Receipts/invoices in Germany

[messagefromspace]

Hi! I've just moved to Germany recently and with me my Etsy shop. I figured out a lot of things from the Internet about how to run my small business (Gewerbe anmelden, new tax ID, that I am a Kleinunternehmer, etc.). I am looking for an accountant at the moment to clear some things up. In the meantime though, could you tell me how I have to deal with the reciepts? I guess this is a general rule that is different from country to country. I don't want to be in trouble with the Finanzamt later...

- Do I need to ask for reciepts with my name or shop's name and address every time I buy supplies? I mean like an official invoince kind of thing that proves that I bought the supply. Is a normal reciept I get in a shop enough to prove how much I spend on supplies? (With the Warenpost International I get these in a pdf in an email, so that is ok for proving shippings costs, but I am wondering about everything else here.)

- Do I have to give an "official" reciept or bill to the customer with every detail on it, especially my name and address? Or if the customer wants this reciept or invoice, they can ask for it and I don't have to send it out every time? Is the reciept that you can print out from Etsy based on the order enough and sufficient?

Thanks in advance!

Anna

[NicolausDesign]

Hi Anna,

as Kleinunternehmer (Sales less than 17000 € pa, NO Ust.-ID - private tax id only) you have to show your sales and your costs (e.g. supplies bought). Your taxes will be determinded depending on the difference of both. So you will need an official invoice on your name/adress for everything you buy for your shop, supplies, your fees (e.g. Etsy), stamps, printer paper ect. including MwSt. Your sales have to be shown, too.

For correct invoices look here: https://www.kleinunternehmer.de/rechnungsstellung.htm

Etsy invoice ist no really invoice at all! Unfortunately you will not see if your customer pay directly (credit card or paypal or such) or uses Klarna pay later - in the last case, Klarna sends a correct invoice in your name, so you don't acually have to. Please put no payment infos on your invoice. This might confuse your customer and cause double payment.

Hope that helps :), Anke

[BabyStepsDE]

hi Anna,

I still have no answers to the same question (are digital invoices enough to prove costs). recently, I obtained a VAT invoice from a seller in my home country with a stamp and a signature just to be on the safe side (that's the standard there). I asked for the same here in Germany and only got a printed Rechnung instead. dunno if it's my 'bureaucracy mentality' legacy that makes me so suspicious or I am really in for problems because I didn't insist enough.

however, I have found this: https://www.selbststaendig.de/rechnung-als-email-rechtssicher so it seems they are indeed valid, though it's still not a popular solution... I've tried to dissect the logic behind that a little bit. so let's say a signature and a stamp do not fully guarantee the authenticity of the invoice. I guess while forging a stamp and a signature is more difficult, you could still theoretically do that. the consequences of forging both types of invoices would be the same. the final way to check the authenticity of the invoice shall any doubt arise is to do so with the seller as they are also obliged to keep the invoices for 10 years, or using some internal system perhaps.

it also says that the buyer should agree to receive a digital invoice instead of a paper one (not sure this rule is still valid though), which I didn't. anyways, this question lands on my 'to be asked at Finanzamt' list :)