Overview

Since the start of 2018, Belarus has required remote‑service providers to charge local value‑added tax. Amazon complies by adding a 20 % VAT surcharge to the fees it bills sellers who are physically located in Belarus. Sellers who understand the rule and submit a valid Belarusian tax‑identification number can avoid the extra charge and keep their operating costs lower.

Key Points

• 20 % VAT surcharge — Amazon automatically applies a 20 % tax on monthly subscription fees and other service charges for sellers without a Belarusian VAT registration.
• Exemption with a TIN — Providing a registered Belarusian Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) removes the 20 % surcharge from future fee invoices.
• Rule effective from 1 Jan 2018 — The requirement has been in force for all non‑exempt sellers based in Belarus since the beginning of 2018.
• Self‑service entry — Sellers can enter their VAT ID directly in Seller Central; no support ticket is needed.
• Separate from product‑level VAT — The marketplace‑level VAT is distinct from any VAT the seller may owe on the goods sold to customers.

How Belarus VAT Is Applied and Exempted

1. Initial fee calculation — When a seller’s account does not contain a Belarusian TIN, Amazon adds a 20 % VAT line to the invoice. Example: a Professional plan priced at $39.99 is billed as $47.99 ($39.99 + 20 % ≈ $8.00 VAT).
2. Tax collection and remittance — Amazon holds the VAT amount and forwards it to the Belarusian tax authority on the seller’s behalf each month. Example: the $8.00 VAT from the previous step is reported and paid to the state treasury in the same reporting period.
3. Submission of VAT ID — The seller logs into Seller Central, navigates to the tax information page, selects Belarus, and enters the official TIN. Example: after entering “BY123456789”, the system validates the number against the national registry.
4. Verification and exemption activation — Once Amazon confirms the TIN’s validity, it disables the VAT surcharge for all subsequent fee cycles. : the next month’s Professional plan invoice returns to the base $39.99 with no VAT line.