For brands outside the EU

EU VAT and customs for non-EU brands

Selling into Europe from outside the EU? Here’s how VAT and customs work when your stock sits in our Rotterdam warehouse: who charges what, what you need to register for, and the reports you’ll get from us.

Talk to us See the checklist

Rotterdam, NetherlandsPartner customs brokerFiscal representationReports for your VAT returns

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Picking accuracy

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On-time despatch

12pm

Same-day despatch cut-off

UK + EU

Thame & Rotterdam

How it works

From container to customer

Four steps, and who handles each one.

Get registered

A Dutch VAT number, an EU EORI number and a fiscal representative, sorted before your first container ships.

Import

Our partner customs broker clears your containers in your name. With an Article 23 licence, import VAT goes on your VAT return instead of being paid at the border.

Store

Your stock sits in our Rotterdam warehouse, or in bond with duty and import VAT suspended until it’s released.

Sell and report

EU consumer sales are reported through the One-Stop Shop. We send you the data you need for every return.

Our invoices

Who pays VAT on our fees?

It depends on where your business is established. Our EU invoices come from Scale 3PL Fulfillment B.V. in the Netherlands.

Businesses outside the EUFulfilment services for a business established outside the EU are taxed where that business is established, so our invoices carry no Dutch VAT. You may need to account for VAT on them in your own country.

Businesses in other EU countriesNo Dutch VAT. The reverse charge applies, and you account for the VAT in your own country.

Businesses in the NetherlandsDutch VAT is added at the standard rate.

What we need for invoicingYour full legal name and registered address, your company and VAT numbers at home, your Dutch VAT number and EORI number, and the email address invoices should go to.

Importing

Customs and import VAT

Customs clearance

Our partner customs broker at the port lodges import declarations in your name, using your EORI number. We coordinate everything with them and your forwarder.

Import VAT deferral

With an Article 23 licence, import VAT is declared and reclaimed on your Dutch VAT return, so there’s no cash paid at the border. Non-EU brands usually get one through a fiscal representative, and we can act as yours.

Import duty

Article 23 covers import VAT, not duty. Duty is paid when goods are released for sale in the EU, unless you store them in bond.

Bonded storage

Store goods with duty and import VAT suspended, and release them in batches as you sell.

AEO-certified warehouse

Our Rotterdam warehouse holds Authorised Economic Operator status with EU customs.

The paperwork

Send a commercial invoice, packing list, HS codes and country of origin for every shipment. You’ll get a copy of every import declaration.

Fiscal representation

Your Dutch VAT, handled

A fiscal representative is a Dutch tax firm that looks after your Dutch VAT for you. There are two types.

Usually right for B2C brands

General fiscal representation

Covers all of your Dutch VAT, including sales to consumers from Dutch stock, Article 23 import VAT deferral and your Dutch VAT returns.

For some B2B models

Limited fiscal representation

Covers imports where the goods are then moved to another EU country or sold to businesses. It isn’t usually enough if you sell to consumers from stock in the Netherlands.

We can act for youWe can act as your general fiscal representative, with an Article 23 licence, so import VAT goes on your return instead of being paid at the border. Or you can keep the firm you already use.

Returns filed for youWe file your Dutch VAT returns for you, using the same data we hold for your stock and orders.

Quoted separatelyFiscal representation and VAT return filing are quoted separately from fulfilment. Ask us for a quote.

Selling

VAT on your sales

Once your stock is in the Netherlands, the VAT you charge depends on who you sell to and where they are.

Consumers in other EU countriesCharge the VAT of your customer’s country from the first sale. The €10,000 threshold only applies to sellers established in the EU. Report it each quarter through the Union One-Stop Shop (OSS), registered in the Netherlands, as that’s where your goods ship from.

Consumers in the NetherlandsDutch VAT, reported on your Dutch VAT return rather than through the OSS.

Businesses in other EU countriesUsually zero-rated, if the buyer has a valid EU VAT number and the goods leave the Netherlands. Reported on your Dutch VAT return and EC Sales List.

The UK and outside the EUExports are zero-rated, with an export declaration. Import VAT and duty apply at the other end.

General guidance only, not tax or customs advice. VAT and duty depend on your products, your customers and how your business is set up, so confirm your setup with your fiscal representative or accountant.

Reports

The data for your VAT returns

Everything your accountant or fiscal representative needs, from Mintsoft and our customs broker.

Shipments by country

Every order despatched, with date, destination country and order value as received from your sales channel. Monthly or quarterly, ready for your OSS return.

Goods in by shipment

What arrived against each container or ASN, with quantities received and booked in.

Stock movements

Opening stock, goods in, despatches, adjustments and closing stock for any period.

Import declarations

Copies of your import declarations from our customs broker, with customs value, duty and import VAT.

Returns by country

Returns logged by country, so you can adjust your VAT returns.

Weekly invoices

Itemised invoices every Friday, with no Dutch VAT for businesses outside the EU.

Checklist

Before your first container

Dutch VAT numberNeeded to import and sell from stock in the Netherlands.

EU EORI numberNeeded for every customs declaration.

Fiscal representativePlus an Article 23 licence, so import VAT isn’t paid at the border.

Union OSS registrationFor sales to consumers in other EU countries.

Product dataHS codes, country of origin and values for every product.

Shipping instructionsTell your forwarder to deliver to our Rotterdam warehouse, with clearance by our customs broker.

Find out more

Related guides

Bonded warehouse

Duty-suspended storage in Rotterdam.

Find out more →

AEO-certified warehouse

What AEO means for your stock.

Find out more →

European transit times

Delivery times to 26 EU countries.

Find out more →

UK or EU 3PL?

Where should your stock sit?

Find out more →

Our Rotterdam warehouse

EU fulfilment at the port.

Find out more →

Duty and VAT calculator

Estimate your landed cost.

Find out more →

FAQs

EU VAT and customs, answered

Will you charge Dutch VAT on your invoices?

Not if your business is established outside the EU. Our services are taxed where your business is established, so our invoices carry no Dutch VAT. Businesses in other EU countries account for VAT under the reverse charge, and Dutch businesses pay Dutch VAT.

Do I need a Dutch company?

No. You need a Dutch VAT number and an EU EORI number, which non-EU businesses can get without a local company.

Do I need a fiscal representative?

Whether it’s required depends on where your business is established, but most non-EU brands use one, and we can act as yours. It’s the usual route to an Article 23 licence, and it means someone in the Netherlands handles your Dutch VAT returns.

Who clears my containers through customs?

Our partner customs broker at the Port of Rotterdam, in your name and using your EORI number. We coordinate with them and your forwarder, and you get a copy of every declaration.

Can I keep my current fiscal representative?

Yes. Your fiscal representative doesn’t have to be linked to your warehouse. If you don’t have one, we can act for you.

Does holding stock in your warehouse give me a fixed establishment in the Netherlands?

Generally not. A fixed establishment needs your own staff and resources in the country, and storing goods with a 3PL doesn’t normally meet that test. Confirm this with your adviser.

Can I use IOSS?

Not for stock in our warehouse. IOSS is for low-value parcels shipped to EU consumers from outside the EU. Sales from stock already in the EU are reported through the OSS.

Selling into Europe from outside the EU?

Tell us where you sell and what you ship. We’ll arrange customs clearance, act as your fiscal representative and get your setup right before your first container lands.

Talk to us Email hello@scale3pl.co.uk