{"id":4431,"date":"2026-04-15T11:52:17","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T11:52:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/?post_type=glossar&#038;p=4431"},"modified":"2026-05-12T10:12:59","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T10:12:59","slug":"vat-2","status":"publish","type":"glossar","link":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/glossar\/umsatzsteuer\/","title":{"rendered":"Value Added Tax"},"content":{"rendered":"<nav class=\"toc\" aria-label=\"Table of Contents\">\n<h2>Table of Contents<\/h2>\n<ul>\n        <li><a href=\"#einleitung\">Brief definition<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#grundlagen\">Basics<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#recht\">Legal framework<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#einordnung\">Classification<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#tools\">Elements<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#schritte\">Procedure<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#praxis\">Practice<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#fehler\">Sources of error<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#faq\">FAQ<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"#fazit\">Conclusion<\/a><\/li>\n      <\/ul>\n<\/nav>\n\n<section id=\"einleitung\">\n        <div class=\"snippet info\">\n          <p><strong>Value Added Tax<\/strong> is a tax on supplies and other services that a business owner carries out against payment within the scope of their business activity.<\/p>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"grundlagen\">\n        <h2>Basics<\/h2>\n        <p>Entrepreneurs charge VAT on taxable turnovers and remit it to the tax office. At the same time, they can reclaim the VAT included in incoming invoices under certain conditions. <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/vat\/\">Input VAT<\/a> deduct.<\/p>\n        <p>Value added tax is part of the ongoing <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/financial-accounting\/\">Financial accounting<\/a> and is recorded in the appropriate tax accounts.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"recht\">\n        <h2>Legal framework<\/h2>\n        <p>Value Added Tax is regulated by law. Businesses are obliged to properly record their taxable sales and declare the tax by the deadline.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"einordnung\">\n        <h2>Systematic classification<\/h2>\n        <p>Value Added Tax is related to:<\/p>\n        <ul>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/umsatzsteuer-voranmeldung\/\">VAT Return<\/a><\/li>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/vat\/\">Input VAT<\/a><\/li>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/reverse-charge-mechanism\/\">Reverse charge procedure<\/a><\/li>\n          <li><a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/summary-message-on\/\">Summary Notification (SN)<\/a><\/li>\n        <\/ul>\n        <p>The net result is that the difference between VAT payable and deductible input tax is remitted to or refunded by the tax office.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"tools\">\n        <h2>Key elements<\/h2>\n        <ul>\n          <li>Taxable turnover<\/li>\n          <li>Deductible input tax<\/li>\n          <li>Tax accounts in accounting<\/li>\n        <\/ul>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"schritte\">\n        <h2>Typical procedure<\/h2>\n        <ol>\n          <li>Value Added Tax collection on outgoing invoices<\/li>\n          <li>Accounting entry<\/li>\n          <li>Offsetting with input tax<\/li>\n          <li>Submission of <a href=\"\/en\/glossary\/umsatzsteuer-voranmeldung\/\">VAT Return<\/a><\/li>\n        <\/ol>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"praxis\">\n        <h2>Practical relevance<\/h2>\n        <p>Proper recording of VAT is a prerequisite for correct tax returns. Incorrect bookings or inaccurate account assignments can lead to discrepancies in tax calculations.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"fehler\">\n        <h2>Typical sources of error<\/h2>\n        <div class=\"snippet warn\">\n          <ul>\n            <li>Incorrect posting of revenue<\/li>\n            <li>Incorrect deduction of input tax<\/li>\n            <li>Improper invoice details<\/li>\n          <\/ul>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"faq\">\n        <h2>FAQ<\/h2>\n        <div class=\"snippet info\">\n        <h3>Who has to pay VAT?<\/h3>\n        <p>Businesses that carry out taxable supplies.<\/p>\n      <\/div>\n\n        <div class=\"snippet info\">\n        <h3>How is it calculated?<\/h3>\n        <p>Based on the taxable turnover, applying the respective applicable tax rate.<\/p>\n      <\/div>\n\n        <div class=\"snippet info\">\n        <h3>What happens to the input tax?<\/h3>\n        <p>It is offset against the VAT due.<\/p>\n      <\/div>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <section id=\"fazit\">\n        <h2>Conclusion<\/h2>\n        <p>Value Added Tax is a central element of the German tax system. Its correct recording in financial accounting forms the basis for a proper tax return.<\/p>\n      <\/section>\n\n      <footer class=\"author\">\n        <strong>Author<\/strong>\n        <span>the BAS editorial team<\/span>\n        <span class=\"note\">Services pursuant to \u00a7 6 No. 3 and 4 StBerG, no tax or legal advice.<\/span>\n      <\/footer>\n\n      <p class=\"disclaimer\">\n        Brasser Accounting Solutions GmbH is a specialised accounting service provider and part of a corporate group with Quint GmbH (tax consultancy\/auditing) and Service Place \u00c5rj\u00e4ng AB (Swedish tax office). BAS exclusively performs services according to \u00a7 6 No. 3 and 4 StBerG and does not provide tax or legal advice.\n      <\/p>","protected":false},"template":"","glossar-kategorien":[20],"class_list":["post-4431","glossar","type-glossar","status-publish","hentry","glossar-kategorien-finanzbuchhaltung"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossar\/4431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossar"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/glossar"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"glossar-kategorien","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.brasser-accounting.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossar-kategorien?post=4431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}