The topic of E-commerce selling is a never-ending source of either a lot of amusement, joy, or quite the opposite. Regardless of the internet slowly but surely coming of age, it is still an endless well of adventuresome experiences. This just depends on your point of view of course. The key is always in being knowledgeable.
When we are tackling the problems which E-commerce businesses have to face we need to make a distinction and make a dividing line between those problems that can emerge due to a lack of understanding, and those that are essential and quite crucial for any E-commerce sellers, regardless of how savvy they are.
Since this is quite a big topic, let’s start with the obvious facts:
The need for EU VAT compliance – that is our area of expertise – anything that you want to know, please simply ask us. Use the blog archive where we already have started to give you an overview of things to bear in mind. The different taxation rules, tax calendars are driving each country differently and want to be understood at the heart of any cross border transaction. The objective is clear: make the sales opportunities outweigh the challenges.
Apart from that, another big dividing line is probably the size of the business. It does matter whether you are a sole trader or if you have a company with 10 or with fifty plus employees. So, we are often told the opposite – Size does matter. 🙂
The taxman treats enterprises and entrepreneurs differently with regards to the volume of revenue they are producing. At each business stage, you should be aware of your rights and of your obligations.
Then there is the question of national business or cross border trading. Obviously, in the age of the internet, most of the E-commerce traders are by default cross border traders, or they become cross border traders over the course of time. And this has become a headache for some governments. VAT has been slowing down up to the point where the majority of the European Union has introduced new legal framework in order to prevent tax fraud. Fraud prevention has grown massively in the last decade.
Of course, the internet is a dynamic place. It does not remain static. What I say today, will be yesterday’s news tomorrow and become obsolete in the blink of an eye. So the truth is sometimes painful as it might be, but everyone needs to keep updated and do one’s homework daily. That means being meticulous, not to accept the first article you read, apply common sense, signing up for newsletters that make sense, and perusing relevant websites that make sense. And yes, it is hard work. And yes, the bad news is that it doesn’t stop. Because, again, things can change.
So, the best practice for being an E-commerce seller with cross border trading is this:
- Be aware (again, legislation is a dynamic process)
- Keep aware of your own situation as opposed to someone else’s situation (one size fits all)
- Invest in due diligence (it sometimes can save your head quite literally)
- Networking around your business area is a good idea (the wisdom of many)
- Learn each and every day! (do it, rinse and repeat!)
- Call J&P Accountants on 0044 191 3780 287 & go to www.jpaccountant.com – we can help you!
