VAT return from your Amazon and eBay reports

Your sales taxable in Germany go into boxes 81 (19 %) and 86 (7 %) of the advance VAT return (Umsatzsteuer-Voranmeldung). The VAT on distance sales to private customers in other EU countries is declared in the OSS return if you use the OSS; their net amount goes into box 45 of the advance return. VAT GPT separates the two when you upload your reports. Here is where each row belongs.

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

Domestic: net sales at 19 % in box 81, at 7 % in box 86.
OSS sales: not in 81 or 86; the VAT goes into the OSS return, the net amount into box 45.
Sending: with VAT GPT Pro through ELSTER; the checking stays with you.

Which sale goes into which box?

The numbers come from the form USt 1 A for 2026 published by the BMF. Amounts on the form are shown without VAT.

Sale in your report	Box (line)	What VAT GPT does with it
Sale in Germany at 19 %	81 (line 13)	Net total in the VAT return
Sale in Germany at 7 %	86 (line 14)	Net total in the VAT return
Sale in Germany at other rates	35 and 36 (line 16)	Net total in the VAT return
Tax-free supply to a business with a VAT ID in the EU	41 (line 19)	Net total in the VAT return if your data contains such supplies
Distance sale to private customers in other EU countries (OSS)	45 (line 36), net amount	The VAT is in the OSS return (table "OSS VAT by country")
Input VAT from invoices	66 (line 38)	Input VAT from your expenses, which you confirm

About box 45: the form calls it "Übrige nicht steuerbare Umsätze (Leistungsort nicht im Inland)" (other non-taxable supplies, place of supply not in Germany). According to the BMF instructions this includes intra-Community distance sales to private customers in other EU countries. If you stay under the €10,000 threshold and ship from Germany, these sales are German sales in boxes 81 and 86 instead. The threshold applies only if your business is established only in Germany (§ 3c (4) UStG).

What this means for you: Check each sale type against its box before you file; the table shows where each sale goes.

Which row in the report decides this?

In the Amazon report (AVTR), the column TAX_REPORTING_SCHEME decides:

REGULAR with the country Germany is a domestic sale.
UNION-OSS belongs in the OSS return.

For eBay, country and tax rate come from the order list. How the columns are built is shown in Amazon VAT report CSV, turned into your VAT returns and eBay report CSV, VAT, OSS and marketplace rules.

What this means for you: Look at the TAX_REPORTING_SCHEME column to tell domestic sales from OSS sales.

What does an advance return look like with numbers?

A quarter with invented numbers: across Amazon and eBay together you sold €5,000 net at 19 % and €1,000 net at 7 % in Germany. Input VAT from invoices is €400.00.

Box	Content	Entry
81	Sales at 19 % (tax base)	€5,000
86	Sales at 7 % (tax base)	€1,000
Line 37	VAT: 5,000 × 19 % = €950.00 plus 1,000 × 7 % = €70.00	€1,020.00
66	Input VAT from invoices of other businesses	€400.00
83	Remaining advance VAT payment: €1,020.00 minus €400.00	€620.00

The instructions for the form ask for whole euros for the tax bases, but always for the cents on VAT and input VAT. The €620.00 are due on the tenth day after the end of the filing period and must be paid by then (section 18 (1) UStG).

If the input VAT exceeds the VAT, you get a surplus. With €190.00 VAT and €500.00 input VAT, box 83 shows "-310.00": for a remaining surplus the form asks for a leading minus. In VAT GPT the window then says "Total VAT to receive as a refund" instead of "Total VAT to pay".

What this means for you: Use the example with invented numbers to check your own boxes.

Where do refunds and foreign currency go?

The instructions for the form say: you take reductions of consideration into account in the tax bases, you mark negative amounts with a minus sign, and you convert values in a foreign currency into euros. So a refund in the quarter lowers the net total in box 81 or 86. If you had sold €5,000 net at 19 % and refunded €500 net of it, you enter €4,500. If you sell on eBay in another currency, you convert the amount into euros before you enter it, at the average rate the BMF publishes for the month of the supply (if you pay VAT on receipts, for the month in which you receive the money); the tax office may allow the daily rate (section 16 (6) UStG).

What this means for you: Let refunds lower the net total and convert foreign currency into euros.

Monthly or quarterly?

The advance return is due on the tenth day after the end of the filing period. The filing period is the calendar quarter. If your tax in the previous year was more than 9,000 euros, the calendar month is your period. If it was not more than 2,000 euros, the tax office can exempt you from advance returns. Extensions and the 2026 deadlines are in German VAT return deadline 2026 & permanent extension. VAT GPT reads your rhythm from your saved setting.

What this means for you: File monthly or quarterly depending on last year's tax, and file by the tenth day after the period.

How does it work in VAT GPT?

On the "Taxes" page, under "German VAT Submissions", each period is listed with its deadline. "Review & Submit" opens a window with your details: sales "With 19% VAT", "With 7% VAT" and "With other VAT rate", the input VAT and, at the end, "Total VAT to pay" or "Total VAT to receive as a refund". "Preview report" shows the data, "Submit to Finanzamt" sends it through ELSTER. For your annual VAT return, see Annual VAT return for Amazon and eBay sellers. For your profit calculation, see EÜR for Amazon and eBay sellers with VAT GPT.

What do you check yourself?

Do the net totals match your reports, including refunds and cancellations?
Is all input VAT from expenses recorded? VAT GPT puts fees from the Amazon report under expenses.
Is the period correct, with nothing uploaded twice? VAT GPT rejects the same file as a duplicate.

More on Amazon: Amazon VAT Transactions Report (AVTR): advance VAT return. More on eBay: eBay seller VAT in Germany: advance return and OSS. For your income tax, see Income tax return for Amazon and eBay sellers, VAT GPT.

What this means for you: Compare the net totals with your reports, check the input VAT and make sure nothing is uploaded twice.

How VAT GPT helps

Upload: You upload the Amazon report and the eBay order list: under "Income & OSS", in the "CSV Upload" box, by dropping them on "Drop your CSV tables here" or with "Select Files". VAT GPT sorts domestic sales into 19 %, 7 % and other rates and deducts the input VAT from your expenses.
Check: On the "Taxes" page you choose the period under "German VAT Submissions" and click "Review & Submit". In the window you check sales, input VAT and the result; "Preview report" shows the data.
Send: With VAT GPT Pro you send it through ELSTER with "Submit to Finanzamt".

The VAT on OSS sales goes into the OSS return, which you file separately with the BZSt. There is Free, Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro. Try for free now

Frequently asked questions

Must I file monthly? Yes, if your tax in the previous year was over 9,000 euros; otherwise quarterly, and at no more than 2,000 euros the tax office can exempt you altogether.

Do OSS sales go into the VAT return? The VAT on them is declared in the OSS return, see OSS return for Amazon and eBay with VAT GPT. In the advance return their net amount goes into box 45, not into 81 or 86.

Can I combine Amazon and eBay in one VAT return? Yes, domestic sales from both platforms go into the same boxes.