Amazon VAT for UK Sellers: 2026 UK & EU Compliance Guide

Amazon can switch your listings off over a tax number. In 2026, UK sellers received exactly that demand — upload a VAT number within 90 days or be blocked — and took the panic to Amazon's forums, Reddit, and even HMRC's own community board. (Amazon)

The confusion persists because three numbers govern almost everything:

• ●£90,000 — the UK VAT registration threshold.

• ●£135 — the UK marketplace VAT rule for qualifying consignments from outside the UK.

• ●€150 — the EU import threshold relevant to IOSS.

Yet several guides still quote the threshold that expired in April 2024. The search results themselves can't be trusted.

This guide joins what others split in half — the UK rules and the post-Brexit EU rules in one UK-seller direction: a decision tree, the fee-VAT reclaim rules including the flat-rate trap, and the exact registrations each EU selling model needs.

Table of Contents

• ●Do You Need VAT Registration to Sell on Amazon UK?

• ●Does the £90,000 VAT Threshold Apply to Every Amazon Seller?

• ●Does Amazon Collect VAT on Your Behalf?

• ●How Do You Claim Back VAT on Amazon Selling Fees?

• ●Can You Sell on Amazon EU from the UK Without an EU VAT Number?

• ●How Do IOSS and OSS Work for Amazon Sellers?

• ●What Happens If You Don't Register for VAT on Amazon?

📦 TL;DR

If you sell on Amazon UK from a UK-established business, the £90,000 rolling VAT threshold is the key starting point. But where your FBA stock sits can create VAT registration requirements regardless of turnover.

• ●UK stock: UK-established sellers follow the £90,000 threshold; non-UK-established sellers register from the first taxable sale.

• ●EU FBA stock: VAT registration is required in each EU country where stock is stored.

• ●IOSS: Amazon handles VAT on qualifying EU imports of €150 or under.

• ●OSS: Helps UK sellers with qualifying intra-EU B2C distance sales from EU stock.

• ●Amazon fees: Standard VAT-registered sellers can reclaim qualifying fee VAT; Flat Rate Scheme sellers cannot.

The practical rule is simple: map your establishment, inventory locations and fulfilment model before you expand.

Do You Need VAT Registration to Sell on Amazon UK?

Whether you need Amazon VAT registration UK depends on three things only — where your business is established, where your stock physically sits, and your taxable turnover. Everything else about VAT for Amazon sellers in the UK is detail around those three points.

• ●UK-established, selling only to UK customers → register when taxable turnover passes £90,000 in any rolling 12 months; notify HMRC within 30 days.

• ●UK-established with FBA stock in the EU → UK rules still apply, plus VAT registration in each EU country where stock sits — no thresholds.

• ●Not UK-established with UK FBA stock → register from your first taxable sale — no threshold — and upload the VAT number to Seller Central within 90 days or Amazon can block your listings.

• ●Under £90,000 with no cross-border stock → registration not required; voluntary registration exists if you want to recover input VAT.

This is why sellers doing less than £10,000 can still receive an Amazon VAT notice. The notice is triggered by stock-placement settings rather than turnover; non-UK establishment is the usual cause, while Seller Support can resolve mis-flagged UK-established accounts.

⚠️ Check the date on anything you read about UK VAT: several 2026-dated guides still cite £85,000. The live threshold is £90,000, effective 1 April 2024.

Establishment decides your threshold. Stock location decides everything else.

🎯 Not Sure Which Block You're In?

Book a VAT compliance consultation — 15 minutes, and we'll map your exact obligations. Book a VAT Compliance Consultation

Does the £90,000 VAT Threshold Apply to Every Amazon Seller?

No — the £90,000 VAT threshold belongs to UK-established sellers only. Anyone not established in the UK who stores goods here registers from the first sale, with no threshold.

VAT Rates

Zero-rated sales still count towards the £90,000 total. Your Amazon turnover is not necessarily the whole picture. Amazon + Shopify + Etsy + your own site combine into one £90,000 figure, so sellers who monitor each channel separately can get caught out. Track the combined rolling total monthly.

Does Amazon Collect VAT on My Behalf?

Only on cross-border low-value imports. Amazon is the deemed supplier when goods enter the UK at £135 or under, or enter the EU at €150 or under — it collects the VAT at checkout and remits it. On your everyday UK sales from UK stock, Amazon collects nothing for you.

The Two Collection Thresholds

Over £135 into the UK

Once a qualifying consignment is over £135, it becomes a classic import — import VAT and any customs duty apply at the border. The importer is responsible for the applicable import charges.

Over €150 into the EU

Once a consignment entering the EU is over €150, it is treated as a classic import into the EU. Import VAT and duty apply at the border of entry.

Does Amazon collect VAT on my normal UK sales? No — for a UK-established seller shipping UK stock to UK buyers, you charge and account for the VAT yourself on your VAT return. Amazon's collection only covers the deemed-supplier cases in the table above.

How Do I Claim Back VAT on Amazon Selling Fees?

Since 1 August 2024, Amazon bills UK-established sellers 20% UK VAT on seller fees, FBA fees and storage fees because the billing entity moved from Luxembourg to a UK branch. (Amazon) Whether you can recover that VAT depends on your VAT accounting scheme.

• ●Standard-registered sellers: VAT on Amazon's fee invoices is input tax and can be reclaimed on your VAT return.

• ●Flat Rate Scheme sellers: the VAT is not recoverable, so the 20% becomes a cost.

• ●Fees invoiced in EU countries: these can be reclaimed on your UK VAT return where the invoices carry your UK VAT number.

