When VAT taxpayers in different countries within the EU buy and sell goods with one another, it is “intra-Community trading”. The selling, known as “intra-community supply” (selling goods to a VAT-registered business in another EU country) is normally exempted from VAT. For the VAT exemption to be in force,
- The goods must be physically transported from Finland to another EU country,
- The buyer must be a VAT taxpayer in a EU country that is not Finland, and
- The parties to the transaction, being registered for VAT in their own EU countries, must have valid VAT numbers
If the above requirements for VAT exemption are not fulfilled, the seller of the goods must file and pay VAT in Finland as usual.
What to do when selling goods to another EU country and the VAT requirements for exemption are fulfilled:
Transferring goods to a call-off stock is not an intra-Community sale
Goods transferred to call-off stocks means that you as the seller have transferred a quantity of goods to another EU country, to a warehouse belonging to your customer or buyer, and you have agreed this with the buyer in advance.
When you transfer the goods to call-off stock, it is not yet regarded as a supply of goods against payment. For purposes of VAT filing and payment, intra-Community supply and intra-Community acquisition will take place later, at the time when your buyer calls off the goods, i.e. when the right of ownership passes on to the buyer.
If you are a seller that transfers goods to call-off stocks, you must submit a report to inform the Tax Administration of the transfers. Complete a specific call-off report form.
Buying goods from sellers in other EU countries
While selling – intra-Community – supply does not entail VAT payment, when you buy goods as intra-Community acquisitions you must usually pay VAT. However, the input VAT is deductible, subject to the condition that the goods must be bought for a business purpose.
Give details on your purchases in MyTax. Complete the VAT return and fill in the following lines:
- Purchases of goods from other EU Member States
- Tax on goods purchased from other EU Member States
- Tax deductible for the tax period
The VAT recapitulative statement does not contain information on purchases, so you do not have to report purchase information on it.
Examples of VAT filings