Cyprus for Amazon FBA & EU Sellers (2026): Company, VAT, OSS and EORI Setup

Cyprus has become a natural base for Amazon FBA operators and EU e-commerce sellers: it is an EU member inside the customs union and VAT area, it uses English widely, and after the 2026 tax reform its headline corporate rate sits at a competitive 15%. But an FBA business is a goods business, and goods trigger VAT and customs obligations that a pure services company never sees. This guide sets out exactly what a Cyprus FBA company must put in place in 2026.

Zeno is not a law firm; it coordinates independent Cyprus Bar advocates and ICPAC-licensed accountants who handle the incorporation, VAT registrations, and ongoing compliance described below. For the wider picture on the trading vehicle itself, read the company registration guide alongside this article.

Can you run Amazon FBA through a Cyprus company?

Yes. A Cyprus private company limited by shares is a standard EU legal person that can hold the Amazon Seller Central account, own the stock, sign the FBA agreement, and issue invoices to buyers across the Union. Nothing in Amazon's European marketplace rules or in Cyprus company law prevents it.

What matters is the compliance wrapper around the company. As an EU established seller, a Cyprus company benefits from free movement of goods within the single market and from EU-wide VAT simplifications that non-EU sellers cannot fully use. In exchange it must register for Cyprus VAT, obtain an EORI number for any goods entering or leaving the EU customs territory, and account for VAT correctly in every country where it has customers or stock. Get those three elements right and the day-to-day selling is administratively straightforward.

How is a Cyprus FBA company taxed in 2026?

Net trading profit is taxed at the 15% corporate income tax rate applying from 1 January 2026. A Cyprus tax-resident, non-domiciled shareholder can then extract dividends free of the 17% Special Defence Contribution, subject only to the capped 2.65% GESY health levy.Income Tax Law N.118(I)/2002 (as amended for 2026)

The corporate rate rose from 12.5% to 15% as part of the 2026 reform, aligning Cyprus with the OECD global minimum framework while remaining one of the lower headline rates in the EU. Profit is computed on audited accounts, and an FBA company will normally sit above the small-company review threshold once inventory and receivables are counted, so budget for a full statutory audit. The mechanics of the rate, tax residency, and provisional tax are set out in the Cyprus corporate tax guide 2026.Assessment and Collection of Taxes Law N.4/1978

For the individual owner, the attraction is the non-dom regime: a person who becomes Cyprus tax-resident but is not domiciled in Cyprus pays no Special Defence Contribution on dividends, interest or rents for up to 17 years. Combined with the 15% corporate layer, the total effective burden on distributed trading profit can be materially lower than in most seller home countries — but only where the individual genuinely establishes residency under the 183-day or 60-day tests. See the non-dom status explainer for the conditions.Special Contribution for the Defence Law N.117(I)/2002

Do you need Cyprus VAT and the OSS scheme?

Almost certainly both. A Cyprus company must register for VAT once its taxable turnover exceeds the €15,600 domestic threshold, and it should register for the Union One Stop Shop (OSS) to report cross-border B2C sales once those exceed the EU-wide €10,000 distance-selling threshold.VAT Law N.95(I)/2000

The €10,000 threshold introduced by the EU e-commerce VAT package is cumulative across all Member States, not per country, and for an active FBA seller it is crossed almost immediately. Above it, you must charge the VAT rate of the customer's country. OSS lets you avoid registering separately in each of those countries: you file a single quarterly OSS return in Cyprus that declares and pays the VAT due to every Member State of consumption, cutting cross-border VAT red tape substantially.EU One Stop Shop (VAT e-commerce package)

The legal architecture is the EU VAT Directive as amended by the 2021 e-commerce package, which abolished the old country-by-country distance-selling thresholds and replaced them with the single €10,000 figure plus OSS reporting. The standard Cyprus VAT rate is 19%. Registration and OSS enrolment are handled through the Cyprus Tax Department's TAXISnet portal; our VAT registration guide walks through the forms and deadlines.Council Directive 2006/112/EC, as amended by Directive (EU) 2017/2455

Do you need an EORI number for imports?

