Amazon buyer's VAT ID is invalid: who pays the VAT?

A buyer in another EU country gave a VAT ID and you shipped without German VAT. Later it turns out the number is invalid or does not belong to the buyer. Then one condition of the tax exemption is missing (§ 6a(1) sentence 1 no. 4 UStG), and the tax is first of all yours. The supply stays exempt in only two cases: the buyer later uses a number that was already valid on the day of supply (the tax authorities' view, § 6a.1(19) UStAE), or the buyer's details were wrong and you could not have spotted that even with the care of a prudent businessperson; then the buyer owes the tax (§ 6a(4) UStG).

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

Who pays: Without the protection of § 6a(4) UStG you owe the tax, because the supply is then not exempt under § 4 no. 1 (b) UStG (§ 13a(1) no. 1 UStG).
What protects you: Incorrect details from the buyer that you could not have recognised even with the care of a prudent businessperson. Then the buyer owes the tax that was lost.
Burden of proof: You must prove that the conditions are met (§ 6a(3) UStG).
Checking: The Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) confirms on request whether a foreign VAT ID is valid (§ 18e UStG). It does not confirm for a past point in time.

When is the supply exempt?

This is about goods you send from Germany to a business in another EU country. If the goods go to the buyer from an Amazon warehouse in another EU country, the supply takes place where the shipment starts (§ 3(6) UStG); then that country's rules apply, not § 6a UStG. For an intra-Community supply the law names these conditions, among others (§ 6a(1) UStG):

You or the buyer transported or shipped the goods to the rest of the Community territory.
The buyer is a business registered for VAT purposes in another member state that acquired the goods for its business, or a legal person registered for VAT there, such as a public authority (§ 6a(1) no. 2 (b) UStG).
The acquisition is subject to VAT at the buyer in that member state.
The buyer used a valid VAT ID issued by another member state towards you.

The last point is the one this page is about. An invalid number or another company's number does not meet the conditions. In addition, the exemption does not apply if you did not file the EC Sales List (Zusammenfassende Meldung) or filed it incorrectly or incompletely for the supply (§ 4 no. 1 (b) UStG). If you file it correctly later or correct the original list for that period, the tax authorities grant the exemption retroactively as long as the tax assessment can still be changed (§ 4.1.2 UStAE). For the rest of the supply and its proofs, see Intra-Community supply to businesses (B2B) from Germany.

What this means for you: Check that the goods really go from Germany to a business in another EU country before you rely on the exemption.

How do you check a customer's VAT ID?

BZSt confirmation. On request the BZSt confirms the validity of a VAT ID from another member state, together with the name and address of the person it was issued to (§ 18e UStG). There are two levels:

The simple confirmation tells you whether the foreign number is valid, at the time of the request, in the member state that issued it.
The qualified confirmation also checks whether company name (including legal form), town, postcode and street match the data registered there. According to the BZSt, the simple confirmation must be done first.

According to the BZSt the confirmation is free of charge. Any holder of a German VAT ID may query, and you always state your own number. Confirmations for past points in time are not possible. So check the number at the time of the supply and keep the result with your records. You cannot query the earlier status afterwards.

VIES. There is also VIES, the EU's online query for VAT IDs. It shows whether the number is valid and, depending on the member state, also the registered name and address. A check of your name and address details answered by the BZSt is what the qualified confirmation gives you (§ 18e.1(4) UStAE).

The BZSt itself points out that it only passes on the data held in another member state. The legal assessment, for example whether the supply is exempt, is for the tax office.

What this means for you: Check the number with the BZSt or with VIES and save the result.

What protects you if the number was wrong?

Section 6a(4) UStG: if you treated a supply as exempt although the conditions were not met, it still counts as exempt if

claiming the exemption rests on incorrect details from the buyer and
you could not have recognised that those details were incorrect even with the care of a prudent businessperson.

In that case the buyer owes the tax that was lost. The law does not say what care means in a particular case. The tax authorities read it like this (§ 6a.8 UStAE): the protection only comes into question once your documentary and accounting proofs (sections 17a to 17d UStDV) are complete (para. 1); if the wrong number was recognisable, for example because you did not run the confirmation or ran it only after the sale, that is not enough (para. 6); if the buyer gives contradictory or unclear details about its identity, the protection does not apply at all (para. 8). A qualified confirmation result from the day of supply, kept as a printout or screenshot (§ 18e.1(2) UStAE), shows that you looked. Whether it is enough in a dispute is for the tax office or a court to decide, not for this text.

