often?

Not planning for the VAT. The advance payment is due on the tenth day after the period ends (§ 18 (1) UStG).
Misjudging the advance-return period. In the year you start, for 2021 to 2026 the expected tax of the current year decides: monthly above €9,000, otherwise quarterly (§ 18 (2) sentences 2 and 6 UStG). If you start in 2026, you file monthly for 2027 (§ 18 (2) sentence 4 UStG).
Mixing OSS VAT with the advance return. OSS has its own deadlines (§ 18j (4) UStG).
Forgetting income tax advance payments. Once the tax office has set them, they are due on four dates a year (§ 37 (1) EStG).
Not planning the annual returns. The deadline is generally seven months after the end of the calendar year (§ 149 (2) AO).
Ignoring a request from the tax office. Anyone the tax office asks to file must file (§ 149 (1) sentence 2 AO).

What this means for you: Plan for the VAT payment, pick the right advance-return period and answer requests from the tax office.

How VAT GPT helps

Your figures for the advance return come together in VAT GPT like this:

Upload: You upload your Amazon and eBay CSV reports.
Check: VAT GPT calculates VAT for Germany and OSS and creates the advance return, monthly or quarterly. You see what you pay or get back before you send it.
Send: With VAT GPT Pro you send the advance VAT return and the OSS return via ELSTER, as well as EÜR, trade tax and income tax.

VAT GPT is the tax software for online sellers, freelancers and small businesses in Germany. It calculates and files in one place, in this order:

your OSS return
VAT
EÜR
trade tax
income tax

Upload your Amazon and eBay reports

Frequently asked questions

Does Amazon pay the VAT for me? Usually not: you calculate it yourself and pay by the tenth day after the period ends (§ 18 (1) UStG), one month later with a permanent extension (§ 46 UStDV). Only in the cases of § 3 (3a) UStG does Amazon count as the supplier and pay the tax itself.

How often do I pay VAT? Quarterly; monthly if the tax in the previous year was more than €9,000. If it was no more than €2,000, the tax office can release you from advance returns (§ 18 (2) UStG).

When are income tax advance payments due? On 10 March, 10 June, 10 September and 10 December, once the tax office sets them (§ 37 (1) and (3) EStG).

What does a late payment cost? 1 percent of the rounded-down outstanding amount for every month begun, nothing for a delay of up to three days (§ 240 AO).