🇬🇧 Import VAT and Postponed VAT Accounting (PVA) for Great Britain in the client dashboard

Why are we requesting these values from you?

 

Since 01/01/2021 and due to the Brexit, transactions to GB are so-called third country transactions. Shipments of goods to warehouses and deliveries to customers in Great Britain must therefore be treated differently for VAT purposes. 

 

Example: An online merchant ships goods from a warehouse in Germany to an Amazon warehouse in GB, for which import VAT is now due at the border. In case the merchant uses Postponed VAT Accounting, the online merchant needs to account  for the import VAT later in their VAT return. 

 

For certain shipments to GB, we cannot draw the corresponding data automatically via an interface. Therefore, we need you to provide us with the relevant values. 

 

Specifically, we need information from you for the following four cases:

1. Total cross-border shipments to warehouses in GB for which you are charged import VAT at the border.
2. Total cross-border shipments to warehouses in GB, for which you are not immediately charged with import VAT at the border, because they are imported according to PVA ("Postponed VAT Accounting").
3. Total cross-border shipments (sales minus refunds) to private or business customers in GB, with an invoice value above GBP 135, for which you were not charged with import VAT at the border, because they are imported according to PVA ("Postponed VAT Accounting").

4. Total cross-border shipments (sales minus refunds) to private or business customers in GB, with an invoice value above GBP 135, for which you were charged import VAT at the border

 

For each of the three cases, we need the following information:

 

• Net total of the shipment(s) 
• Import VAT

 

If you are unsure which of these cases applies to you, and what the exact values are, it is best to contact your logistics service provider who handles the shipments for you.

 

 

Attention!

• By the 3rd of the month following the last month of the reporting quarter in Great Britain, you need to submit the values in your Taxdoo dashboard.
  
  
• Please note that without the final saving of the values we will assume a value of zero for all cases.

• If you would like to make and save entries, please make sure that all fields are filled in. If not all three cases are relevant, "0.00" must be entered in the non-applicable fields to allow the entered values to be saved. 

• If a value other than 0 is entered as the net total, a value other than 0 must also be entered in the field for the import VAT assessed for it.

• All values must be entered in British Pounds (GBP) and with two decimal places after the point. Please do not enter currency symbols in the fields, as you won’t be able to confirm these entries then.

• Please use a dot (".") as decimal separator only.

 

1. Total cross-border shipments to warehouses in GB, for which you are charged import VAT at the border

 

These are movements of goods to a GB warehouse, which you can handle independently or via a logistics service provider. This can be your own warehouse or, for example, an Amazon warehouse. For such shipments, you must enter the sum of the net values recorded on importation and the sum of the import VAT assessed on them in the corresponding fields. This only concerns shipments from warehouses, for which you were charged import VAT at the border when importing into GB. Shipments to warehouses for which you have made use of Postponed VAT Accounting (see following point) are not to be entered in these fields.

 

If you do not use warehouses in GB, you can enter "0.00" for both net total and import VAT.

 

2. Total cross-border shipments to warehouses in GB, for which you are not charged import VAT at the border, because they are imported according to PVA ("Postponed VAT Accounting").

 

With the use of PVA, shipments are no longer charged with import VAT directly at the border. Instead, the import VAT is accounted for within the next VAT return. The advantage is obvious: You do not have to pay import VAT at the border (customs duties remain unaffected), which means you can keep your liquidity.

 

Your logistics service provider must be informed that you want to use PVA. They require the following documents from you:

 

• Power of attorney to register your goods for PVA 
• Your GB VAT number 
• Your EORI number
• The date of your VAT registration in GB

 

This is the only way your logistics provider can use the PVA procedure for your goods at customs.

 

You must also inform us about the sum of the net values for goods imported via the PVA scheme and the import VAT in the corresponding fields in the dashboard.

 

3. Total cross-border shipments (sales minus refunds) to private or business customers in GB, with an invoice value above GBP 135, for which you were not charged import VAT at the border, because they are imported according to PVA ("Postponed VAT Accounting")

 

For direct sales valued over GBP 135 to customers (B2C & B2B), import VAT is generally also due at the border. However, for these shipments there is also the possibility to postpone the assessment of the import VAT to the next declaration (PVA) instead of paying the import VAT at the border. If this is used by you for sales to customers, the net total and the import VAT for these must be entered in the lowest two fields. 

 

4. Total cross-border shipments (sales minus refunds) to private or business customers in GB, with an invoice value above GBP 135, for which you are charged import VAT at the border

 

For supplies above GBP 135 to customers (B2C & B2B) for which Postponed VAT Accountinghas not been applied and therefore import VAT has been paid at the border, the paid import VAT has to be entered into the respective fields. The net amount and the paid import VAT have to be entered. 

 

Note on the assessment basis: 

 

Please be aware that when multiple goods are purchased, the assessment basis of GBP 135 is based on the total of the basket of goods and not the value of the individual items. VAT and other taxes, if applicable, must be factored out to determine this limit. Shipping and packaging are also not included, given that they are listed separately on the invoice.

 

Important aspects for the correction of import VAT values

 

1. Correction of import VAT values during the current reporting quarter 

 

If values for the current quarter have already been finally saved but need to be corrected, please contact our support team via the help center with the following information:

 

• Quarter to be corrected
• Originally entered values

 

We will then delete the values in our database, so that new values can be entered in the dashboard.

 

2. Correction of import VAT values after the reporting quarter has been completed, and the VAT return has already been submitted

 

Not entering values for the four cases means that any import VAT and, if applicable, its refund cannot be taken into account for the completed quarter. 

 

This could be compensated in the next report, in which the values that should have been entered for the previous quarter can be taken into account.

 

If incorrect values were saved, the difference to the correct values could be cleared with the values for the first month of the following quarter, and thus be taken into account in the subsequent report. 

 

Reason: The correction of the original report does not correspond with the standard procedure in GB, given that the value of the difference is below GBP 10,000.

If the difference is higher than GBP 10,000, a compensation via subsequent reports is not provided. In this case, please contact our support team via the help center.