Yes, if goods cross the EU external border. Any Cyprus company importing inventory from outside the EU — stock manufactured in China, the UK, Turkey or the US, for example — must hold an EORI number before it can clear that stock through customs. Exporting to third countries requires it too.EU EORI system (Union Customs Code)

An EORI number is an EU-wide identifier valid in every Member State and free of charge. A Cyprus EORI starts with the "CY" prefix and is built on the company's VAT number, so VAT registration comes first. It is issued by the Cyprus customs and excise authority, and for an established Cyprus operator the application is typically processed within a few business days. Without it, a shipment cannot be released, and import VAT and any duty must be settled at the border — import VAT is generally recoverable by a VAT-registered company, but cash-flow planning still matters.

Does Pan-EU FBA force foreign VAT registrations?

Yes. OSS covers reporting, not storage. The moment Amazon holds your inventory in a fulfilment centre in another EU country — which is exactly what Pan-EU FBA and the European Fulfilment Network do — you create a taxable presence there and must register for VAT locally in that country, in addition to your Cyprus VAT and OSS.

This is the single most common trap for sellers who assume OSS removes all foreign obligations. Holding stock in, say, Germany, Poland, France, Italy, Spain or the Czech Republic (Amazon's core Pan-EU countries) is a physical presence that each tax authority treats as a local registration trigger, and movements of your own stock between those warehouses are reportable intra-Community transfers. The practical rule of thumb: use OSS for the cross-border sales, and add a local VAT number in every country where your goods are physically stored. If you want to keep registrations to a minimum, restrict fulfilment to a single country (for example, EFN from one warehouse) rather than opting into full Pan-EU distribution.

When does Amazon collect the VAT for you?

In defined cases the marketplace itself is the "deemed supplier" and collects the VAT. This applies to distance sales of imported goods in consignments up to €150, and to sales within the EU made by non-EU established sellers through the platform. It does not generally apply to EU-established sellers like a Cyprus company selling EU-held stock to EU buyers.Council Directive 2006/112/EC, Article 14a

Under the deemed-supplier rule, the transaction is split in two: a supply from the underlying seller to the marketplace, and a supply from the marketplace to the consumer, with the platform accounting for the consumer-facing VAT. The key point for a Cyprus company is that because it is EU-established, it usually remains the party responsible for VAT on its EU sales — Amazon does not step in to collect it for you in the way it does for many non-EU sellers. That makes correct Cyprus VAT, OSS, and local registrations your responsibility, which is precisely why the structure needs to be set up properly from day one.

What substance does the company need?

Enough to be genuinely managed and controlled in Cyprus. A Cyprus company is tax-resident, and entitled to Cyprus tax treatment, because its central management and control sits in Cyprus — not merely because it is registered there. For an FBA business that means real local direction, not a nameplate.Income Tax Law N.118(I)/2002 (residency and management and control)

In practice, substance means Cyprus-resident directors who actually take the commercial decisions, board meetings held in Cyprus, a genuine local office, and proper bookkeeping and annual audit performed by an ICPAC-licensed firm. Banks and payment providers now scrutinise substance heavily during onboarding, and a company that looks like a brass-plate risks both being taxed in the country where decisions are really made and losing its banking. If the owner intends to draw non-dom dividends, the owner's own Cyprus residency (183-day or 60-day route) must also be real. Substance is therefore the foundation the whole tax outcome rests on.

How do you set the structure up?

Incorporate the company, register for VAT and the OSS, obtain the EORI, open banking and a payment gateway, then add local VAT numbers for any Pan-EU storage countries. Sequence matters, because the EORI is built on the VAT number and OSS enrolment follows VAT registration.

1. Incorporate the Cyprus limited company and appoint Cyprus-resident directors to establish management and control (see the registration guide).
2. Register for Cyprus VAT via TAXISnet, then enrol in the Union OSS for cross-border B2C reporting.
3. Apply for the EORI numberso imported stock can clear EU customs in the company's name.
4. Open a business bank accountand connect Amazon disbursements and a payment gateway — substance documentation helps onboarding here.
5. Add local VAT registrations in every country where Pan-EU FBA stores your inventory, and set up intra-Community stock-movement reporting.
6. Put ongoing compliance in place: bookkeeping, quarterly VAT and OSS returns, annual audit, and the corporate tax return.