Help!. Our Limited Company, registered in England, filing Corporation tax returns with HMRC, trades in Germany too. The company turnover is below the VAT threshold so is not VAT registered. Germany is asking us to produce proof that the English company is not registered for VAT purposes. How/what document can we obtain from where that will tell Germany that the company is not registered for VAT and does not need to register
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Can you add a bit of detail ?
Mainly why do "they" - presumably the German tax authorities - need to know ?
Mmm...
I have a strong suspicion that there is a zero VAT threshold in Germany. This means you would have to hold a German registration for your sales in Germany from the start.
I think you need some expert help on this
Cheers, Neil
The German tax authorities need to know. As to why, its possible that they think our business is not paying VAT in Germany and they think we ought to be doing so.
Not the same thing
"Need to know" is not the same as "need proof". I suspect that neileg is right and you need to register for mehrwerksteuer (German VAT).
Trades in or trades with looks to be key
I know nothing of German vat, however if Germany is like Sweden then I think if you have a branch/agency in the country you need to register in the country.
If you do have a German base of operations you may also have the issue of reporting your German profits to the German tax authorities for corporation tax purposes, but again no expert.
If on the other hand you just export from UK to Germany then I cannot see a need to register in that country.
(The one area of tax that has always confused me is that pertaining to international aspects, ever since the 1980's I have always doubted any knowledge I think I may have, so DYOR)
register
As you are undertaking an economic activity in Germany you are required to be registered for MwSt. The position regarding the UK vat position is irrelevant.
if you want any help sorting this out please send me a message and we can discuss.