• ●Keep the fee invoices: Amazon's monthly invoices provide your evidence, so reconcile them against your VAT returns.

What Does This Mean on the Flat Rate Scheme?

For example, a seller paying £500 a month in Amazon fees now carries £100 of VAT on top. A standard-accounting seller can reclaim that input VAT, while a Flat Rate Scheme seller absorbs it. Over a year, that is £1,200 of VAT on those fees alone.

Expert Tip: Run the Numbers on Switching Schemes

On the Flat Rate Scheme? Run the numbers on switching to standard accounting — for higher-fee accounts, compare the potential input-VAT recovery against the simplicity of the Flat Rate Scheme before deciding.

When assessing your overall pricing, factor fee VAT into your costs alongside the full Amazon fee stack.

Can I Sell on Amazon EU from the UK Without an EU VAT Number?

Yes — in two of three selling models you can start without registrations in every EU country. Which model you use decides the answer, so start there.

Since 1 January 2021, Amazon does not move FBA inventory between the UK and the EU — EFN and Pan-European FBA no longer span the border. (Amazon) So "selling in Europe" now means either maintaining a separate EU stock pool or shipping cross-border from the UK.

• ●Path 1 — Ship from the UK, hold no EU stock. Amazon is the deemed supplier on consignments €150 or under, collecting VAT at checkout via IOSS. Over €150, the order is a classic import with VAT and duty at the border.

• ●Path 2 — EFN: one EU stock pool. Stock sits in a single EU country. You need ONE local EU VAT registration plus OSS for distance sales into other member states.

• ●Path 3 — Pan-EU: stock in several EU countries. Amazon places goods in Germany, Poland, Czech Republic and beyond. You register in EVERY storage country from day one — no thresholds; OSS covers the cross-border legs.

Where Amazon Places EU Stock

UK-established sellers can't use the standard Union OSS — the UK left the EU. The Non-Union OSS scheme exists for exactly this case: register for OSS in ONE EU member state and file a single quarterly return for your EU distance sales, instead of registering wherever you have customers.

What's the difference between an EORI number and a VAT number? EORI is your customs identity for moving goods across borders; the VAT number is your tax identity for charging and reclaiming. Cross-border Amazon sellers typically need both — often in both the UK and the EU.

Choose the fulfilment model framework first, then map the VAT registrations that model requires.

How Do IOSS and OSS Work for Amazon Sellers?

They cover different legs of the same journey. IOSS handles imports into the EU of €150 or under — Amazon is the deemed supplier collecting VAT at checkout — while OSS handles sales within the EU: your B2C distance sales from EU stock to consumers in other member states, filed as one quarterly return via Non-Union OSS.

IOSS vs OSS at a Glance

• ●Amazon's IOSS number lives in Seller Central — give it to your logistics provider so ≤€150 consignments can clear without VAT being charged twice. (Amazon)

• ●Consignments over €150 are classic imports: import VAT and duty apply at the border, with responsibility for the applicable import charges.

• ●Selling on your own website into the EU? The marketplace deemed-supplier comfort does not apply to your own channel — IOSS/OSS obligations may become yours.

Expert Tip: Amazon's IOSS Number Must Ride on Every Consignment

If Amazon is your only EU channel you likely don't need your own IOSS registration — but Amazon's IOSS number must ride on every ≤€150 consignment, or your customers may be charged VAT again at the front door and your reviews pay for it.

What Happens If You Don't Register for VAT on Amazon?

1. 1.The 90-day upload expires. UK or EU stock can trigger Amazon's demand for a VAT number in Seller Central within 90 days. Miss it and the marketplace must block your listings.

1. 2.Unregistered EU stock surfaces. Marketplaces share seller data with tax authorities, so Pan-EU placement without the required registrations is visible rather than hypothetical.

1. 3.Charging VAT unregistered backfires. Collecting VAT without a registration is not valid collection; it can create repayment obligations rather than revenue.

1. 4.The flat-rate bleed compounds. Unrecovered 20% VAT on Amazon fees since August 2024 quietly changes the unit economics for Flat Rate Scheme sellers.

1. 5.Records fail the MTD bar. VAT-registered businesses must keep digital records and file through MTD-compatible software. A spreadsheet-only setup does not meet that requirement.

None of these feel dramatic on day one — all of them compound quietly.

Compliance Checklist

Before you sell (one-time): UK EORI (and EU EORI if importing into the EU) · UK VAT registration if over £90,000 or non-UK with UK stock · EU VAT numbers for every storage country · VAT numbers uploaded in Seller Central · Amazon's IOSS number in shipping settings.

Every month: rolling £90,000 tracker updated across all channels · FBA Inventory report checked against your registration map · fee invoices reviewed for VAT treatment.

Every quarter: UK VAT return filed via MTD software · Non-Union OSS return if registered · stock-movement review for new country triggers.

For ongoing compliance monitoring within managed operations, your account management team can incorporate these checks into the wider marketplace workflow.

Conclusion

Amazon VAT compliance after Brexit becomes much clearer once you separate three things: establishment, stock location and selling model.

• ●The UK £90,000 threshold applies to UK-established sellers.

• ●UK stock held by non-UK-established sellers triggers registration from the first taxable sale.

• ●EU FBA storage can create VAT registration requirements in every country where stock sits.

• ●IOSS and OSS solve different parts of the EU selling journey.

The safest approach is to map your actual inventory locations, registrations and Amazon fee treatment before expanding. When in doubt, confirm your position with a qualified adviser.