Amazon seller VAT correction: refunds, invoices and filed returns

Amazon sellers correct VAT in three cases. Refund: correct for the period of the change (§ 17 (1) UStG). Too much VAT on an invoice: you owe the excess until corrected towards the customer (§ 14c (1) UStG). Filed advance return later found wrong, tax possibly understated: tell the tax office without delay and correct it (§ 153 (1) AO).

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 short

Refund/return: correct in the period of the change, not retroactively in the sales month (§ 17 (1) sentence 8 UStG).
Sale reversed: § 17 (1) applies accordingly (§ 17 (2) no. 3 UStG).
OSS: Sales to other EU countries have their own OSS return; see correcting an OSS return.

When do I correct VAT on Amazon?

Situation	Rule	What you do
Customer gets money back (refund, return)	§ 17 (1) and (2) no. 3 UStG	Correct the tax amount in the period of the change
Invoice showed too much VAT	§ 14c (1) UStG	Correct the invoice towards the customer
Advance return was wrong, too little tax declared	§ 153 (1) AO	Report it to the tax office without delay and correct it

If you buy on Amazon for your own business, see Luxembourg invoices when buying on Amazon for your business.

What this means for you: check which situation applies in the table, then correct in the matching period.

What applies to refunds and returns (§ 17 UStG)?

If the tax base for a taxable supply has changed, the supplier must correct the tax amount owed for it (§ 17 (1) sentence 1 UStG). You make the correction for the tax period in which the change occurred (§ 17 (1) sentence 8 UStG). So if you file monthly and refund in March a sale made in February, you offset the tax in the advance return for March and do not change the return for February.

The same applies accordingly if a taxable supply is reversed (§ 17 (2) no. 3 UStG). A return where you repay the purchase price is the typical case.

According to Amazon, the Amazon VAT Transactions Report (AVTR) lists, among other things, sales, refunds and returns. For refunds and returns it has two sets of country columns: DEPARTURE_COUNTRY and ARRIVAL_COUNTRY show departure and arrival country of the current transaction, SALE_DEPART_COUNTRY and SALE_ARRIVAL_COUNTRY those of the original sale. That shows you from which country and to which country the original sale went. How to use the report for your return: Amazon VAT report and the German VAT return.

What this means for you: correct the VAT on a refund or return in the period in which the change occurred, not in the sales month.

What applies to too much VAT on an invoice (§ 14c UStG)?

If you showed a higher tax amount on an invoice than you owe under the law, you also owe the excess (§ 14c (1) sentence 1 UStG). If you correct the tax amount towards the recipient, § 17 (1) applies accordingly (§ 14c (1) sentence 2 UStG). How Amazon invoices arise and what they must contain: VAT on Amazon invoices for German sellers and Amazon VAT Calculation Service (VCS). Cases where Amazon itself collects the tax are explained in VAT collected by Amazon.

What this means for you: if you showed too much VAT on an invoice you owe the excess until you correct it.

What do I do if a filed advance return was wrong (§ 153 AO)?

If you realise afterwards that a declaration you filed is incorrect or incomplete and tax may be understated or already is, you must report this without delay and make the correction (§ 153 (1) sentence 1 no. 1 AO). A tax return of this kind is treated like an assessment subject to review; if it reduces the tax owed so far, that applies only with the tax office's consent (§ 168 AO). How the advance return works in general: German advance VAT return: filing online.

What this means for you: report a wrong advance return to the tax office without delay and correct it.

How do I correct a filed advance return?

File the advance return for the period again and mark it as a corrected return: on the official form that is code 10 (1 = yes). Whether the tax office or your tax adviser wants something different in your case, you clarify with them. A refund to a customer is not a correction of the old return; it belongs in the period of the change (see above). The figures to check against come from the Amazon VAT report CSV.

What this means for you: file the advance return for the period again and mark it as a corrected return.

Which mistakes come up most often?

Correcting the refund in the sales month. The period in which the change occurred is decisive.
Reading returns in the Amazon report without matching them. Refunds appear in the AVTR; check that they arrive in your advance return.
Leaving an invoice with too much VAT uncorrected. You continue to owe the excess.
Waiting on a mistake in a filed return. If it leads to too little tax, § 153 AO requires prompt notification.
Mixing up OSS and the advance return. Sales to other EU countries under OSS have their own return; see correcting an OSS return.

What this means for you: match the refunds from the AVTR to the right period and keep OSS and advance return apart.

How VAT GPT helps

This is how your Amazon sales reach the advance return:

Upload: You upload your Amazon CSV reports (AVTR). VAT GPT reads CSV files and recognises the Amazon report by its header row.
Check: VAT GPT classifies each row by TAX_REPORTING_SCHEME: UNION-OSS as OSS, REGULAR in Germany as domestic, REGULAR in another country as local VAT. Amazon fee rows (INVOICE and CREDIT_NOTE) are booked as expenses, never as sales.
Send: VAT GPT prepares the advance VAT return from your data and sends it with VAT GPT Pro via ELSTER.

Local VAT of another country belongs neither in the German advance return nor in the OSS; you declare it directly in that country.

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 report

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to correct VAT when I refund an Amazon customer? Yes: if the tax base has changed, you correct the tax amount (§ 17 (1) UStG).

In which month do I correct? In the tax period in which the change occurred (§ 17 (1) sentence 8 UStG).

What if I put too much VAT on the invoice? You owe the excess (§ 14c (1) UStG). If you correct it towards the customer, § 17 (1) applies accordingly.

Can I change an advance return I have filed? Yes. You file it again as a corrected return (code 10). Where tax is understated, that is even compulsory (§ 153 AO).