EU VAT on imports and online sales

Every commercial import into the European Union pays VAT at the rate of the member state where the goods are delivered, and for consignments up to €150 an online seller can collect that VAT at checkout through the Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS) instead of leaving it to the buyer at the door. Above €150, import VAT is charged at the border under the normal procedure.

Rules as of 30 October 2026.

What is IOSS and who can use it?#

IOSS is the EU's special scheme for distance sales of imported goods in consignments with an intrinsic value up to €150, excluding goods subject to excise duty. The seller or marketplace charges the destination country's VAT when the order is paid, declares it in one monthly return, and the import itself is then exempt from VAT.

You register in one member state of identification. A seller established outside the EU must appoint an intermediary established in the EU, unless it is based in a country with a VAT mutual assistance agreement with the EU, Norway for example, and all its IOSS sales ship from there. Each seller gets an IOSS number in the format IM followed by ten digits.

The return is monthly and due, with payment, by the end of the following month, even with no sales, and records are kept for ten years. The IOSS number must reach customs in the import declaration at the latest. It can't be added after release, and one declaration can't mix IOSS and non-IOSS goods. Share the number only with the carrier or agent who declares your parcels.

• Pick a member state of identification, and an EU intermediary if you need one
• Charge the buyer's country VAT on the full price, including delivery and any duty or fee you pass on
• Send your IOSS number to the carrier with every parcel up to €150
• File the monthly return by the end of the following month, nil returns included
• Keep sales records for ten years

How do the special arrangements work?#

The special arrangements are the fallback for consignments up to €150 when IOSS isn't used. The carrier, postal operator or customs agent who declares the parcel collects the import VAT from the buyer at delivery and pays what it actually collected to customs once a month, by the 16th of the following month.

The parcel must be released in the member state where delivery ends, and excise goods are excluded. Member states may let the declarant apply the standard VAT rate to everything; a buyer who wants a reduced rate can refuse and move the parcel to the standard procedure. For the seller this works like shipping DAP.

What happens to VAT above €150?#

Consignments with an intrinsic value over €150 can't use IOSS or the special arrangements, so import VAT is charged at the border under the standard procedure. The taxable amount is the customs value plus duties, taxes and charges due on import, plus transport and insurance costs to the first place of destination in the importing member state.

The importer pays: the buyer when the parcel ships DAP, or the seller's side when it ships DDP. Duty is charged at the normal tariff rate for the product's code and origin. The DDP guide covers who takes the importer's role when you collect everything at checkout.

When is a marketplace the deemed supplier?#

An online marketplace is the deemed supplier for VAT, treated as if it bought and resold the goods itself, in two cases: distance sales of goods imported in consignments up to €150, whoever the seller is, and sales of goods already in the EU to consumers when the underlying seller is established outside the EU. In those cases the marketplace charges and pays the VAT, not the seller.

A platform that only processes payments, lists or advertises goods, or redirects customers to another site isn't a deemed supplier. If you sell through a marketplace and your own store, the marketplace handles VAT on its sales and you handle VAT on yours.

Where does the One-Stop Shop fit?#

The One-Stop Shop (OSS) lets a business declare VAT due in other member states through one quarterly return, due by the end of the month after each quarter. Its Union scheme covers sales of goods already in the EU shipped to consumers in another member state, and its non-Union scheme covers services that businesses outside the EU supply to EU consumers.

An EU-established seller can keep charging its home VAT on cross-border sales while its total distance sales of goods and its telecommunications, broadcasting and electronic services to consumers in other member states stay at or below €10,000 a year; above that, destination VAT applies. A seller outside the EU that ships from stock held in the EU to consumers in other member states can use the Union scheme in the member state where dispatch begins, unless a marketplace is the deemed supplier. Digital services are covered in the digital services VAT guide.

A worked example with IOSS#

An order from a store outside the EU to a customer in Germany, where VAT is 19%, shows how the charges stack once the handling fee starts, expected on 1 November 2026. The order is a wool sweater for €70 and leather gloves for €25, two different HS codes, with €10 shipping, and the seller passes the duty and fee on at checkout.

The seller reports €21.85 on its monthly IOSS return, and the carrier, as its indirect representative, pays the €10 of duty and fee at import and bills the seller. VAT is due on duties and charges the supplier passes on, and Commission guidance confirms it is due on the handling fee, so both sit inside the taxable amount. Without IOSS the buyer would pay about the same VAT at the door, plus the carrier's charge. Rates elsewhere differ:

Standard VAT in ten large EU markets

border.bot live data from each country's official publications, updated 2026-10-11

The landed cost calculator runs this for any EU address with the right codes and rates.

Common questions#

Do I need IOSS to sell to EU customers?#

No. IOSS is optional, and without it the buyer pays import VAT on delivery through the carrier. Most sellers who want buyers to pay one price at checkout register for IOSS or sell through a marketplace that collects the VAT.

Can a seller outside the EU register for IOSS without an intermediary?#

Only if it is established in a country with a VAT mutual assistance agreement with the EU, such as Norway, and all its IOSS sales ship from that country. Otherwise it must appoint an intermediary established in the EU.

What if an IOSS order turns out to be over €150?#

IOSS can't be used for a consignment whose intrinsic value is over €150, so the parcel goes through the standard import procedure, with VAT and normal duty charged at the border. Check the value at checkout so you don't collect VAT that will be charged again.

Sources#

• Council Directive 2006/112/EC on the common system of VAT, consolidated text (Articles 14a, 59c, 73, 78, 85, 86, 369l) (opens in a new tab), EUR-Lex, consolidated version of 14 April 2025
• Registering in the One Stop Shop: Union, non-Union and import schemes (opens in a new tab), European Commission, accessed 30 October 2026
• Declare and pay in OSS (opens in a new tab), European Commission, accessed 30 October 2026
• Record keeping and audits in OSS (opens in a new tab), European Commission, accessed 30 October 2026
• Explanatory notes on VAT e-commerce rules (opens in a new tab), European Commission (DG TAXUD), September 2020
• Guidance on the customs treatment of low value consignments (opens in a new tab), European Commission (DG TAXUD), version of 15 September 2022
• The temporary EUR 3 customs duty and the Union handling fee: guidance for Member States and trade (opens in a new tab), European Commission (DG TAXUD), version of 5 October 2026
• Wegfall der 150-Euro-Zollfreigrenze ab 1. Juli (opens in a new tab), German customs (Generalzolldirektion), 29 June 2026