E-commerce tax accountants in the 21st century: hellotax is the solution

As usual for service providers, tax accountants are happy about every new client. An exception to this for tax consultants are often clients from the e-commerce sector. After all, it is often anything but easy handle the tasks and challenges involved. In the following article we explain which hurdles have to be overcome and how this is possible.

Digital accounting alone is not enough

In recent years, digitization has reached tax law and many tax consultants are already using digital accounting and even demand it from their clients. Through automation processes, many activities can be significantly simplified and the tax consultant’s business is finally becoming scalable. However, just because accounting is digital and e-commerce corresponds to digital commerce, the linking of the two components has not become noticeably easier now. There are several reasons for this.

DATEV does not offer satisfactory solutions

DATEV is a cooperative that offers digital solutions for tax consultants, auditors, lawyers & Co. Most tax consultants have joined this cooperative and rely on the DATEV solution. However, the cooperative’s solutions are not sufficiently developed in the area of e-commerce, making it more costly for tax consultants to offer services in this area.

This ultimately means that despite digitization and automation in tax law, many processes at e-commerce customers still have to be carried out manually or semi-manually, which makes it less lucrative for tax accountants. In addition, every e-commerce sellers uses a different set of tools, which means that tax advisors have a lot of time and effort to learn the ropes for each customer.

E-commerce sellers are often operating in several countries

Any online seller who has successfully survived the initial phase of his entrepreneurship will quickly begin to expand abroad and broaden his potential buyer base. So it is quickly necessary to keep clean accounts not only in Germany, but also in the Netherlands, Austria, France, anywhere. For the work with a tax advisor, on the other hand, this requires that he is not only familiar with the customs and the tax laws in one country, but also with those in the foreign countries with which there will be a business relation.

If the accountant is not and further tax counsels must be consulted, those must coordinate themselves again among themselves and it becomes in the long run more complex for all parties involved.

Digitalization was too fast for many tax accountants

Digitization is enabling us to achieve rapid technological progress. However, this was not a one-off process, but happens constantly and continuously. This in turn means that it is not enough to learn the subject of “tax consulting for e-commerce companies” once and then it is mastered.
Due to the ongoing digitalization, there are constant innovations and changes in the process of digital accounting. A good tax consultant for e-commerce must remain permanently up to date and keep up with the changes.

The right tax consultant for e-commerce: hellotax

At hellotax we have developed the VAT automation software and the necessary services for VAT topics for Amazon sellers. The tool records all goods movements and creates corresponding pro forma invoices. The VAT is calculated, VAT registrations abroad in the European Union are taken over and delivery thresholds are monitored.

We allow several people to use the software, so that not only you as an entrepreneur can access it, but also your tax accountant or your coworkers. If you, like many other e-commerce sellers, have difficulties finding a good tax advisor for your business, we have the solution: Our local tax advisors are available for you in every EU member state. You can focus on your business while we take care of your taxes – no matter in which countries of the European Union you are active.

Our tax experts ensure quality at all times. We deliberately work with local advisors, as only those who are familiar with the tax practices of their home country and recognize errors or dangers before anyone else. Provided that you have entered your data correctly into our software, we even assume liability for errors, so that you are always on the safe side.

Summary

With the sometimes almost endless transactions, different stores and connections, it is anything but easy for tax consultants to adapt to individual e-commerce companies. Accordingly, the number of experienced tax consultants in this segment is small. Cooperatives such as DATEV try to cover as many application areas as possible with their tools, but do not manage to do justice in detail to the application areas of individual industries. Tools such as hellotax start there and specialize on the needs of the e-commerce industry.

With the use of such tools and the cooperation of our tax consultants, a significant simplification of your tax issues and competent advice is possible. Thus, no e-commerce sellers has to look with concern at the tax-side of the business.