E-commerce and EU VAT: Theory and Practice

E-commerce and EU VAT

Theory and Practice

Rosamund Barr, Jeroen Bijl, Nils Bleckman, Gijsbert Bulk, Ethan Ding & Matthias Luther

About this book:

E-commerce and EU VAT focusses on the e-commerce rules being introduced by the European Union (EU) Member States and similar rules that have been introduced in major non-EU jurisdictions – Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. The new EU rules governing the online sales of goods and services affect all businesses that sell online to EU customers, no matter where the seller is based. Digitalisation has transformed the way goods and services are traded, challenging the very existence of traditional forms of retailing. This timely book, written by leading tax professionals from various EU countries, is the first to clearly explain the value added tax (VAT) compliance obligations and options that businesses and tax practitioners worldwide must understand to adapt to the new system. In addition to describing the legal framework, the authors provide examples of how the rules work in practice and illustrate available choices for businesses, with particular attention to avoiding pitfalls.

What’s in this book:

Thoroughly describing the rules affecting place of supply, liability, and accounting procedures in all relevant contexts, the book covers such areas of VAT compliance as the following:

distinction between goods and services;
differences between imported goods and goods sold intra-EU;
filing and invoicing obligations under the new one-stop shop scheme;
reclaiming foreign VAT;
mitigating fears of fraud and hijacking;
distinction between business-to-customer and business-to-business transactions; and
navigating through appeals, mistakes, and adjustments.