UK VAT marketplace 2026
The platform can account for UK VAT, but it doesn't automatically assume all the seller's obligations. The outcome depends on the location of the goods, the value of the entire shipment, the customer's status, and the seller's location.
First, establish the transaction scenario. Only then decide who will charge VAT, who is responsible for imports, and what data should be recorded in the books.
First, check 3 details
This information indicates whether VAT is settled by the platform, seller, customer or importer.
Related guides
VAT marketplace in the UK - key rules
There is no single rule for "Amazon accounts for VAT." Liability must be determined for a specific sale.
Shipping up to £135
When selling to a consumer via a platform, VAT is generally settled at the point of sale by the platform.
Consumer sales
The platform can settle VAT on goods of any value sold by a foreign company.
Valid VAT number
The platform does not have to charge VAT as in the case of consumer sales; the obligation may be passed on to the buyer or seller.
Regular import
Once the value exceeds £135, you will need to determine the importer, customs clearance, customs duty and import VAT.
From Taxenlightexperience: the platform report does not replace transaction analysis
We typically rectify accounts where all orders are recorded under a single rule. The same report can include consumer sales, B2B sales, UK inventory, import shipments, and returns—and each can have a different taxpayer.
Who settles VAT on sales through the marketplace?
Start with four pieces of information: where the goods are at the time of sale, the value of the entire shipment, who is buying and whether a valid UK VAT number is provided.
| Location of goods | Value / Customer | Who generally settles VAT? | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outside the UK | Up to £135, consumer in England, Scotland or Wales | Internet platform | Total shipment value and product rate. |
| Outside the UK | Up to £135, company with valid UK VAT number | Buyer according to the appropriate mechanism | Validity of the VAT number and content of the document. |
| Outside the UK | Over £135 | Tax is settled according to the normal import rules | Importer, delivery terms, customs duty and import VAT. |
| In England, Scotland or Wales | Any value, consumer, foreign seller | Internet platform | Delivery recognized by the seller to the platform. |
| In Great Britain | The company provides a valid UK VAT number | Basically a salesperson | Registration, invoicing and local sales reporting. |
| In or shipping to Northern Ireland | Any model | Requires separate analysis | Location of the goods, location of the seller and customer, and rules for the goods. |
Important: the table is for qualification purposes only, it does not replace documents
The final settlement also depends on the type of goods, the actual grouping of products into shipments, the clearance conditions, and the quality of the data provided to the platform. For a general map of transactions, see the UK VAT.
What does HMRC consider an online platform?
The mere presence of an offer online does not mean that the website operator is liable for VAT. What matters is the actual role in the sale.
Terms, payment and order
HMRC identifies the platform using the website or app that sets the delivery terms, is involved in authorising or processing payments and in ordering or delivering goods.
Advertising or self-redirection
An entity does not automatically become a platform for these policies if it merely processes a payment, publishes an advertisement, or redirects a customer to another site without further involvement in the sale.
Therefore, the name of the service or the contract clause are not sufficient. You need to verify the purchase process, terms and conditions, payment flow, and the data the operator provides to the seller.
Non-UK goods and the £135 limit
If the goods are located outside the UK at the time of sale and the platform facilitates delivery to a consumer in England, Scotland or Wales, shipments up to £135 are generally taxed at the point of sale by the platform.
How to determine the value of a shipment?
The test is based on the intrinsic value of the goods, i.e. the selling price excluding the cost of transport and insurance shown separately and excluding other separable taxes and fees.
If shipping or insurance are included in the price and not shown separately, they affect the value used for testing. The values of items shipped together must be added together.
Example: three products in one package
The products cost £50, £45, and £55. Together, they total £150 worth of shipping. You cannot test each product individually - you've exceeded your limit.
If the platform splits the order into truly separate shipments, documentation must confirm their composition and shipping method.
When do special rules not apply?
Do not automatically apply them to shipments containing excise goods, non-commercial gifts or certain shipments from Jersey and Guernsey cleared under a separate import regime.
