Which tax or laws do you need to know before trading in Germany

How to do Sports Betting and Trading in Germany | Taxes, Laws and Bookmakers

Both German and European legislators influence the legal standards that are important for e-commerce. What can traders expect from a legal point of view in 2021?

The first major innovation came to retailers on January 1: since then, the well-known VAT rates of 19 and 7% have been in force again. Therefore, companies should ensure that they are correctly identified. If you want to be up to date with the news about trading in Germany, on the Finance app you will find out everything that is new in this industry.

What online merchants need to know

In online commerce (e-commerce), the same legal rules apply to retail. However, there are specific laws for online trading that must be followed. If online retailers are unfamiliar with these regulations, you run the risk of being warned. Therefore, online retailers should know what special legal provisions need to be followed.

Online retailers include all providers of goods or services in

  • Online stores or
  • Online auction platforms.

Trade as an economic activity

Evolution in recent centuries shows that trade flows in the country and abroad have increased sharply. This went hand in hand with an increase in prosperity.

Trade plays a central role in the economy. Traders and trading companies take over the exchange of goods between producers and consumers at different levels and thus become the backbone of the market economy. The nineteenth and twentieth centuries have witnessed a significant acceleration in the transformation from largely self-sufficient local communities into regional and national economies integrated into the transnational organization of the flow of goods of globalization.

Online trading is booming in Germany

A greater variety of products, low prices, significant time savings, and total independence from opening hours – all this makes online shopping attractive. These benefits have ensured that online sales in Germany have been growing for years. The crown crisis intensifies this even more. The temporary blockages in the supermarket, the closed shops, and the requirement to stay at home left the Germans with no choice but to shop online for weeks. Therefore, the € 63 billion increase estimated by the German Retail Association for 2020 is likely to be exceeded.

Online retail sales are on the rise

Online shopping has grown in popularity significantly since the turn of the millennium. This means that online trading is a growing share of retail sales. In 2019, about 58 billion euros were generated from the sale of goods on the Internet – 44 times more than in 2000.

Online is gaining ground in every industry

Every industry is now affected by changing buying habits. Consumer electronics and clothing are ordered mainly online. The fashion industry recorded the largest online growth between 2017 and 2018 – the share of online increased the least for food and personal care. Most Germans would still prefer to buy these goods from the supermarket.