One-Stop-Shop (OSS)
As part of the EU VAT reform One-Stop-Shop (OSS) was introduced to simplify tax reporting.
We will be happy to explain what this central office does and which entrepreneurs do not benefit from it.
Definition: What is the One-Stop-Shop?
The term One-Stop-Shop, or OSS for short, generally refers to a central office where all bureaucratic and tax-related steps come together. The OSS we are talking about here refers to the EU VAT reform and thus to the so-called e-commerce package, which is intended to simplify the collection of VAT within the EU.
Partial invoices are, to a certain extent, subject to reservation. This is because contractors write a progress invoice when a certain part of the service has been performed. However, the entire project has not yet been completed or the goods have not yet been delivered in full. The customer has therefore not yet accepted the goods or services.
The goals of the e-commerce pact
The entire e-commerce pact is primarily aimed at simplifying the exchange of information between the tax authorities of the various EU member states in order to ideally prevent tax fraud. But the OSS also has clear plus points for merchants:
Related to
- uniform delivery threshold of 10,000 euros net value of goods,
- cumulated for all EU countries,
- All shipments in the business-to-customer (B2C) business must
- be taxed at the country of destination.
This has a very clear advantage for entrepreneurs, because until now, different delivery thresholds and different deadlines for VAT had to be observed.
With the one-stop store, this is now to be a thing of the past. Companies that supply to consumers in the EU’s internal market and whose export of goods or services exceeds the threshold of 10,000 euros will now pay tax on the supply at a central point.
OSS Sales tax regulation
Mini-One-Stop-Shop
Mini-One-Stop-Shop as precursor of the OSS
A similar procedure already exists for electronic services, the Mini-One-Stop-Shop (MOSS).
However, so far it has only been possible to report the following services via MOSS:
electronically transmitted services
Broadcasting, television and telecommunications services
The OSS will therefore extend the existing MOSS procedure, which applies only to digital services, to include goods and other services.
One-stop store: 3 different regulations
Within the framework of the One-Stop-Shop, there are three different regulations at once:
Non-EU regulation: You will find this regulation in paragraph § 18i UStG-E. The regulation states that it is possible for entrepreneurs from a third country to report all services they have provided to a non-entrepreneur via the one-stop store.
Import regulation: In the future, entrepreneurs will be able to report deliveries with a value of up to 150 euros via the so-called Import-One-Stop-Shop (IOSS). This is regulated in paragraph § 18 UStG-E. If you comply with all the requirements, these shipments are tax-free.
EU regulation: Paragraph i§ 18j UStG-E explains what is meant by this provision. Important here, especially for online retailers: So-called intra-Community shipments cannot be reported via OSS. This means that entrepreneurs who operate fulfillment structures involving the transfer of goods within the EU will have to register their warehouses in the various member states.
Disadvantages of the OSS
This last point in particular causes problems even before the launch of the OSS, because this means that the system is basically already obsolete before it even starts properly. Merchants who rely on cross-border fulfillment structures (for example, using Amazon PAN EU warehousing) can only take advantage of the OSS to a limited extent, as local registration is unavoidable.
The issue of input tax amounts in other EU countries has also not yet been conclusively clarified. At present, it looks as if outstanding amounts can only be claimed in the Member State concerned. This, in turn, would involve an increased administrative burden.
As part of the EU VAT reform, the so-called One-Stop-Shop (OSS for short) was introduced to simplify tax reporting. We will be happy to explain what this central office is supposed to do and which entrepreneurs will probably not benefit from it.
