If I were to order something from a business outside of the EU (the UK) to Germany and paid for the tax (Einfuhrumsatzsteuer) and the processing/handling (Auslagepauschale), but it turns out an item is missing, is it possible to avoid paying these charges for a delivery replacing the missing item?
A more concrete example:
- I order a suit (blazer and trousers) with a value of €90 and €10 postage.
- I pay €19 tax (19% of the value of the whole package) and a €6 handling fee (€25 total).
- The blazer is not included in the delivery due to a packaging mistake.
If I now ask the business to send me a replacement jacket, I may end up paying another fee (€11.40 if the blazer was worth €50 on its own) although I have technically already paid tax. Can the business value the replacement at €0 or is there some other mechanism for this?
Even if they were to send a delivery valued at €0, as a private customer I would end up paying tax on the value of the delivery and another handling fee.
Would this be different if I were acting as a business (in this instance a Kleinunternehmen)? (Except that the delivery costs would not be included in the taxable quantity.)
The only information I have found about exemptions to tax are for:
- Specific types of items rather than types of deliveries: https://www.zoll.de/DE/Fachthemen/Steuern/Einfuhrumsatzsteuer/Steuerbefreiungen/steuerbefreiungen_node.html
- Returns (Rückwaren), which it is not, as it did not originate in Germany/the EU
