A US, UK, Chinese or Hong Kong company that imports or stores goods in Germany owes German VAT from the first euro. If you are the importer of record, you also need an EU EORI number. Vaytax sets up both and files your returns, in English.
Not sure what applies to you? Take the 60-second EORI check →
The short version
If you import goods into Germany or hold stock in a German warehouse, you have a German VAT obligation from the first euro, and customs needs to know who is importing. There is no turnover threshold for a foreign company storing goods in Germany.
You typically need two things: a German VAT registration (your Steuernummer from the Finanzamt and your USt-IdNr from the BZSt), and, if your company is the importer of record, an EU EORI number from German customs. A UK (GB) EORI does not work in the EU after Brexit.
The German import VAT (Einfuhrumsatzsteuer) you pay at the border is reclaimable as input VAT once you are registered, so for a registered business it is usually a timing item, not a final cost. Cost via Vaytax: your German plan (€1,199/year all-in, or €79/month if already registered) plus the EU EORI application as a €149 one-time add-on.
Not sure whether you need an EORI? Take the 60-second EORI check →
Importing or storing stock in Germany triggers a German VAT obligation, and sometimes your own EORI. The three most common profiles:
A US, UK, Chinese or Hong Kong company that ships its own goods into Germany and is named as the importer of record on the customs declaration. You need a German VAT registration and your own EU EORI number, and the import VAT becomes reclaimable on your return.
Inventory sitting in a German warehouse (Amazon FBA DE, Pan-EU FBA, a third-party logistics centre) creates a German VAT obligation from the first euro. Whether you also need your own EORI depends on who clears the goods at import. We check that with you.
A UK company with a GB EORI cannot use it to import into the EU. You need a separate EU EORI, applied for through German customs, alongside your German VAT registration. Both are part of the Vaytax setup.
For a foreign company, German VAT is triggered by what you do with goods in Germany, not by how much you sell. The moment you import goods into Germany or hold stock in a German warehouse, you have a German VAT obligation, and it starts with the first euro. There is no small-business turnover threshold for a company that is not established in Germany.
That is different from the distance-selling rules many sellers know. The €10,000 EU threshold applies to cross-border B2C sales; it does not apply to storing or importing goods in a country. Stock in a German warehouse means a German registration, full stop.
Importers routinely confuse three separate German numbers. They come from three different authorities and do three different jobs:
| Number | Issued by | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Steuernummer | Finanzamt (your local tax office) | Your German tax number, used on your VAT returns and Finanzamt correspondence. |
| USt-IdNr (VAT ID) | Bundeszentralamt für Steuern (BZSt) | Your EU VAT identification number, used for cross-border trade and on invoices. |
| EORI | German customs (the Zoll) | Identifies you to EU customs so goods can be cleared in your name. Needed only if you are the importer of record. |
A German VAT registration gives you the first two. The EORI is a separate customs registration. You can hold a VAT registration without an EORI, and an EORI without trading: they are not the same thing, and one does not include the other.
You need your own EORI when your company is the importer of record, the party named on the customs declaration as importing the goods into the EU. The clearest case: you ship your own stock into Germany on DDP terms and declare it yourself.
You may not need your own EORI when someone else is the declarant, for example a freight forwarder, a carrier, or a marketplace that imports the goods on your behalf and is named as the importer. In that case the import is cleared under their EORI, not yours.
Brexit note: a UK (GB) EORI number is only valid in the United Kingdom. To import into the EU you need a separate EU EORI. A non-EU company importing through Germany applies for its EU EORI with German customs, and one EU EORI is then valid across all 27 member states.
If you are not sure which case is yours, the 60-second EORI check walks you through it and tells you whether you need to apply.
When goods enter Germany, German import VAT (Einfuhrumsatzsteuer) is due at the border, normally 19 percent on the customs value. The good news for a registered business: import VAT is reclaimable as input VAT on your German VAT return, the same way you reclaim VAT on a domestic purchase.
So for a VAT-registered importer, import VAT is usually a cash-flow timing item, not a final cost. The catch is the word registered: you need the German VAT registration in place to reclaim it. Importing without registering first means paying import VAT you then struggle to recover cleanly.
A note on small parcels and iOSS: for low-value goods (up to €150) shipped directly from outside the EU to a consumer, the seller or marketplace may collect VAT through the Import One-Stop-Shop (iOSS) instead. That is a separate scheme for direct-to-consumer parcels, and Vaytax does not offer iOSS. If you are bringing bulk stock into a German warehouse, the route on this page (German VAT registration plus, where needed, an EORI) is the one that applies to you.
Once your goods are in Germany and you start shipping B2C to consumers in other EU countries, a second question appears: register in every destination country, or file one return? Above €10,000 of EU-wide B2C sales, the Union One-Stop-Shop (OSS), filed through Germany, lets you cover all 27 countries on one quarterly return, no country-by-country registration. It sits on top of your German registration. See how OSS through Germany works.
Vaytax sets up and files the tax and registration side:
What we do not do: customs clearance, freight, or acting as your importer of record or fiscal representative, and we do not offer iOSS. The physical customs declaration is handled by your carrier or a customs broker. We make sure the VAT registration and EORI behind it are correct, so the broker has what they need.
Your German VAT plan, plus the EU EORI application if you import as the importer of record. Vaytax prices, no hidden extras.
Your German VAT plan
German VAT registration included. Charged in full at signup. Renews yearly. Already have a German VAT number? €79/month (or €853/year).
What's included
EU EORI add-on
For companies that import as the importer of record. We prepare and file your EU EORI application with German customs. Added on top of your German plan.
The EORI number itself is free at customs. The €149 is for filing the application for you.
From €99, no subscription, nothing to pay until you accept. Schätzbescheid, Mahnung, Anhörung.
Not sure what you need?
Answer a few quick questions about where you store stock and how the goods get into Germany. We will tell you whether you need German VAT, an EORI, or both, and what it costs, in plain English. No account, no obligation.
German VAT registration, your EU EORI application, monthly filings and import-VAT reclaim, handled by a licensed German tax advisor. One place, in English.
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