EU: order books without paying additional VAT

Are you an avid book reader? Do you live in the EU? Do you purchase quality books online? Are you aware of new EU VAT taxes that affect purchases from non-EU bookstores? This article pertains to you in case your answer is “No”.

Blackwells and Book Depository bookstores customers in European Union (EU) will not pay any additional VAT for purchases at the time of deliveries. That’s a great relief for any avid book reader purchasing online books in the EU since EU tax rules and regulations recently got revised. It resulted in the withdrawal of tax exemption for articles and goods costing up to EUR 22. Well, you guessed it right, VAT will now be charged on books purchased from all non-EU stores.

The new rules are in effect from 1 July 2021 and affect all commercial goods and articles being imported into the EU irrespective of their original price. It not only sounds excruciating in terms of additional coppers one must pay but recalls the commotion about cumbersome custom processes and delays as well. Well if the VAT still sounds Greek to you we shall discuss it a bit before moving on.

What is VAT and How it Affects EU Based Customers?

A value-added tax (VAT) is a kind of consumption tariff that is imposed on a product recurrently at each step of its production and sale where some value is added to it. Simple to say that a tax is charged once a producer sells raw materials to a factory, a factory produces a finished product and sells it to a wholesaler, wholesaler enhances the outlook of the product and sells it to a retailer, and, finally, once the consumer purchases it.

VAT is generally expressed in terms of a percentage. For example, if a product costs 100 EUR and there is a 15% VAT imposed on it, so the consumer is going to pay 115 EUR ultimately to the retailer. The retailer will keep 100 EUR and submit 15 EUR to the government.  

The European Union New Value-Added Tax for E-Commerce

The erstwhile EU VAT rules were en vogue since 1993 and were never updated wholesomely. A study in 2013 found nearly a 168 Billion Euros VAT gap. Moreover, the e-commerce boom has no doubt brought in a major revolution in the economy and fiscal domains. Hence the old rules and regulations did not suit the requirements of manufacturers, consumers, and international online businesses. The online shopping service has in fact transformed the business sales globally and enhanced the revenues vividly as experienced during the covid pandemic(2020-2021).

As a result on 1 July 2021, the EU imposed the new VAT. These taxes have affected the business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce activities in the European Union (EU). Some important facts include:

• VAT is applied on all goods sold online in the EU regardless of their price and threshold.
• Non-EU registered e-commerce sellers and marketplaces have to declare and pay VAT in the EU.
• Consumers buying goods from a non-EU seller or online store have to pay VAT.

Best Choice to Buy Books Online—Without Paying Additional VAT

As you know now that the VAT applies to every bookseller and retailer across the board, hence it is a compulsion for all. Most of the customers at online bookstores are worried about how to pay the VAT at the time of delivery or would our deliveries get delayed due to non-payment of EU VAT? So there is good news from Book Depository and Blackwells!

Book Depository and Blackwells have updated their policies and terms in line with the new rules to ensure customer facilitation and continued provision of great services to online customers. The online purchase system has been upgraded to ensure smooth transactions and hassle-free deliveries. Your taxation and VAT are amicably handled by the experts at Book Depository and Blackwells , rendering a very unique and comfortable shopping experience.

The customer really feels valued and esteemed because as customers we do not have to do anything directly and neither are we required to alter any of our shopping habits at Bookdpositiory and Blackwells for the purchase of books online. The bookstores ensure that as per the rule VAT is added to our final bill as part of the price of purchase. Hence we are relieved of the added responsibility to pay the VAT at the time of delivery at our end. The measures taken by Book Depositiory and Blackwells facilitate the customers by

• Onspot VAT payment at the time of billing and information duly mentioned on receipts thus no need for calls to customs or courier services for extra payment when the goods arrive at the destination.
• Prompt deliveries, since orders and deliveries are not stopped at custom offices due to non-payment of VAT.

Well, I hope we stand better aware of the new VAT rules for EU and their simple application at the Book Depository and Blackwells.