Amazon FBA and Brexit UK problems soon solved by the European Fulfilment Network

Brexit has complicated matters for Amazon FBA sellers who sell from and to the Amazon UK marketplace. The shipment and delivery of products from Europe to Great Britain are no longer intra- community transports but imports and exports. Therefore, the UK was excluded from the Pan-EU Fulfilled-by-Amazon Program. A solution is introduced by Amazon in the form of changes to it’s European Fulfilment Network (EFN).

The European Fulfilment Network (EFN) and the UK Amazon marketplace

Starting in March 2022, the European Fulfilment Network (EFN) can be used once again by EU sellers to deliver goods to customers located in the UK and by UK sellers to deliver goods to EU customers. However, the products will not be stored across the European borders, but rather stored in domestic Amazon fulfilment centres. 

Amazon has implemented some changes that allow you to ship orders from there across the border. Amazon FBA and software changes take care of the import and export process. By using the EFN you authorise Amazon to itemise your shipments and complete the necessary steps on your behalf.

Requirements for using the European Fulfilment Network to sell to UK customers

If you want to use the EFN to deliver your products from Europe to the UK or vice versa, you need to have the following: 

• An EU Seller Central account and an UK Seller Central account
• Listings on the UK marketplace and listings on any of the following EU marketplaces: France, Germany, Spain, Italy. Listings must display the same SKU.
• Inventory of the listings stored in a local fulfilment centre
• FBA export enabled
• EU UK Fulfilment Network enabled 

On our blog, we give you a step-by-step guide on how to enable the UK EU Fulfilment Network and the FBA export option and start selling cross-border. 

VAT and the UK EU European Fulfilment Network

If you use the European Fulfilment Network (EFN) to deliver products from the European Union to UK customers or the other way around you are not required to register for VAT. Instead

• for B2C sales below €150 or £135 Amazon accounts for VAT which the customer pays at checkout
• for for B2C sales above €150 or £135 Amazon collects an estimation of import VAT and duties at checkout and remits these amounts on the customer’s behalf and
• for for for B2B sales Amazon also collects an estimation of import VAT and duties at checkout as the client business is acting as an importer

While the rules outlined above generally apply, they do not substitute the advice of a tax accountant. If you want to start selling to UK or EU customers again after Brexit, don’t hesitate to contact us today. We can take care of your VAT duties across the European Union and Great Britain.