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Amazon VAT Transaction Report: How to make sense of the data and prepare VAT documentation

09 Nov 2026
Amazon VAT Transaction Report: How to make sense of the data and prepare VAT documentation

Selling on Amazon, whether through FBA (Fulfilment by Amazon) or FBM (Fulfilment by Merchant), generates a large volume of transactional and logistical data. For the correct processing of VAT and accounting, it is therefore important to know how to interpret individual events and which information to take into account.

One of the key documents is the Amazon VAT Transaction Report (AVTR). It contains detailed information about sales, returns, refunds, inventory transfers between logistics centres, and other VAT-related transactions.

In this article, we will show you where to find the report, how to identify individual transaction types, and how to prepare its data for Czech accounting software.

1. Where to download the Amazon VAT Transaction Report and what to monitor in it

The AVTR report can be found in the Amazon Seller Central environment in the section:
Reports → Fulfilment by Amazon → Tax → Amazon VAT Transactions Report.

Data can be downloaded in CSV or TXT format and subsequently processed in Excel or another spreadsheet tool.

When is the report available?

By default, Amazon made the monthly report for the previous month available from the third day of the following month. As of 3 November 2026, it is also introducing the option of continuous downloading of the Amazon VAT Transaction Report (AVTR) during the month.

The new feature allows you to:

  • request a report at any time during the month,
  • obtain data up to the day that is three days prior to the request date,
  • repeatedly download a report for the same period and thus obtain the latest available data.

Amazon describes this option as a beta feature and is rolling it out gradually. It may therefore not be available to all sellers immediately from 3 November 2026. It is advisable to check its availability directly in Seller Central.

Amazon is simultaneously expanding the report with two new fields:

  • TRANSACTION_UPDATED_DATE – indicates the date (UTC) when Amazon last processed the transaction. It helps identify records that have been added or changed since the previous download.
  • GOV_INVOICE_ID – contains the electronic invoice identifier assigned by the relevant state system. It is currently populated for transactions in Poland that fall under the KSeF system.

Amazon also states that most transactions tend to be processed within approximately 30 days of the end of the relevant period. Subsequent updates are less frequent, yet it is advisable to check whether newer data is available before preparing final accounting and tax documents.

The new option of continuous downloading thus brings greater flexibility, but also the need to keep track of individual versions of the report and check for potential changes.

What to focus on when reviewing the report?

Important fields include in particular:

  • TRANSACTION_TYPE – determines the type of transaction, for example, SALE, RETURN, or FC_TRANSFER.
  • TRANSACTION_COMPLETE_DATE – the transaction completion date, according to which Amazon assigns the record to a reporting month.
  • DEPARTURE_COUNTRY and ARRIVAL_COUNTRY – the country of dispatch and receipt of the goods.
  • SALE_DEPART_COUNTRY and SALE_ARRIVAL_COUNTRY – the countries related to the original sale.
  • TAX_COLLECTION_RESPONSIBILITY – indicates who is responsible for collecting VAT according to Amazon's data.
  • BUYER_VAT_NUMBER – the buyer's VAT number, if available for the given transaction.
  • TRANSACTION_UPDATED_DATE – the date the transaction was last processed.
  • GOV_INVOICE_ID – electronic invoice identifier, relevant primarily for Polish transactions in the KSeF system.

For the TAX_COLLECTION_RESPONSIBILITY field, it is important to distinguish between the values SELLER and MARKETPLACE:

  • SELLER – the seller is responsible for collecting and paying the VAT.
  • MARKETPLACE – Amazon collected and paid the VAT as an electronic marketplace under the marketplace facilitator regime.

However, be aware that for sellers who do not have the VAT Calculation Services (VCS) activated, SELLER may be the default value. Therefore, individual data points cannot be evaluated in isolation. It is also necessary to consider the tax regime of the specific sale and related report fields.

Nor does the MARKETPLACE value mean that the seller can omit the transaction from their accounting records. The sale still needs to be recorded, and its impact on accounting and tax obligations must be assessed.

It is also important to bear in mind that the AVTR is not a complete record of all commercial and logistical events. For correct processing, it is advisable to compare it with other Amazon reports, accounting documents, and your own inventory records.

2. How to identify individual transaction types?

One of the most important steps in processing the AVTR is the correct categorisation of transactions. Not every item in the report represents a sale to a customer.

Transaction Type Meaning What to watch out for
SALE Standard sale of goods to a customer. The basic type of sales transaction, for which it is necessary to assess the place of supply and the appropriate VAT regime.
RETURN Physical return of goods by the customer to an Amazon logistics centre. The physical return of goods itself does not automatically mean a correction of the tax base.
REFUND Financial refund to the customer. Can be grounds for correcting the tax base and VAT. It must be linked to the original sale.
FC_TRANSFER Transfer of own inventory between Amazon logistics centres. This is not a standard sale to a customer, but the transfer can have tax implications.
COMMINGLING_BUY / COMMINGLING_SELL Historical transactions related to the FBA Virtual Tracking programme. Amazon ended this programme in supported European marketplaces as of 31 March 2026.

The difference between RETURN and REFUND deserves special attention.

