“New data from member states reveal that, in 2024, over 33 billion euros were collected in VAT revenue through the EU’s VAT systems for e-commerce,” the European Commission announced in a statement today.
Brussels described this as “a clear indication that the 2021 reforms are fulfilling their promise of simplifying tax compliance, supporting businesses, and ensuring fairer taxation.”
This concerns the reform of digital-level VAT rules, which stipulate a single registration in an EU country, a single window, and an import window, collectively allowing companies to declare and pay this tax on cross-border sales of goods and services within the community space, as well as on imports of low-value goods.
“The data released today confirm that businesses continue to fully utilize these simplifications, which reduce red tape and compliance costs while also ensuring VAT collection,” the institution further noted.
Of the total declared, more than 24 billion euros were declared through the single window in the EU, and 2.8 billion euros outside the community space.
An additional 6.3 billion euros was collected through the import window, representing a 26% increase compared to 2023.
Since the reforms were introduced in mid-2021, member states have collected approximately 88 billion euros in VAT through these regimes.
Simultaneously, the number of registered operators continues to grow, with over 170,000 companies joining by the end of 2024.
About four years ago, in July 2021, the EU altered VAT rules relating to cross-border e-commerce activities between businesses and final consumers.
The aim of these changes was to eliminate barriers to cross-border online sales and address challenges associated with importing low-value consignments.
VAT is crucial for the revenues of EU member states, but significant losses sometimes occur, particularly in the digital sphere, a situation Brussels has been striving to change.
