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Do you need to register for UK VAT?

A general guide, not advice, based on GOV.UK guidance for overseas sellers.

When an overseas seller must register

  • No threshold: if you and your business are based outside the UK, you must register if you supply any goods or services in the UK, or expect to in the next 30 days, whatever your turnover.
  • Goods held in the UK, for example in a fulfilment warehouse, and sold directly to UK customers: you must register and charge UK VAT.
  • Goods sold through an online marketplace: the marketplace accounts for the VAT on the sale to the customer. You are treated as making a zero-rated supply to the marketplace, so you still register and file returns, and you remain liable for import VAT when the goods come into the UK.
  • Services to UK businesses: the business customer usually accounts for the VAT under the reverse charge. Services to UK consumers, such as digital services, mean you must register.
  • Consignments of £135 or less sent from abroad direct to UK customers: VAT is charged at the point of sale, by the marketplace if it facilitates the sale, otherwise by you.

How marketplace rules affect you

How you sellWho accounts for the UK VAT
Goods in the UK, sold through a marketplaceThe marketplace, on the sale to the customer
Goods in the UK, sold through your own websiteYou
Consignments up to £135 from abroad, through a marketplaceThe marketplace
Consignments up to £135 from abroad, through your own websiteYou, at the point of sale

Keep the marketplace's VAT reports as part of your records, and reconcile them with your own figures before you file.

How to file your UK VAT return from abroad

  1. Set up a Government Gateway account with access to your UK VAT. You will need it to connect your software to HMRC.
  2. Keep digital records of your UK sales, purchases, import VAT and marketplace reports, in a spreadsheet or software.
  3. Connect MTD software to HMRC on HMRC's own page.
  4. Upload your nine box totals, check them and submit by the deadline, 1 calendar month and 7 days after the period ends.
  5. Pay from your bank, allowing time for international transfers. HMRC accepts CHAPS payments from overseas accounts.

For where marketplace, export and import figures go on the return, see VAT for UK online sellers.

Do you need a UK agent or accountant?

Not to file. You can keep your own records and file your own returns through MTD software. Many overseas sellers use an accountant to check their position and set up their records, especially if they also import goods or sell into the EU.

File your UK VAT return from anywhere, from £5 a month

Swift VAT Pro runs in your web browser. Keep your UK records in a spreadsheet, upload the nine box totals as a CSV and file.

  1. Connect to HMRC on HMRC's own page with your Government Gateway sign-in. We never see that password.
  2. See your VAT periods, due dates, amounts owed and payments, read from HMRC.
  3. Upload your nine box totals as a CSV. Box 3 and Box 5 are worked out and every box is checked.
  4. Submit and keep HMRC's receipt. Reminder emails arrive before each due date.
Start your 7-day free trialSee how it works

No card needed · From £5 a month · Plans for up to 100 businesses · Filing through HMRC's MTD service since 2019

Final thoughts

Overseas sellers have no threshold, so check your position before your first UK sale. Once registered, filing from abroad works the same as for UK businesses: digital records, MTD software, and HMRC's receipt for every return.

Disclaimer: This guide gives general information, not advice for your business. The rules for overseas sellers can be complex. Speak to an accountant or contact HMRC if you are unsure.

Frequently asked questions

Checked against GOV.UK guidance on registering for VAT from outside the UK, overseas goods sold to UK customers and online marketplaces. November 2026.

Is there a UK VAT threshold for overseas businesses?
No. If you and your business are based outside the UK, you must register as soon as you supply goods or services in the UK, whatever your turnover.

Do I need to register if I only sell on Amazon or eBay?
Usually yes. The marketplace accounts for the VAT on the sale to the customer, but you are treated as making a zero-rated supply to the marketplace, and you remain liable for import VAT.

Do I need a UK bank account or office to file UK VAT?
No. You need a Government Gateway account to connect MTD software to HMRC, and you can pay from an overseas bank account by CHAPS.

Does Making Tax Digital apply to overseas sellers?
Yes. Once registered, you keep digital records and file VAT returns through MTD software like a UK business.

Who charges VAT on parcels of £135 or less?
VAT is charged at the point of sale: by the marketplace if it facilitates the sale, otherwise by the seller.

File your UK VAT return from anywhere, from £5 a month.

Swift VAT Pro files your return to HMRC from the spreadsheet you already keep. From £5 a month.

Start 7-day free trial Check if you need to register

No card needed · 2,900+ VAT returns filed since 2019