Closing your business as an online seller: the tax steps in Germany

You are stopping selling on Amazon or eBay? Then deregistering at the trade office is only the first step. The last tax returns, the OSS deregistration if you are in it, and closing your seller account follow. Here is the order.

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

First: You deregister the business with the competent authority. It is a duty once you give up the business.
Then: the last VAT return (regular taxpayers; small business owners only in exceptional cases) and the last EÜR with the income tax return.
Last: deregister from the OSS, close the account, keep your records.

Where do you deregister the business?

Deregistering is a notice to the competent authority, not to the tax office: if you give up the business, you must report it (§ 14(1) sentence 2 no. 3 GewO). The federal administration portal takes you to your office. It first asks you to choose a region, because the procedure depends on where you are. It states: "Dann müssen Sie Ihren Betrieb abmelden" (then you must deregister your business). Portal: Deregister a business at the federal administration portal (in German).

If you do not deregister, the authority can do it itself when the closure is clear and no deregistration was made within a reasonable time (§ 14(1) sentence 4 GewO). Do not rely on that: a deregistration by the authority does not replace your duties towards the tax office.

The tax code also knows the notice of closing a business (§ 138(1) AO). Entrepreneurs can also meet it electronically with the authority responsible for VAT (§ 138(1a) AO). Which way your tax office expects, you ask there.

What this means for you: Deregistering is a notice to the competent authority, not to the tax office; ask your tax office which way it expects.

Which returns follow in the last year?

In the year you close, there are usually three things to settle.

VAT, regular taxpayers only. If you carried on the activity for only part of the calendar year, that part takes the place of the calendar year (§ 16(3) UStG). The return for it is due within one month after the end of that shorter period (§ 18(3) sentence 2 UStG). The advance returns up to the end remain due (§ 18(1) UStG), unless the tax office has exempted you (§ 18(2) sentence 3 UStG). As a small business owner these returns do not apply (§ 19(1) sentence 2 UStG), unless you owe tax yourself as the recipient of a service, for example under § 13b(5) UStG (§ 18(4a) UStG), or the tax office asks you to file (§ 149(1) sentence 2 AO).

Income tax. Giving up the business counts as a sale (§ 16(3) sentence 1 EStG). The EÜR for the last year and the income tax return go with it; a gain from closing is part of the income from a trade or business (§ 16(1) and (2) EStG). What amounts that gives depends on your stock and your business assets.

Trade tax. The same threshold applies as usual: a return is due if trade income exceeded 24,500 euros (§ 25(1) no. 1 GewStDV). More: Trade tax return in Germany.

What this means for you: Expect to file the last returns for the year in which you close.

What happens to leftover stock?

If goods are left over, you have two ways: sell them or keep them.

Sell: These are normal sales that you declare as before.
Take them privately: For a regular taxpayer, taking an item out of the business for purposes outside the business counts as a supply for consideration if the item entitled you to input VAT deduction (§ 3(1b) no. 1 UStG). It is measured at the purchase price plus incidental costs (§ 10(4) no. 1 UStG). If the item did not entitle you to input VAT deduction, for example because you bought it as a small business owner or without VAT, this condition is missing.

That is the rule, not advice for your case. If you hold larger stock, talk to your tax adviser before deregistering.

What this means for you: Selling leftover stock is a normal sale; taking it privately can trigger VAT for a regular taxpayer.

How do you leave the OSS, and what about the seller account?

OSS. If you stop supplying, you must deregister at the latest on the tenth day of the month after the change. You use the deregistration form in the BZStOnline portal. For the quarters in which you were registered, you still file the OSS return and pay the tax after deregistering. All cases and deadlines: Deregister from the OSS in Germany.

Amazon. Amazon names the conditions and steps for closing a seller account in the Seller Central help. We do not repeat them here so that nothing outdated stays on this page. Download all the reports you need for tax first.

eBay. Before closing, eBay requires:

all fees paid
available payouts at zero
no open transactions
all subscriptions cancelled

In general it takes 14 days from the date of the request, up to 60 days if there were transactions, payments, cases or disputes in the last 30 days. Afterwards you lose your ratings and your purchase and sales overview, so pull your reports first. The steps are in the eBay help: closing your account (in German).

What this means for you: Deregister from the OSS by the tenth day of the month after the change, and save your reports before you close the seller account.

What must you still keep after deregistering?

The duty to keep records does not end with the business. The retention periods are (§ 147(3) AO):

accounting vouchers: eight years
other documents: six years
books and records: ten years

The period does not end while the documents matter for a tax whose assessment period is still running (§ 147(3) sentence 5 AO). Records of your OSS sales are kept ten years (§ 22(1) UStG). Save your Amazon and eBay reports and invoices before you close the accounts. The periods in detail: Receipt retention periods in Germany.

What this means for you: Keep your records for the legal periods even after the business is closed.

Common mistakes

Deregistering the business and forgetting the tax. You still owe the last returns.
Closing the seller account before the reports are saved. On eBay the purchase and sales overview is lost.
Missing the OSS deregistration. The deadline is the tenth day of the following month.
Taking leftover stock home unchecked. For a regular taxpayer it can trigger VAT.

What this means for you: Deregistering does not end your tax duties: file the last returns, save your reports before closing the account and be careful with leftover stock.

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

For the last round VAT GPT works in three steps:

Upload: You upload the year's Amazon and eBay reports.
Check: VAT GPT breaks the VAT down for Germany and the EU (OSS) and calculates the returns. You check and confirm.
Send: With VAT GPT Pro you send the VAT return, the OSS return, the EÜR, the trade tax return and the income tax return.

There is Free, Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro. Try for free now

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to deregister the business if I no longer sell? If you give up the business, you must report it (§ 14(1) GewO).

Where do I deregister? With the competent authority; the federal administration portal leads you there by region.

Do I still need a VAT return after deregistering? As a regular taxpayer yes, for the part of the year you were active (§ 16(3) UStG). As a small business owner as a rule no; the exceptions are the case of § 18(4a) UStG and a request from the tax office.

Do I have to deregister from the OSS? Yes, if you stop supplying; the deadline is the tenth day of the following month.

How long do I keep records? Six, eight or ten years depending on the type (§ 147(3) AO), OSS records ten years (§ 22(1) UStG).