RETURN captures the physical movement of goods back to a logistics centre. REFUND, on the other hand, captures the financial reimbursement to the customer. These events do not necessarily occur in the same period, and one does not automatically imply the other.

During accounting and tax processing, it is therefore important to link the refund with the original sale and verify whether grounds for correcting the tax base have actually arisen.

3. FC_TRANSFER: Why transferring goods between warehouses is not a standard sale

The FC_TRANSFER transaction denotes a transfer of inventory between Amazon logistics centres. It is not a sale to a customer, and therefore should not be included among standard SALE transactions.

From a VAT perspective, however, the cross-border movement of one's own goods between EU Member States can have significant implications.

According to Article 17 of Directive 2006/112/EC and the Czech VAT Act, the transfer of one's own business assets from one Member State to another can be considered a supply of goods for consideration.

Provided legal conditions are met, such a transfer is generally reported:

  • in the country of dispatch as an exempt supply of goods to another Member State with the right to deduct,
  • in the country of arrival as an intra-Community acquisition of goods.

However, not every movement of inventory automatically constitutes a transfer of one's own goods for VAT purposes. It is necessary to assess the actual course of the movement, the ownership of the goods, and potential statutory exemptions.

Practical example: Inventory transfer within Pan-European FBA

Let's imagine a Czech seller using Pan-European FBA, who is permitted to store inventory in the Czech Republic, Germany, and Poland.

Amazon may, according to its logistical needs, move goods from a German logistics centre to a Polish one, for example. Even though this is not a sale to a customer, it may be a cross-border transfer of one's own goods that has VAT implications.

The seller should therefore:

  1. Identify the transfer in the AVTR and other Amazon reports.
  2. Verify the country of dispatch and receipt of the goods.
  3. Assess whether it is a transfer of one's own goods according to VAT rules.
  4. Check registration and reporting obligations in the affected countries.
  5. Ensure the transaction is correctly recorded in accounting and tax records.

With Pan-European FBA, it is important to take into account that Amazon may move inventory between permitted European logistics centres. Cross-border movements therefore cannot be ignored simply because they do not involve a sale to an end customer.

4. How to prepare AVTR data for accounting software?

Accounting programs such as Pohoda, Money S3, Vario, or Abra are not ordinarily adapted for the direct processing of the raw AVTR report. Data must therefore first be checked, sorted, and prepared for accounting entry.

When preparing data, it is important to focus particularly on the following areas:

  • Currency conversion: Amazon may record transactions in various currencies. It is necessary to distinguish between the accounting exchange rate and determining the tax base for VAT purposes. It cannot be automatically assumed that one summary exchange rate on the last day of the period will suffice for all transactions for the entire month. The exchange rate used and the conversion date must comply with the relevant accounting and tax rules.
  • Transaction date and reporting period: An important data point is TRANSACTION_COMPLETE_DATE. Based on this, Amazon assigns transactions to a specific reporting month. This does not mean, however, that this date can automatically be considered the date of the chargeable event (tax point). For example, an order created at the end of January, which is dispatched in February, will appear in the AVTR in the February report. This is because a sale is included in the report based on the dispatch date, not the order creation date. For refunds and returns, different completion dates apply.
  • Data aggregation: For accounting processing, it may be practical to group transactions by type, country of dispatch and receipt, currency, VAT rate, tax regime, and reporting period. Subsequently, summary accounting documents can be prepared, or data can be formatted into a structure supported by the specific accounting software. When aggregating, it is important to maintain the traceability of the original transactions.
  • Checking VAT IDs for B2B transactions: If the report contains the buyer's VAT ID, it is advisable to verify its validity via the VIES system. For exempt intra-Community supplies, it is important to retain evidence that legal conditions have been met. It is recommended to archive the result of the VAT ID check, including the date and time of verification. The mere inclusion of a VAT ID in an Amazon report, or its subsequent verification in VIES, does not automatically prove the fulfilment of all conditions for the exemption of a specific supply.
  • Preparing data for import: Some accounting systems allow data import via XML. However, it is always necessary to verify whether the given program and its specific configuration support such an import and what data structure they require. Data from the AVTR may therefore need to be converted first into a format supported by the specific accounting software.
  • Checking updated data: The new option of continuous AVTR downloading means that the report may not be final after the first download. If Amazon later processes new or modified data for an already downloaded period, an updated version of the report can be requested. The TRANSACTION_UPDATED_DATE field is used to identify changes. We therefore recommend recording the download date of each report version, verifying the availability of newer data before closing the accounting period, and evaluating any changes and reflecting them in records according to their nature. The new GOV_INVOICE_ID field can be particularly important for sellers conducting transactions in Poland who need to work with electronic invoice identifiers in the KSeF system.

Conclusion

The Amazon VAT Transaction Report is an important document for the correct accounting and tax processing of sales on Amazon. However, simply downloading the report is not enough. The key is to correctly distinguish individual transaction types, identify inventory transfers between countries, and assess their VAT implications.

With an increasing volume of data and new options for continuous report downloading, it is also important to establish regular checking and archiving of documents.

At Taxeedo, we specialise in processing data from Amazon, VAT compliance, and preparing accounting documents. We help e-shops navigate transactional data, correctly assess tax implications, and prepare documents for accounting and tax returns.

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