VAT registration in the UK for your online store
VAT registration in the UK, returns filed in the UK and reconciliation with your accounts in Spain. Fiscal representative, EORI and EPR when needed.
In short
To sell from stock in the UK you need a VAT number in the UK and you must file your returns there. The service includes registration and tax compliance in the UK: periodic returns, EC sales lists, Intrastat and whatever its authority requires.
Standard VAT rate in the UK: 20% (reduced: 5% and 0%). If you sell through your own Shopify store with stock in the UK, you declare the VAT. If you sell through a marketplace as a non-established business, in many cases the marketplace declares it: it pays to keep the two channels clearly separate.
When you need a VAT number in the UK
If you are in any of these situations, you need to register before the first sale:
- You hold goods in the UK and sell from there to its customers: no OSS applies there.
- You import in the UK in your own name and want to recover the import VAT.
- You sell to consumers in the UK above the thresholds or outside the simplified schemes.
- You sell through your own Shopify store, not only through a marketplace that declares on your behalf.
VAT in the UK at a glance
| 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
|---|---|
| Standard VAT rate | 20 % |
| Reduced rates | 5% and 0% |
| Where you register | With HMRC. A business not established in the UK registers from its first sale with stock there, with no minimum threshold. |
| What number you get | UK VAT number (GB) and GB EORI for importing |
| What you file | VAT returns, normally quarterly, with Making Tax Digital-compatible software. |
| Transactions with other countries | No intra-EU returns: goods enter as imports, with a GB EORI and import VAT deferred in the return. |
| Fiscal representative | Not mandatory: you register directly. |
| Packaging and EPR | UK packaging EPR for those above its thresholds and the Plastic Packaging Tax. Ask us about your case. |
Data as of September 2026. Rates and deadlines are confirmed for your case before anything is filed.
What's included
VAT registration in the UK
With HMRC. A business not established in the UK registers from its first sale with stock there, with no minimum threshold. File preparation, submission and follow-up until you have the number.
Returns on time
VAT returns, normally quarterly, with Making Tax Digital-compatible software. Filed on time, with the amount notified before each payment.
Import and customs
Goods enter in the UK as imports: EORI, import VAT and their booking in Spain.
Fiscal representative and EORI
Not mandatory: you register directly. If you import, also the EORI and Intrastat.
Packaging and EPR
UK packaging EPR for those above its thresholds and the Plastic Packaging Tax. Ask us about your case. More about EPR.
Tax demands and regularisations
If letters arrive from the authority in the UK, they are handled in its language. If you have been selling for a while without registering, the late returns are filed.
How we start
You write to us or book a call
What you sell, how your stock gets in the UK and which channels you sell through there.
Registration
VAT registration in the UK and, where applicable, fiscal representative, EORI and EPR registrations.
Compliance
Every return on time, reconciled with your accounts in Spain, and a heads-up on whatever is needed.
Other countries with VAT registration
How VAT registration in another country works · OSS and IOSS
Frequently asked questions
Is there a threshold for UK VAT registration?
Not for a business not established in the UK: it must register from the first sale of goods located there.
Can I use OSS for the UK?
No. The UK has not been in the EU since 2021. Sales from UK stock are declared under its VAT, with HMRC.
What is Making Tax Digital?
The UK obligation to keep VAT records digitally and file returns with compatible software. It is covered by the service.
Can I declare sales from my stock in the UK through OSS?
No. OSS is an EU scheme and United Kingdom is not part of it.
I've been selling in the UK for a while without a VAT number. What do I do?
Regularise it as soon as possible: the registration, the late returns and the replies to tax demands are filed. The longer you wait, the higher the surcharges; and marketplaces end up pulling your stock.
Do you also keep the accounts in Spain?
Yes. Your store's accounting and taxes in Spain and the tax compliance in the UK go through the same point of contact, so what is declared in both countries reconciles.
Tell us about your store
Book a 15-minute call or write to us. We'll tell you what you need: VAT registration in whichever country, OSS and IOSS, EPR, US sales tax or your store's accounting. No obligation.