UKH

A somewhat specific query, but everyone on UKC knows everything, don't they?

If a customer from outside the UK makes an eBay purchase (say) from a UK VAT-registered seller, eBay appears to still charge them the VAT-inclusive price. They will then pay Import VAT on their item as it enters their country, so they've paid two lots of VAT. Other then eBay (say) changing the way they work, or the business making two sets of listings, one with and one without VAT, can the non-UK customer claim back the UK VAT they have paid, and if so if there a proper/official way of doing this or is it a case of them having to write to the company and asking for it?

Thanks in advance,

The seller of the goods does not pay VAT on exports in a nutshell.

If you have paid the VAT then I suggest you write to the company and ask them to refund it.

At some stage it all catches up with itself because the UK company will need to declare its export sales which are zero rated as long as they have proof that the goods have actually left the UK.

Hope this makes sense.

Thanks. When you say "it all catches up with itself" do you mean that the company/Government will automatically repay the VAT to the customer, or does it rely on customers writing to them to politely ask for it back? I can't see a way for eBay customers to buy from the UK without this VAT being paid automatically, so big sellers are going to be deluged with requests!

It's apparently a technical glitch at Ebay, the plan was to change the collection of VAT throughout the EU for small imports but the date was pushed back to 1st June for the EU but not GB so their computer was programmed to add seller VAT across the board (if it all had gone to plan this would have been correct as the the UK would have been collecting the VAT due in the destination country). The fix is apparently for the seller in the UK to amend their adress so they are re-listed by ebay correctly.

Thanks for that. Any ideas how the customer would go about reclaiming their VAT? Is it a case like Neil says of writing and asking, or is there an "official" channel, something like, "Fill out Form XYZ45 and submit to the company in triplicate"?

No idea, you'll have to plough through the gov.uk site or ask HMRC.

I would ask the supplier for the VAT. How much is it ?

From the buyer's side of the coin, they should not pay UK VAT unless it's a service provided in the UK EG an architect drawing plans in the UK for a foreign customer. Goods should be zero-rated.

If life was so simple! It depends if it was sold using Ebay or Ebay marketplace.

Thanks. Several amounts ranging from a few pounds to close to £100. Can the seller legally charge an "admin fee" for refunding the VAT, do you know?

I've come across  Amazon (sold by Amazon themselves) & Amazon Marketplace (sold by a 3rd partry via the Amazon site), but not eBay Marketplace. eBay don't sell goods themselves, do they?

They provide the platform (shops) and so they are now the seller and thus responsible for VAT collection. Normal eBay sales it's up to the actual seller.

With the same seller. ? 

I'm intrigued, I've not come across these two tiers of eBay before, and I can't find any mention of them on eBay themselves either. Have you got a link?

Yes. As you apparently now pay eBay and eBay pays the seller ("Managed Payments" I think they call it), how does the seller even have the buyer's card details to make the refund to?

It's a bit blurred but eBay's marketplace in the UK is Gumtree, you can also go on normal eBay as a private seller. The alternative is an eBay shop. You can see which by following the sellers details at the bottom of the listing. The seller should give the base price and the VAT rate so ebay can calculate the VAT due otherwise they will collect it again.

In general the "seller" for VAT purposes is now eBay, previously the VAT was due on importation but under the new system it is (will be) due at point of sale and the provider of an electronic trading platform is the "seller". The problem is that the UK took on the legislation on the 1st Jan and in the excitement of holding their blue passports probably didn't notice the EU had postponed it until 1st June due to Covid. The end result being eBay have to apply the rules and the EU still work under the old ones.