Brexit and VAT for Amazon Sellers - a podcast by Michael Veazey

Brexit and VAT for Amazon Sellers

How Brexit will affect Amazon Sellers - with Simply VAT's Alex Wyatt and Louise Brossemart

Even UK based Amazon sellers have not been thinking about Brexit for a while. Thanks to the domination of the media (new and old) by COVID; and thanks to the physical problems for FBA inbound shipping and fulfilment, from lockdown in early 2020, Brexit has slipped from the agenda.



Sadly, Brexit has not gone away as a problem for ecommerce sellers. Whether you're an entrepreneur based in the UK or outside it, if  you sell import into the UK or export from the UK to Europe, you'll need to deal with it very soon. That's what we are discussing today with the experts from Simply VAT.

The End of The Transition Agreement

The "Transition Arrangement" between the UK and European Union (EU) that enabled the UK to operate under existing EU rules is going away on 31 December 2020.  With the deadline for Brexit approaching fast, suddenly ecommerce businesses, and Amazon sellers particularly, are waking up.



Worrying as this development is for many sellers, there are of course practical steps that can be taken to enable businesses to continue to sell and thrive on Amazon.

Valuable Amazon marketplaces

Europe and the UK represent a huge potential market not only for sales - Germany especially is Amazon's second-largest marketplace globally, with 22 Billion USD in sales (2019 figures) - but for profits. Due to lower competition and healthy currency, Germany especially is a good bet for getting higher profit per unit sold and overall. This is particularly true in the light of the coronavirus, given Germany's relatively coherent response compared to other countries that have Amazon marketplaces (particularly the UK and the USA). This means that German consumers are more likely to have money to spend over the next while than US or UK consumers, and that the disruption to Amazon warehouses should (theoretically at least) be lower.



So while the game may have gained some unwelcome complications, it's mor  worthwhile than ever to learn to sell in the EU for Amazon sellers!



In this episode, we talk about the tax and importing issues that will be coming up for Amazon sellers due to Brexit - and how to get round the problems and get a piece of the juicy pie that is Amazon Europe.

You'll Learn



* What the main impact of leaving the EU will be

* The special position of Northern Ireland

* Alternatives to Amazon's "European Fulfilment Network" (EFN)

* How the Pan-EU programme will work from Jan 1 2021

* What we will need to do instead of bringing all inventory into the UK

* What "zero rated VAT" is and how this is good news if you

* Supply chain/importing options for North American-based businesses

* Whether your business will need a representative to shepherd goods through customs

* A 9-point checklist for preparing for the end of the Transition Period for all UK based businesses

* Some good news coming up in the near future for all Amazon sellers in the EU regarding VAT collection



Resources Mentioned



* Simply VAT, UK based VAT experts for ecommerce sellers.



Watch Brexit and VAT for Amazon Sellers

Further episodes of Amazing FBA Amazon and ECommerce Podcast, for Amazon Private Label Sellers, Shopify, Magento or Woocommerce business owners, and other e-commerce sellers and digital entrepreneurs.

Further podcasts by Michael Veazey

Website of Michael Veazey