In its help on the VAT Calculation Service (Umsatzsteuer-Berechnungsservice, in German) Amazon writes that, among other things, the VAT ID given by the customer must be "absolutely correct" for using the service. An order that went through is no substitute for a check: you have to provide the proof (§ 6a(3) UStG).

What this means for you: You are protected only if you could not have spotted the wrong number with the care of a prudent businessperson.

What do you do if you find a wrong number?

Check the number now, simple and qualified, and save the result. It shows today's status, not the status on the day of supply.
Ask the buyer which number is correct and keep the answer. If the correct number was already valid on the day of supply, the tax authorities let it apply retroactively (§ 6a.1(19) sentence 3 UStAE) as long as the tax assessment can still be changed; you then correct the invoice and the EC Sales List (§ 3a.2(10) sentences 8 to 10 UStAE). The BZSt confirmation only shows today's status; how you prove validity on the day of supply is a question for your tax adviser or tax office.
If you cannot prove the conditions and § 6a(4) UStG does not apply, the supply is not exempt. You then owe the VAT: German VAT (§ 13a(1) no. 1 UStG) if the buyer is a business that bought for its business. If it was really a private customer, it is a distance sale and the destination country's VAT applies, for example via the OSS return (§ 3c(1) UStG); that does not apply if you are established only in Germany and your EU distance sales together with certain services to private customers did not exceed 10,000 euros in the previous year and do not in the current year (§ 3c(4) UStG). How you show sales in the return is in VAT return for Amazon sellers.
Correct the EC Sales List. If you notice that a filed EC Sales List is incorrect, for example because it contains a supply that was not exempt or a wrong number, you must correct the original list within one month (§ 18a(10) UStG); discuss that with your tax adviser.

If you are unsure about a number before you ship, the same applies: check first, then supply without VAT. For what the invoice to a business looks like, see Show VAT on Amazon invoices.

What this means for you: Check the number now, ask the buyer for the right one and save every result.

Common mistakes

Judging the number by its format. A number can look right and still be invalid or belong to another company.
Checking only once, at the start of the relationship. The BZSt confirms the status at the time of the request; an old result is no proof for today.
Not keeping the result. You have to provide the proof (§ 6a(3) UStG).
Leaving sales without a number free of tax. Without a valid number from the buyer a condition of the exemption is missing.
Mixing up reverse charge and intra-Community supply. For goods from Germany to a business in the EU it is the intra-Community supply; when the buyer owes the tax as recipient is in Reverse charge in Germany under § 13b UStG.

What this means for you: Do not judge a number by its format and do not check it only once.

How VAT GPT helps

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: You upload the Amazon report. VAT GPT reads the column BUYER_VAT_NUMBER.
Check: An Amazon row without VAT from Germany to another EU country is classed by VAT GPT as an intra-Community supply (box 41) when the buyer's number is filled in and is not a German one. When you create an invoice in VAT GPT, you check the customer's VAT ID with "Verify". VAT GPT then shows "Valid per VIES" when the query reports the number as valid, and "This VAT ID is not valid according to VIES" when it does not report it as valid.
Send: You download the invoice and send it to your customer.

Try VAT GPT

Frequently asked questions

Who pays the VAT if the buyer gave a wrong VAT ID? First of all you, because without a valid number the supply is not exempt. The buyer owes the tax only if § 6a(4) UStG applies: incorrect details from the buyer that you could not have recognised even with the care of a prudent businessperson.

How do I check an Amazon buyer's VAT ID? With the simple and the qualified confirmation of the BZSt (§ 18e UStG) or the EU's VIES query. Check at the time of supply and keep the result.

Can I do the check later? The BZSt does not confirm past points in time, only the status at the request. A result obtained later therefore shows today's status.

Is it enough that the number was entered with the order? The law requires you to prove the conditions (§ 6a(3) UStG). The entry alone is not a check result.

What if I notice a wrong number months later? Check the number today and ask the buyer for the correct one. If it was already valid on the day of supply, the tax authorities let it apply retroactively (§ 6a.1(19) UStAE); otherwise talk to your tax adviser or tax office about how to correct the earlier return.