{"id":988554,"date":"2025-11-14T13:39:13","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T13:39:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.taxdesk.com\/uncategorized\/what-to-report-in-your-vat-return-most-common-oversights\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T17:39:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T17:39:15","slug":"what-to-report-in-your-vat-return-most-common-oversights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.taxdesk.com\/de\/what-to-report-in-your-vat-return-most-common-oversights\/","title":{"rendered":"What to report in your VAT Return: most common oversights"},"content":{"rendered":"
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What to report in your VAT Return: most common oversights<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Accurate VAT reporting is one of the <\/span>most challenging aspects of cross-border compliance. Many errors do not arise from incorrect rates or miscalculations but from transactions that are missing entirely from the V<\/span>AT return.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With the growing complexity of cross-border trade, marketplaces and fulfilment networks, companies often struggle to identify what needs to be reported and where. Tax authorities across Europe are increasing data matching between customs systems, marketplace reports and VAT returns, making it more important than ever to ensure every transaction type is correctly captured.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Some of the most common oversights are shown below, illustrated with examples and best practices to help ensure compliant reporting.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Sales transactions: reporting everything you need to<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n
  2. Marketplace Sales<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    When selling via online marketplaces such as Amazon, eBay or Zalando, many Non-EU sellers assume that if the marketplace collects and remits VAT, there is nothing further to report.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    However, this is not correct. Even when the marketplace is deemed the VAT supplier, the seller must still <\/span>report the zero-rated deemed sale to the marketplace in their own VAT return.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Failure to do so leads to incomplete VAT records and mismatches between declared turnover and platform data.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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    1. Direct sales (from your website or B2B)<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      For direct website or B2B sales, businesses remain responsible for charging and reporting VAT under the correct place of sup<\/span>ply rules. This includes both domestic and cross-border transactions.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

      Misapplication of VAT rates or failure to recognise the correct reporting country are common issues, especially for businesses with mixed B2B and B2C operations.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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      1. Purchase transactions: reporting reverse charges<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n
      2. Intra-EU acquisitions and domestic reverse charge<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        One of the most frequent errors occurs when companies <\/span>exclude purchases with no VAT on the invoice.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

        For example, an intra-EU acquisition from a supplier in Germany to a company in France will have no VAT charged by the supplier.\u00a0 However, <\/span>the French company must self-account for VAT under the reverse charge mechanism.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

        These transactions must appear in both the output and input boxes of the VAT return, provided that the purchases are used for the companies\u2019 taxable activities.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

        Failure to do so underreports turnover and VAT, exposing the company to penalties and compliance queries.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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        1. Services from non-EU suppliers<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Services purchased from non-EU providers, such as software, digital services or consultancy, are also subject to reverse charge. Many companies overlook this, particularly where invoices do not show VAT.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

          The correct procedure is to declare VAT as due and reclaim it in the same return (if fully recoverable).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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          1. Import VAT: reclaiming what you pay<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            Import VAT is another area where reporting inconsistencies frequently occur.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            In many cases, logistics providers or customs agents pay import VAT on behalf of the importer. Businesses often do not receive the supporting doc<\/span>umentation, meaning they fail to record or reclaim it.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            Best practice is to obtain all customs import declarations\u00a0 to verify the VAT amount paid and ensure it appears in the return.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            In some countries, such as the Netherlands and Belgium, import VAT may be handled via <\/span>postponed accounting or reverse charge, rather than payment at the border. In these cases, the VAT must still be declared, even if no physical payment is made.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            Example: limited fiscal representation in the Netherlands<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            When a non-EU business uses<\/span> a limited fiscal representative to import goods into the Netherlands and then ship onw<\/span>ards to another EU country, the representative reports the import using its own Dutch VAT number.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            However, <\/span>the client must still report the intra-EU arrival in the destination country. Many com<\/span>panies fail to do so because they lack the invoices from the representative or do not realise the reports are required.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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            1. Reporting transfers and warehousing movements <\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              E-commerce sellers and fulfilment-based businesses increasingly use multiple warehouses across Europe to shorten delivery times.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

              However, transferring own goods between countries creates VAT obligations similar to regular cross-border sales.\u00a0 <\/span>Each movement should be recorded as:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n