B2B sales up to £135 - VAT number changes settlement
The company name in the order is not sufficient. For alternative settlement, the buyer must provide a valid UK VAT number, and the platform must have the data to link it to the transaction.
Customer VAT number
Record the pre-sale number and order ID. Do not add it after the fact without any indication of the change.
The right mechanism
The document may indicate that the customer is settling the tax. In England, Scotland, and Wales, the buyer reports VAT in accordance with the appropriate procedure on their return.
Taxenlight advises: separate the missing number from the invalid number
In practice, both cases are often reported as "company." However, for tax purposes, they are not equivalent. Determine whether the number was omitted, incorrectly entered, or invalid on the transaction date. Only then should you assign VAT liability.
Shipment over £135 - the platform does not replace the importer
Once the value exceeds £135, normal import and customs clearance rules revert to normal. Simply placing an order on the platform does not automatically transfer import VAT to the platform operator.
Importer
Determine who appears on the customs declaration and has the right to dispose of the goods.
Delivery terms
Check who organizes the check-in and pays the fees according to the contract.
Import VAT and customs duty
Select your VAT settlement method and make sure your documents indicate the correct entity.
Goods located in the UK at the time of sale
When a foreign seller offers goods via a platform that are already located in England, Scotland or Wales, the platform may be liable for VAT on the sale to the consumer regardless of the value of the product.
Seller → platform
For VAT purposes, a deemed supply of the foreign seller to the platform is created, generally subject to a 0% rate.
Platform → client
The platform acts as a recognized supplier and charges the customer VAT at the rate appropriate for the goods.
Import and B2B sales
The seller remains responsible for introducing stock and for sales to business customers with a valid VAT number.
What still remains for the seller?
- Import VAT and customs duty upon entry of stock.
- Assessment of the VAT registration obligation.
- Records of deliveries recognized at a rate of 0%.
- Reconciliation of platform reports with the warehouse.
- Sales conducted outside the platform.
- B2B sales with UK VAT number.
If your business is registered, it can deduct import VAT under the usual rules, provided it has the correct documentation and is entitled to deduction. Warehousing is covered in a separate guide, Amazon FBA and VAT in the UK.
Goods in Northern Ireland require separate analysis
For goods, Northern Ireland retains a special link to EU rules. It does not automatically transfer the rules for England, Scotland, and Wales.
Location of goods
Determine whether the goods are located in Northern Ireland, the European Union or outside of these areas.
Seller's headquarters
It may matter whether the seller is based in the UK or the European Union.
Customer status and location
Check where the customer is and whether they have provided a valid VAT number for the goods transaction.
Details of the XI number, VIES and flows with the European Union are provided in the Northern Ireland VAT.
Invoices and marketplace data – what to download each month?
The platform should issue the appropriate document for the sale for which it is responsible for tax purposes. However, the seller requires full data to separate their own sales from transactions settled by the operator.
Minimum data set
- order report and tax report;
- customer country and status;
- customer's VAT number for B2B;
- place of goods at the time of sale;
- the value and composition of the entire shipment;
- VAT rate assigned to the product;
- returns, discounts and cancellations;
- warehouse reports and import documents.
The payout is not the sales value
The amount transferred to the account may be reduced by commissions, fees, VAT collected by the platform, refunds, and other deductions. This amount will not be automatically recorded as turnover.
Invoice control
Determine who is the legal seller for VAT purposes and who should issue the document. The required details are detailed in the article VAT Invoices in the UK.
From our experience: the order report needs to be reconciled with three sources
Compare the platform's tax report with payouts and warehouse movements. Only when the number of transactions, gross values, returns, and goods movements are consistent can the data be safely transferred to UK VAT accounts and returns.
Returns and Adjustments
A refund may require an adjustment to the tax settled by the platform, an adjustment to the credited delivery, and a reconciliation of inventory. First, determine who made the taxable sale.
