Do you sell goods to customers outside of Ireland in but who are in Europe? If so, you need to know the EU’s distance selling regulations. They were made by the European Union to make it easier for businesses to trade with people in other member states, while also providing protection for consumers.
There are a few rules you need to know, including what information you have to give to customers when making a sale, but this article just looks at what you have to do for VAT.
The distance selling rules only apply to sales you make to customers who are not VAT registered. They apply to any type of sale, however, so include sales via your website, by phone, or by mail order.
When it comes to your VAT rules, the distance selling rules set out where you have to account for VAT, i.e. here in Ireland or the country your customer comes from.
You have to account for VAT in Ireland so long as your total sales to customers in a particular EU country do not exceed the limit that has been set for that country. If your total sales over a year do exceed the limit for that country, you have to register and account for VAT there.
The limit for each country in the EU is different, but most have the same limit for distance selling as Ireland – €35,000. This includes France, Spain, and Portugal. Countries not in the Euro have thresholds set in their own currency (for example, Denmark’s is 280,000 kroner), while other countries have set higher thresholds. This applies to countries like Germany (€100,000) and the Netherlands (€100,000). The UK’s threshold is GBP £70,000.
You can find a full list of thresholds that apply to EU countries on the European Union’s website.
Here are some examples of how the distance selling rules might affect your business:
To find out how to register for VAT in an EU country, and to learn more about its VAT rules, you should visit that country’s national tax website.
If you have a lot of sales to customers in Europe, you should make sure you have systems in place to record the total value of sales in each country. You should also seek advice from your accountant on the best way forward, as well as making sure you take prompt action if you go over a country’s threshold.
For more help and advice with VAT, distance selling, or anything else in your business, please phone our office at 01 283 4123
