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When I was unable to get Google to send me an invoice in Germany (which I needed to be able to declare VAT paid - getting proper invoices are pretty big deal in

by watt 8y ago

When I was unable to get Google to send me an invoice in Germany (which I needed to be able to declare VAT paid - getting proper invoices are pretty big deal in Germany) for Nexus 4, that was the last device I bought from Google. Looks like nothing has changed since then (2013).

arthurcolle 8y ago
is vat just sales tax in eurozone nations? I'm a french/usa dual citizen but i have been living in the states since 2005 and never really looked into the specifics despite hearing of the uk vat for example. why did you need to collect the info yourself if its implicit in the purchase debit? is it not done for any particular reason or what?
- arthurcolle 8y ago
  i know its value added tax but how is it specifically different from a sales tax. in the us model, since states have a different level of sovereignty compared to the federal government, it is at least somewhat internally consistent that states would have a seperate layer of revenue generation compared to the federal govt revenue generation derived from income. citizens are taxed on the basis of income/capital gains, and transactions for goods are taxes on a sales/tx level. does vat refer in some way to the incremental "value addition" in a marx das kapital sense or something else?
  - esotericn 8y ago
    In the UK, as a business, you can reclaim VAT spent on inputs if you charge it on outputs. For example: I buy a Foo for 1200 GBP, 1000 GBP plus 200 GBP VAT I wiggle it around a bit, improving its' value I sell a WigglyFoo for 1320 GBP, 1100 GBP plus 220 GBP VAT I receive 1320 GBP from the customer, but have to pay 220 of that to the government. So my revenue is 1100 GBP. Subtracting costs I'm at -100 GBP. If you reclaim the 200 in VAT (which really, you should have an invoice for) then you actually make the 100 GBP profit you should get.
chopin 8y ago
I am pretty sure that German tax authorities will frown upon not sending invoices when doing business within the EU. Even receipts handed out to consumers must visibly state the VAT value and are generally accepted by the tax authority (at least that was the case when I had my own business in the 90s).

by watt 8y ago

arthurcolle 8y ago

is vat just sales tax in eurozone nations? I'm a french/usa dual citizen but i have been living in the states since 2005 and never really looked into the specifics despite hearing of the uk vat for example. why did you need to collect the info yourself if its implicit in the purchase debit? is it not done for any particular reason or what?

arthurcolle 8y ago
i know its value added tax but how is it specifically different from a sales tax. in the us model, since states have a different level of sovereignty compared to the federal government, it is at least somewhat internally consistent that states would have a seperate layer of revenue generation compared to the federal govt revenue generation derived from income. citizens are taxed on the basis of income/capital gains, and transactions for goods are taxes on a sales/tx level. does vat refer in some way to the incremental "value addition" in a marx das kapital sense or something else?
- esotericn 8y ago
  In the UK, as a business, you can reclaim VAT spent on inputs if you charge it on outputs. For example: I buy a Foo for 1200 GBP, 1000 GBP plus 200 GBP VAT I wiggle it around a bit, improving its' value I sell a WigglyFoo for 1320 GBP, 1100 GBP plus 220 GBP VAT I receive 1320 GBP from the customer, but have to pay 220 of that to the government. So my revenue is 1100 GBP. Subtracting costs I'm at -100 GBP. If you reclaim the 200 in VAT (which really, you should have an invoice for) then you actually make the 100 GBP profit you should get.

chopin 8y ago

I am pretty sure that German tax authorities will frown upon not sending invoices when doing business within the EU. Even receipts handed out to consumers must visibly state the VAT value and are generally accepted by the tax authority (at least that was the case when I had my own business in the 90s).