Dein erstes Forum » s relating not only to the importation of goods in

Taxes in general can be divided into direct taxes and indirect taxes.

Direct taxes are those that are assessed and levied upon people Air Max 2019 Scontate , whereas indirect taxes are levied upon goods and services. Income tax and inheritance tax are direct taxes; stamp duty on property, duties on alcohol and cigarettes are indirect taxes.

VAT is an indirect tax. It is a tax on consumption. It is called value-added tax because the tax relating to the goods or services involved increases proportionately to the difference between what products are bought and sold for.

VAT is specific to the European Union, although other countries have systems that are not dissimilar. It is not a simple sales tax. It is a method of charging everyone within the economic community but allowing those companies that are merely intermediaries or are purchasing goods and services and then selling them on to recover what they have paid. They must charge and collect the tax, but can deduct from their payment to the government any amounts that they have paid themselves in acquiring the initial goods and services.

In the EU, persons, being individuals Air Max Gundam Scontate , companies, local authorities, charities and other legal entities, are divided into two groups: those that have taxable sales, or outputs, which in general means registered traders and those who are consumers.

VAT returns

Although the system varies throughout the European Union Air Max Supreme Scontate , in general, each trader is required to prepare a return of his VAT on a regular basis. In the U.K. this is usually done quarterly. The return requires that the trader identifies his sales and the VAT that is chargeable thereon and also identifies his purchases and the tax he has paid. He then calculates the net difference and must pay over to the government any excess of VAT relating to his outputs over his inputs or, alternatively, reclaim from the government any excess of his input tax over his output tax.

The essential point to note from this is that traders do not bear the tax involved in VAT. They may have the cost of administration and they may have some cash flow deprivation but they do not actually bear the cost of the tax. The people who bear the tax are the ultimate consumers.

More confusing: In many EU states there is no "zero rating" but instead "exempt with credit," which is effectually a zero rating.

Although the foregoing is only an indication of how VAT works, it is most important that anyone operating a yacht within European Waters has a working knowledge of how the tax works. Clearly Air Max 98 Saldi , should problems arise professional advice must be taken.

European Union

To understand the workings of VAT one needs to understand the European Union and its ideals.

The European Economic Community (the Common Market) was created under the 1957 Treaty of Rome and was intended to ensure that the terrible wars that had ravaged Europe in the twentieth century and before would never happen again. The theory was that by creating an economically inter-dependent series of states within Europe, war would be impossible.

Initially there were seven members ??" France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Belgium Air Max 98 Scontate , Denmark and the Netherlands ??" and they developed a series of rules and regulations that covered major industries such as coal, steel and agriculture. Over the years other countries joined including the U.K., which was invited at the beginning but declined. Each country still managed its own customs, duties and barriers.

On Jan. 1, 1993, the European Union was created which led Nuove Nike Air Max 98 , under various treaties, to much increased cooperation and the deregulation of many of the individual countries own protectionist structures. From that date onward, there were no customs barriers between the member states.

VAT is the epitome of the European ideal. It is intended to be a tax that is applicable throughout the European Union, the one that will create the level playing field. The intention is to allow transactions between Finland and Portugal, or Luxembourg and Greece to be treated just as those between England and Wales.

Intra-European Transactions

From the yachtsman's point of view, when the European Union was created Nike Air Max 98 Saldi , the change meant that instead of having many countries and many different customs authorities to deal with, there was but one. A single coastline that stretched from the very north of Europe right the way round the coast of Britain, Ireland, France, Spain, through the Mediterranean to Greece. This was now one border Ingrosso Nike Air Max 98 , one entry system, one set of Customs. At least that was the intention.

Needless to say, such things cannot be achieved overnight and therefore there were many transitional arrangements that were put in place in order to control the rush toward the idea of a completely free market.

There had to be regulations relating not only to the importation of goods into this one customs area, but also to sales and transfers and leasing and hiring of goods from one member state to another and even a third. Rules were drawn up for all of these eventualities including, for example, the idea of "triangulation Nike Air Max 98 Scontate ," which set out the VAT implications of a trader in country A purchasing goods in country B for transportation and sale into country C.