More and more e-commerce entrepreneurs are looking at TEMU as a new sales channel within Europe. The platform is growing fast and looks attractive thanks to its broad reach. But behind that opportunity lies an important point of attention: VAT obligations.
Unlike platforms such as Amazon or Bol, TEMU currently appears to take a different approach to VAT. And that can have major consequences for Dutch sellers.
What is different about TEMU?
Recent internal cases and conversations with entrepreneurs suggest that TEMU does not make use of the OSS scheme (One Stop Shop) for sellers. Instead, the platform appears to require sellers to be locally VAT-registered in the countries where they sell.
That is a fundamental difference compared to how many Dutch e-commerce entrepreneurs operate today.
When selling through your own webshop or platforms such as Shopify or WooCommerce, you can often make use of the OSS scheme within the EU. With it, you file one central VAT return for all your cross-border sales.
With TEMU, that does not seem to be possible.
What does this mean in practice for Dutch sellers?
Imagine: you sell from the Netherlands and your stock is also located in the Netherlands. Through TEMU, you sell to customers in countries like Germany, France and Italy.
Normally, you would:
- Charge Dutch VAT up to the €10,000 threshold
- After that, declare foreign VAT via OSS
But if OSS is not accepted by TEMU, this changes completely.
In that case, you may have to:
- Apply for a VAT registration in every EU country where you sell
- Submit local VAT returns per country
- Take local rules and deadlines into account
This means a significant increase in complexity.
Why can this be a problem?
For many entrepreneurs, “just registering” sounds simple, but in practice this brings considerable burdens:
- Costs for VAT registrations in multiple countries
- Recurring costs for local filings
- Time investment for administration and compliance
- Increased risk of errors and fines
Especially for small and medium-sized e-commerce businesses, this can be a major barrier to selling through TEMU.
When will you be confronted with this?
This mainly comes into play in situations where:
- You sell from your own stock in the Netherlands
- You deliver directly to consumers in other EU countries
- TEMU holds you, as the seller, responsible for VAT remittance
It is important to realise that the exact obligations can vary depending on how TEMU qualifies your role (for example, as a marketplace facilitator or not).
Note: this is still a grey area
At this moment, there is still limited official documentation available on how TEMU technically handles VAT within Europe.
The signals that OSS is not supported come mainly from practical experiences of sellers. There is (as yet) no widely confirmed public source in which TEMU explicitly explains this.
That means:
- Always check your own situation
- Don't automatically assume the same rules apply as with Amazon or Bol
- Get advice before scaling up via TEMU
Is selling on TEMU still interesting then?
That depends entirely on your situation.
TEMU can be attractive because of its reach and growth, but the additional compliance burden can partly offset the benefits. Certainly if you are active in multiple EU countries.
For some entrepreneurs, it makes sense to first test with a limited number of markets. For others, it may be wiser to first set up the VAT structure properly.
Conclusion
Selling on TEMU within Europe may bring different VAT obligations than you are used to. If OSS indeed cannot be used, this means you will quickly be dealing with multiple VAT registrations and local filings.
That doesn't necessarily make the platform unattractive, but it does make it more complex.
Are you in doubt about your situation? Then it is wise to investigate this thoroughly in advance. That way, you avoid surprises afterwards.
