Amazon FBA VAT: Seller Obligations in France

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{ "id": "the-multi-country-storage-trap", "text": "The Multi-Country Storage Trap", "level": 2 },

{ "id": "amazon-as-vat-liable", "text": "Amazon as VAT Liable", "level": 2 },

{ "id": "your-declaration-obligations", "text": "Your Declaration Obligations", "level": 2 },

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Introduction

The FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) program is a cash machine for many e-commerce sellers. But it's also a nest of tax problems if you don't master your VAT obligations. Here's how to see clearly.

Intégration Amazon

Complexity Alert

Between stock spread across Europe, the "Deemed Supplier" mechanism, and unreadable VAT Transaction reports, Amazon FBA VAT is a minefield. A single mistake can trigger an audit and a reassessment of thousands of euros.

How FBA Works and Its VAT Implications

With FBA, you send your products to Amazon warehouses which then handles logistics (storage, preparation, shipping, customer service). This model has major VAT consequences:

The Basic Principle

Storage location = VAT registration obligation: as soon as your products are stored in a country, you must be VAT registered there, even if you don't sell directly there
Stock transfer = Taxable operation: when Amazon moves your products from one warehouse to another, it's an intra-community operation

Concrete Example

You are a French seller. You send 1,000 products to the FBA warehouse in Lauwin-Planque (France). Amazon decides to transfer 200 to its Rheinberg warehouse (Germany) to optimize delivery times.

Tax Consequence

This transfer is an intra-community delivery that you must declare. France side: stock exit. Germany side: intra-community acquisition. You must be VAT registered in Germany.

1 stock= 1 registration obligationIn each storage country

The Multi-Country Storage Trap

This is trap number 1 for FBA sellers. When you activate the Pan-European FBA program or use EFN (European Fulfillment Network), Amazon can move your stock to several European countries without asking your permission.

Consequences

Mandatory registration in each storage country
Local VAT declarations to produce in each country
Stock transfers to declare as intra-community operations
Compliance costs that explode

Amazon FBA Storage Countries in Europe

Country	Main Warehouses
France	Lauwin-Planque, Montélimar, Metz, Brétigny
Germany	Rheinberg, Bad Hersfeld, Graben, Werne
Italy	Castel San Giovanni, Torrazza Piemonte
Spain	San Fernando de Henares, Castellbisbal
Poland	Wrocław, Poznań
Czech Republic	Dobrovíz, Brno

Concrete Example

You are a French seller who activates Pan-European FBA. Amazon stores your products in Germany, Poland, and Italy to optimize delivery times. You must now register for VAT in these 4 countries and produce local declarations.

4 countries= 4 VAT registrationsWith their respective monthly declarations

Amazon as VAT Liable

Since July 2021, Amazon is liable for VAT on certain sales, which simplifies your situation:

Amazon Collects VAT for You When

B2C sales to customers in a country where you are not established
Sales of imported goods under €150 to EU customers

You Remain Liable For

B2B sales (to professionals with VAT number)
B2C sales in your country of establishment
B2C sales in countries where you are registered (because you store there)

Situation	Who Collects VAT?
FR seller, FR stock, FR customer (B2C)	You
FR seller, FR stock, DE customer (B2C)	Amazon (if > OSS threshold)
FR seller, DE stock, DE customer (B2C)	You (registered in DE)
FR seller, FR stock, FR pro customer (B2B)	You

Attention

Even when Amazon collects VAT, you still need to keep accounting records of these sales and declare them in certain cases. Amazon provides reports but doesn't file your declarations.

Your Declaration Obligations

As an Amazon FBA seller in France, you must produce several declarations:

In France

CA3 declaration monthly or CA12 annual
DEB (Declaration of Exchange of Goods) for intra-community movements > €460,000
OSS declaration if you sell B2C in other EU countries

In Other Storage Countries

Local VAT declarations (monthly or quarterly depending on country)
Intrastat if applicable
EC Sales List for intra-community B2B sales

Typical Calendar for Multi-Country FBA Seller

Obligation	Frequency	Deadline
CA3 France	Monthly	19-24 of following month
VAT Germany	Monthly	10 of following month
VAT Italy	Quarterly	16 of month following quarter
OSS	Quarterly	Last day of following month

4+declarations per monthFor a multi-country FBA seller

Amazon Reports to Use

Amazon provides several essential reports for your VAT compliance:

VAT Transaction Report

This is the most complete report. It contains:

Detail of each sale with VAT collected
Shipping and destination country
Customer VAT number (if B2B)
Applied VAT rate
Indication if Amazon is liable

Column	Use
transaction-type	Operation type (SALE, REFUND, FC_TRANSFER)
tax-collection-model	Who collects (MARKETPLACE or SELLER)
ship-from-country	Origin country (where stock was)
ship-to-country	Destination country
item-vat-rate	Applied VAT rate

Stock Movement Report

Essential for tracking transfers between warehouses and declaring your intra-community operations. It shows:

Movement date
Origin and destination warehouse
Quantity and value of transferred products

Refund Report

To correctly adjust your collected VAT. Refunds must be treated as credits and reduce your VAT due.

How to Access Reports

Seller Central > Reports > VAT Reports > Generate a report

Step 1

Download reports

Access Seller Central and download the VAT Transaction Report

Step 2

Identify collector

Filter lines where tax-collection-model = SELLER

Step 3

Break down by country

Group sales by ship-from-country and ship-to-country

Step 4

Declare

Report amounts in your respective VAT declarations

NomadVAT Tip

Importing and processing Amazon reports can be automated. NomadVAT integrates natively with Amazon to import your reports and automatically generate your declarations, identifying sales where you are the collector and breaking down by country and VAT regime.

Conclusion

Amazon FBA offers unparalleled logistics, but VAT complexity is real. Between multi-country storage, stock transfers, and different liability regimes, it's easy to get lost.

The key: automate the import of your Amazon data and their processing by a dedicated VAT compliance solution. NomadVAT integrates natively with Amazon to import your reports and automatically generate your declarations.