This report provides practical guidance to tax authorities on the design and implementation of a variety of solutions for digital platforms, including e-commerce marketplaces, in the effective and efficient collection of VAT/GST on the digital trade of goods, services and intangibles. In particular, it includes new measures to make digital platforms liable for the VAT/GST on sales made by online traders through these platforms, along with other measures including data sharing and enhanced co-operation between tax authorities and digital platforms.

This report provides practical guidance to tax authorities on the design and implementation of a variety of solutions for digital platforms, including e-commerce marketplaces, in the effective and efficient collection of VAT/GST on the digital trade of goods, services and intangibles. In particular, it includes new measures to make digital platforms liable for the VAT/GST on sales made by online traders through these platforms, along with other measures including data sharing and enhanced co-operation between tax authorities and digital platforms. It builds on the solutions for the effective collection of VAT/GST on digital sales included in the International VAT/GST Guidelines and the 2015 BEPS Action 1 Final Report “Addressing the Tax Challenges of the Digital Economy.” It is of particular relevance recognising the growing importance of the platform economy and notably the potential of digital platforms to significantly enhance the effectiveness of VAT/GST collection given their important role in generating, facilitating and/or executing online sales.

This paper set forth internationally agreed principles and standards for the value added tax (VAT) treatment of the most common types of international transactions, with a particular focus on trade in services and intangibles. Its aim is to minimise inconsistencies in the application of VAT in a cross-border context with a view to reducing uncertainty and risks of double taxation and unintended non-taxation in international trade. It also includes the recommended principles and mechanisms to address the challenges for the collection of VAT on crossborder sales of digital products that had been identified in the context of the OECD/G20 Project on Base and Erosion and Profit Shifting (the BEPS Project).

Applying the provisions of the European Union Value Added Tax (EU VAT) Directive poses challenges when applied to the digital platform economy. Recent responses to these challenges revolve around the deemed supplier regime introduced by the so-called e-commerce package, and this regime is thus the focus of this indispensable work, the first to provide an in-depth analysis of the regime, its background and scope, its interpretation, and its application in practice. In its detailed examination of how digital platforms that enable supplies of goods through their interfaces are treated for VAT purposes under EU law, the author elucidates such topics and issues as the following: The qualification of the sale of goods through platforms; supply of the platform service to the underlying supplier; supply of the platform service to the customer; supply of goods from the underlying supplier to the customer; supplies from third countries; the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) proposal’s influence on the interpretation of the EU e-commerce package; chain transactions; determination of the place of supply; chargeable event and chargeability of VAT; taxable amount; applicable rates and exemptions; platform’s recordkeeping obligations; accompanying customs measures; return of goods and warranty cases; and future of effective and efficient VAT collection. The author also undertakes a detailed analysis of a potential infringement of the principle of equality, neutrality, and the right to conduct a business. Fully taking into consideration the case law of the CJEU, administrative practice, and the relevant academic literature, the author’s research reveals the weaknesses, opportunities, and limits for Member States’ implementation of EU VAT law. The upshot is an important work that promises to make the EU VAT system more fraud-resistant, simplify compliance obligations, enforce the principle of neutrality, and reduce distortion of competition. The book will be of immeasurable value to any practitioner and policymaker approaching any case involving the deemed supplier regime for digital platforms with full awareness of the applicable rules.

This is the fourth edition of Tax Policy Reforms: OECD and Selected Partner Economies, an annual publication that provides comparative information on tax reforms across countries and tracks tax policy developments over time. The report covers the latest tax policy reforms in all OECD countries, as well as in Argentina, Indonesia and South Africa. Monitoring tax policy reforms and understanding the context in which they were undertaken are crucial to informing tax policy discussions and to supporting governments in the assessment and design of tax reforms.

This is the fifth edition of Tax Policy Reforms: OECD and Selected Partner Economies, an annual publication that provides comparative information on tax reforms across countries and tracks tax policy developments over time. The report covers the latest tax policy reforms in all OECD countries, as well as in Argentina, China, Indonesia and South Africa.

This report is part of the OECD Tax Policy Reviews publication series. The Reviews are intended to provide independent, comprehensive and comparative assessments of OECD member and non-member countries’ tax systems as well as concrete recommendations for tax policy reform.