UK Ltd, German FBA stock, post-Brexit. What does Germany expect?
Since Brexit a UK company is a third-country seller in the EU: no distance-selling threshold, no UK VAT number recognition, and customs between you and your German customers.
Yes. Register from the first unit, and sort the EORI before the first import.
A UK Ltd storing inventory in a German fulfilment centre must register for German VAT with no threshold: the first stored unit creates the obligation. Your UK VAT registration means nothing here; Germany issues its own Steuernummer and USt-IdNr through Finanzamt Hannover-Nord, the office that handles every UK-established company.
Because your goods physically enter the EU, you also need an EU EORI number (the GB EORI stopped working for EU imports at Brexit). Amazon remits the VAT on your marketplace B2C sales as deemed supplier, but registration, monthly filings and import-VAT recovery stay with you.
Brexit moved you into the third-country lane
Before 2021 a UK seller could ship to German customers under the distance-selling rules. Now the UK is a third country: goods crossing into the EU clear customs, import VAT arises, and holding stock in Germany makes you taxable there like any non-EU seller. The €10,000 EU-wide threshold is irrelevant; it only applies to EU-established businesses.
The one piece of good news: Germany does not require a fiscal representative. UK companies register directly, exactly like before, just with more paperwork: certificate of incorporation, articles, proof of UK establishment and a hand-signed power of attorney.
GB EORI is not EU EORI
Imports into Germany need an EU EORI number issued by an EU member state. Many UK sellers discover this at the border when a shipment stalls. If Vaytax handles your VAT, we file the German EORI application as a €149 one-off add-on; the number itself costs nothing from the customs authority.
Import VAT you pay at the border is recoverable through your German filings once registered, which is one more reason to register before the first container, not after.
The post-Brexit sequence that works
- Register for German VAT first. Documents: certificate of incorporation, articles of association, director passport, hand-signed Vollmacht. Processed by Finanzamt Hannover-Nord, typically 4 to 8 weeks.
- Apply for the EU EORI in parallel. Needed before your first EU import clears. We file it alongside the registration (€149 one-off).
- Enter the numbers in Seller Central. USt-IdNr for the § 25e marketplace check, EORI for your customs broker.
- File monthly. €1,199 per year all-in: German VAT registration, all monthly filings and the annual return, billed yearly starting at signup. Already have a German Steuernummer from before? Then it is €79 per month (or €853 per year) once you already hold a German Steuernummer.
UK registrations run through our office weekly.
One English-language onboarding, a licensed German tax advisor on the filings, and the Hannover-Nord process handled end to end while you keep selling.
Start the registration Licensed German tax advisor · English throughout · No calls requiredAsked about this setup
No. UK VAT registration stopped counting in the EU at Brexit. Sales from German stock need a German Steuernummer and USt-IdNr, issued by Finanzamt Hannover-Nord after a full registration.
No. Germany lets third-country companies register directly. A licensed German tax advisor handling your filings is sufficient, and no bank guarantee is required.
It is recoverable as input VAT in your German returns once you are registered. Sellers who import before registering often leave that money stranded for months, so register first.
A monthly Umsatzsteuervoranmeldung covering the tax-exempt deemed supplies to Amazon, any B2B or own-website sales, intra-Community stock movements, and your input VAT (imports, fees, storage). Plus the annual return.
Sources & official references