Ticket trading
June 19, 2011 | 25,00 EUR | answered by StB Manuela Ponikwar
Dear Sir or Madam,
We operate a trade with tickets / admission tickets. We buy and sell on the secondary market, so we are not the organizer. It is unclear to us whether our sales tax is 7% or 19%.
According to the following ruling: http://www.bundesfinanzministerium.de/nn_92/DE/BMF__Startseite/Aktuelles/BMF__Schreiben/Veroffentlichungen__zu__Steuerarten/umsatzsteuer/023__a,templateId=raw,property=publicationFile.pdf
a proprietary trader can deduct 7%, but a broker cannot.
Does anyone know the exact definitions of proprietary trader and broker and can apply it to our situation?
Thank you
Dear client,
Thank you for your inquiry, which I would like to answer as follows within the scope of an initial consultation, taking into account the appropriate fee:
Referring to the VAT application decree (page 77f, link below) regarding §3; Section 3.7 (1), a mediation service for VAT purposes generally only exists if the agent - mediator - visibly concludes the sales transaction in the name of the principal in accordance with the provisions of § 164 (1) of the German Civil Code.
According to your description, this does not apply to you if you actually purchase the tickets in your own name and then resell them. Therefore, there is a legal relationship only between you and the buyer in the sales transaction.
Likewise, according to the VAT application decree regarding §3 Section 3.7 (9):
No mediation service is provided when selling admission tickets acquired from the organizer at fixed prices or from third parties with mark-ups, if the full entrepreneurial risk is borne, i.e. no ticket returns (e.g. in case of non-sale) are possible.
Therefore, your ticket trading is considered as proprietary trading.
According to the cited BMF letter, your sales are subject to the reduced tax rate of 7% in this regard.
Link to the current application decree:
http://www.bundesfinanzministerium.de/nn_112540/sid_D6BD39549F52B1F8180AC00AA8C9F2A7/DE/Wirtschaft__und__Verwaltung/Steuern/Veroeffentlichungen__zu__Steuerarten/Umsatzsteuer/Umsatzsteuer-Anwendungserlass/Umsatzsteuer__Anwendungserlass__aktuell,templateId=raw,property=publicationFile.pdf
I hope this information was helpful to you.
Best regards,
Manuela Ponikwar
Tax advisor
www.ponikwar.de