Return message
Please keep the original transaction ID and the date the refund was accepted.
Correction document
Check whether the correction is issued by the platform, the seller or both entities for different stages.
Refund
Link the refund to the original order and VAT collected.
Movement of goods
Determine whether the goods have been returned to the UK warehouse, exported or disposed of.
Don't mechanically move the adjustment to the payout period. The platform report should indicate the sales period and the adjustment period, and documentation must allow for tracking both operations.
The most common mistakes in VAT marketplace
Most problems start with the overly broad assumption that the platform has taken over all VAT.
One rule for all orders
The platform can only settle VAT for a portion of sales. Imports, B2B, and proprietary channels require separate analysis.
£135 per product
The limit applies to the value of the entire imported shipment. Splitting it into items leads to incorrect classification.
B2B without VAT number check
The name of the company itself does not confirm the right to apply the rules to a registered customer.
No stock available
Without this information, it is impossible to determine whether you are analyzing an import shipment or the sale of a domestic inventory.
Import VAT omitted
The platform settling the sale to the consumer does not have to be the importer of the seller's inventory.
Net pay accounting
The payout after deductions does not show the full value of sales, VAT, returns or commissions.
No adjustments agreed
Returns must be linked to the original order, tax adjustment, and inventory movement.
Same rules for Northern Ireland
Commodity rules require separate checking; do not automatically copy the England, Scotland and Wales model.
Build a transaction matrix, not a "marketplace settles VAT" rule
For each sale, save a data set that allows you to recreate the tax decision. This makes the platform report evidence, not just a file with numbers.
Transaction
- order ID,
- date of sale,
- location of goods,
- value of the entire shipment.
Client
- customer's country,
- B2B or B2C status,
- VAT number and verification result,
- delivery address.
Reckoning
- entity responsible for VAT,
- product rate,
- invoice or report,
- connection with import and return.
When to check registration?
If you're bringing your own inventory into the UK, selling B2B, selling off-platform, or need to reclaim import VAT, check your UK VAT registration requirements. Simply settling some sales through the platform doesn't conclude this analysis.
Marketplace only settles VAT in certain scenarios
This most commonly applies to shipments up to £135 sold to consumers of goods located outside the UK and to consumer sales of goods already located in England, Scotland or Wales by an overseas seller.
First, the location of the goods
It is what separates the imported shipment from the sale of the inventory already in the country.
Then the customer and the value
B2B/B2C status, valid VAT number and the value of the entire shipment indicate the next path.
Finally, the seller's responsibilities
Import, documents, registration, own sales and adjustments can be left to him.
UK VAT Marketplace FAQs
Short answers to the questions that most often arise before posting a platform report.
No. Liability depends on the location of the goods, the value of the entire shipment, customer status, VAT number validity, and sales model.
No. As a rule, it applies to the value of the entire imported shipment. Products shipped together must be added together.
If the goods are located outside the UK and the other conditions are met, VAT on sales to a consumer in England, Scotland or Wales is generally settled by the platform.
Standard import rules apply. The importer, import VAT, any customs duties, and delivery terms must be determined.
This should not be assumed. The overseas seller remains generally responsible for import VAT and customs duties when bringing their own stock into the UK.
This depends on the type of supply, import, B2B sales, and the possibility of exemption from registration for supplies alone recognized at the 0% rate. This requires an individual assessment.
Not always. Northern Ireland has special rules for goods, so you need to check the location of the goods, the seller's location, and the customer's status separately.
No. For specific B2B rules, it is important to provide and verify a valid UK VAT number and link it to a specific transaction.
It doesn't have to be. Payouts can include commissions, fees, VAT collected by the platform, refunds, and other deductions. Accounting should be based on full transaction reports.
This text is for informational purposes only and does not replace individual tax analysis. When selling through a UK platform, you should check the location of the goods, the value of the shipment, the customer's status, the validity of the VAT number, the seller's registered office, import conditions, and current reporting obligations.
