VAT on books
VAT on books in Germany
Germany charges 7% VAT on books, in print and in electronic form. Audiobooks get 7% too, but only when they are a plain reading of a book. A radio play or a production with sound effects and music can fall outside it. The standard rate is 19%.
This is general information, not tax advice. Rates and rules change, and your own situation matters. Check with Germany's VAT Act on gesetze-im-internet.de or an accountant before you decide.
The rates
| What you sell | Rate | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Printed books | 7% | Reduced rate | UStG Anlage 2, no. 49 |
| Ebooks | 7% | Reduced rate | UStG § 12 (2) no. 14 |
| AudiobooksFor recordings of a book being read, on a carrier or delivered electronically. | 7% | Reduced rate | UStG § 12 (2) no. 14 and Anlage 2, no. 50 |
| Most other goods and services | 19% | Standard rate | UStG § 12 (1) |
What to know about Germany
- The law gives 7% to books delivered in electronic form and to audio recordings of a book reading, so downloaded and streamed audiobooks pay 7% like ebooks. Access to a library of many ebooks is covered too. UStG § 12
- The audiobook rule covers only recordings that are just the reading of a book. Radio plays and productions that go beyond a reading are outside it and pay 19%. UStG Anlage 2
- Media that are harmful to young people or carry legal warning duties under the Youth Protection Act are left out of 7%, in print and in electronic form. So are publications mainly for advertising. UStG § 12
How EU VAT works when a reader in Germany buys from you
Ebooks and audiobooks: the reader’s country
A download sold to a reader, not a business, is taxed where the reader lives. So a reader in Germany pays the rate for Germany, wherever you are. European Commission, place of taxation.
The €10,000 threshold
If your business is based in just one EU country, and your sales to readers in other EU countries stay at or under €10,000 a year (this year and last), you can charge your own country’s VAT instead. Digital sales and shipped print books count together. Sellers based outside the EU get no threshold for digital sales: VAT is due from the first sale. Commission OSS guide.
The One-Stop Shop (OSS)
Instead of registering in every country, you register once and file one return every quarter that covers all your EU sales. Your home tax office passes the VAT on to each country. EU-based sellers use the Union scheme. Sellers outside the EU use the non-Union scheme for ebooks and audiobooks. EU One-Stop Shop. OSS in plain words.
Paperbacks and hardcovers sent across a border
A printed book shipped from one EU country to a reader in another is a distance sale. It falls under the same €10,000 threshold. Over it, the rate is the one where the parcel ends up, here the rate for printed books in Germany, and it goes on the same OSS return. Commission OSS guide.
Who charges the VAT when you sell on Lanternbee
You do. Each author connects their own Stripe account, so you are the seller and the money goes straight to you. At checkout, Stripe Tax works out the right rate for where the reader is and adds it to the order. It collects tax in the places where you have added a tax registration in Stripe, so you still register where you need to, file the returns and pay what you collected. Stripe on tax registrations.
We plan to take EU VAT on ebooks off your hands by acting as the merchant of record for digital editions. That is planned, not live. Today, you are the seller.
Questions authors ask about Germany
What VAT do German readers pay on ebooks?
7%, the same as printed books.
Does every audiobook get 7% in Germany?
Only a recording of a book being read. A full-cast radio play or a production with a lot of extra sound and music can be taxed at 19%. If your audiobook is a straight narration, it is 7%.
Does a dark or adult book still get 7%?
Books get 7% unless they are listed as harmful to young people or carry warning duties under Germany's Youth Protection Act. Most adult fiction is not on that list, but check if you are unsure.