Working with international clients can be tricky, depending on where exactly they’re located, whether there’s a tax treaty in place, and what sort of foreign exchange and transfer options you have as a freelancer. Not to mention difficult time zones!
Things are much easier if your international clients are still based within the EU. Firstly, your currency remains the same, international payments are easy for your clients, you’re likely to be on the same or a similar time zone, and lastly, you can take advantage of the reverse charge system (“Reverse Charge Verfahren”).
The reverse charge procedure helps to simplify purchases and sales with VAT within the EU, by regulating the transfer of sales tax between sellers and customers who are based in different EU countries. This article explains all you need to know about reverse charge.
The purpose of the reverse charge rule is to simplify free trade within the EU, and it's been in place for almost 20 years.
As a freelancer in Germany, you are permitted to service a client in another EU country. If that EU country is also subject to VAT, the reverse charge rule applies. It stipulates that it’s the buyer – your client – who is obliged to pay VAT on the goods or services received, and not you. Therefore, you don’t need to charge VAT on your invoices to those clients.
The reverse charge rule, however, does not apply when your customer is a private person. A private person pays VAT on the sale of goods or services that you provide. If you're a Kleinunternehmer, the reverse charge rule still applies when you provide services to a VAT-registered business in another EU country. In this case, you issue an invoice without VAT and reference the reverse charge procedure — just as any other freelancer would. Your EU client then accounts for the VAT in their own country. What the Kleinunternehmer status changes is only that you don't charge VAT on domestic sales in Germany — it does not exempt you from the reverse charge obligation on intra-EU B2B service transactions.
Consider these examples of how reverse charge works in practice:
In order to send a legally compliant invoice as a freelancer in Germany, your invoices must include specific information about you, your client, and the service or product you delivered.
In order to effectively apply the reverse charge rule, your invoice must include your VAT ID number, as well as a clear statement referring to the reverse charge procedure somewhere on the invoice. This ensures that your customer can declare and reclaim the VAT when they complete their own reports. The clearest way to do this in German is by adding the statement “Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers”. In English, you could simply state “Reverse charge”.
Tip from Accountable💡: Create the perfect invoices using our app, and the correct legal wording is added for you automatically!
Make sure to check incoming invoices that you pay as part of your business expenses, too. Any invoices you receive for goods or services you pay for should also include specific information, especially if the reverse charge rule is applied.
Short answer: Yes! You should include all of your freelance income in your advance VAT return (“Umsatzsteuervoranmeldung”), and that includes any sales or expenses that fall under the reverse charge procedure.
Invoices where the reverse charge rule was applied fall under point 3 of the advance VAT return, tax-free deliveries of sales and other services (“Lieferungen und sonstige Leistungen [steuerfreie Umsätze]”). This won't affect the amount of VAT that you pay, but it can be used by the tax authorities to ensure your client actually pays the VAT due in their own country.
You must also include these transactions when you submit the summary report (“Zusammenfassende Meldung”). In this report, you’ll list all sales made to EU countries, in individual items, broken down by client. You also need the respective VAT IDs for your clients for this, which you can request when you first ask for their address and other details.
In general, if your customer is not in the European Union, no VAT is charged or paid. However, there are some countries that have specific agreements with Germany that regulate the rules of sales tax in a similar way to the reverse charge procedure. You can read more about working with international clients outside of the EU in this article.
Go for it! As long as you’re paying taxes and observing VAT rules that apply to you as a freelancer in Germany, you can service or deliver goods to a client anywhere around the world. If you find that you’re still unsure about how the reverse charge rule applies to you, or how to ensure you’re invoicing or reporting VAT correctly, our team is happy to help you. We work closely with experienced tax consultants and can advise you or assist you in finding a certified tax consultant.
Der komplette Leitfaden für die ersten 12 Monate - von Steuerberatern geprüft
Kostenlos herunterladen
Author - Sophia Merzbach
Sophia has been a key member of the Accountable team for many years, bringing a unique blend of journalistic precision and in-depth tax expertise to her work.
Who is Sophia ?Thank you for your feedback!
Useful
How much income tax is deducted from your income is largely determined by your tax class. There are ...
Read moreWorking as a self-employed professional has many advantages: You are your own boss and you can choos...
Read moreWorking with international clients can be tricky, depending on where exactly they’re located, whet...
Read moreThey always answer right away to any question I have, they provide clear answers, and they are very patient even when I struggle to understand. They try to explain in different ways. They are very helpful, responsive and friendly.
Chiara Marradi
10/05/2026
This is an amazing application with great support on issues. In short as in day I am addicted to it (in a positive way). I myself is from IT project management and the way they have captured the user requirement, it’s phenomenal.
Sumit Tewary
01/12/2024
UI is great. Feature packed and very easy to use. The team at Accountable were VERY quick to respond and their team of technicians soon had a fix in place. Very happy with the level of service so far. Thumbs up from me!
Dean Osborne
05/06/2023
Everything was great! All my questions were answered quickly and in a friendly manner.
Wenzeslawa Wegener
11/05/2026
This program is a lifesaver, and it is always improving. Plus, it has an AI chat feature that is actually useful.
Jeffrey Humble
12/01/2026
The coaching session on tax management was excellent, good material, excellent explanations and very insightful. Combined with the AI I never feel alone with Accountable.
Sergio Barbarino
13/04/2026
The availability of your team to help and guide people to understand their finances better is what really makes Accountable valuable. While the AI is able to give answers to most basic questions, specific scenarios need counsel from a human which your team performs beautifully.
Norma
06/04/2026
Fast and careful answers from Alina. Top service. Thank you.
Anonymous
06/04/2026
In the world where everyone seems to be out to get small entrepreneurs and overwhelm them with new rules, more taxes and reporting obligations, Accountable often feels like the one steady partner that actually wants you to succeed, providing quick, clear and personalised support. Thank you!
Janina Arsenjeva
10/04/2026
They always answer for questions wherever is via direct e-mail or through app. If they can’t answer fully they will forward you to the right place. Documents were always prepared well and ready to send further to government. Everything is intuitive in the app and easy to sort out even for someone completely green in this field.
Anonymous
12/03/2026
