To sell on Amazon Europe from the US, you create a regional Europe account — from your Amazon.com Professional account if you already have one, or through the Sell Globally dashboard after opening a North America and Brazil unified account if you are new. Amazon says a business outside Europe “may not be required to form a Europe-based company to sell your products in Europe” (data checked 2026-10-04). Then you choose FBA or merchant fulfillment, and before your first unit ships you answer the VAT question, because storing or selling goods in an EU country can require a VAT registration there.
This guide covers the account itself: how it is created, what it unlocks, what it costs next to your US plan and which decision comes first. Stock placement and VAT mechanics have their own pages, linked where they come up, so this one stays short on both.
Step Zero: Which Account Path Applies to You
Amazon’s Sell in Europe page gives two starting points (data checked 2026-10-04):
| Your situation | What Amazon tells you to do |
|---|---|
| Already selling on Amazon.com with a Professional selling account | “create a regional Europe account” |
| New to Amazon, want to sell in the US and Europe | “first create a North America and Brazil unified account. Then use your Sell Globally dashboard in Seller Central to create a regional Europe account.” |
Two things follow from that table. First, Europe is a separate account, not a setting inside your US one. Amazon’s US-to-international guide says the North America and Brazil unified account covers “the US, plus Canada, Mexico, and Brazil,” and that “if you want to sell in Europe, the Asia-Pacific, or the Middle East and North Africa, you’ll also need additional regional or country-specific accounts” (sell.amazon.com, data checked 2026-10-04). Second, Europe is the one regional account in that list. Japan, India, Australia, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt are country-specific accounts on the same page; Europe is one account for many stores.
The Sell Globally dashboard is also where you size the move before you commit. Amazon describes it as a place to “view your sales potential by country and product” (same page, checked 2026-10-04).
What One Europe Account Covers
The point of the regional structure is reach. Amazon’s UK seller site puts it this way: “With just one account you can reach customers all across Europe with our ten European stores (Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.fr, Amazon.de, Amazon.it, Amazon.es, Amazon.pl, Amazon.nl, Amazon.se, Amazon.com.be, and Amazon.ie) and manage all your listings and inventory in Europe” (sell.amazon.co.uk, data checked 2026-10-04).
Two numbers on Amazon’s pages measure different things, and they get mixed up:
| Figure | What it counts | Source (checked 2026-10-04) |
|---|---|---|
| 10 stores | European Amazon storefronts reachable from one account | sell.amazon.co.uk, Sell across Europe |
| 28 countries | Where FBA from European fulfillment centers can reach shoppers | sell.amazon.com, Sell in Europe |
The US page phrases the second figure as: by exporting inventory to Amazon fulfillment centers in Europe and using FBA, “you can reach shopper in 28 countries” [sic]. Ten storefronts, wider delivery reach. One account does not mean one listing, though. Amazon adds: “Listing in one Europe store does not automatically cross-list products in others.” The tool that does the copying is covered in our Build International Listings guide.
Do You Need a European Company?
Amazon’s full answer, from the Sell in Europe FAQ (data checked 2026-10-04):
“If you’re a business outside Europe, you may not be required to form a Europe-based company to sell your products in Europe. Depending on the specifics of your business and your sales strategy, however, it may be advantageous to do so.”
Read that as: the account does not require a European entity, but your business model might reward one. Amazon does not list the cases on that page. The questions that usually decide it sit outside Amazon:
- Who is the importer? Goods entering the EU or UK need a party to clear them. Our EORI number guide covers that registration.
- Where is the stock? Inventory held in an EU country is the most common VAT trigger (next section).
- Which product rules name an EU-based party? Product safety and packaging rules can require one. See our GPSR guide and EPR guide.
Our position: start with your US entity and the regional account, and form a European company only when one of those three questions makes it cheaper than the workaround. That is the order Amazon’s wording supports — “may not be required” first, “may be advantageous” second.
What the Europe Account Costs Next to Your US Plan
Amazon’s Sell in Europe FAQ (data checked 2026-10-04):
- “There are separate Professional selling plan fees for Europe account and North America and Brazil unified accounts.”
- “However, if you link global Amazon selling accounts, your monthly fee will be either the equivalent of USD 39.99 per month or the sum of the selling plan fees for each region and country in which you have active listings, whichever is lower.”
So a linked Europe account does not add a second full subscription on top of your US $39.99. Referral fees are another matter: Amazon says they “vary by product category,” charged as “a percentage of the total price or a minimum amount, whichever is greater,” and it publishes Europe rate cards separately from US ones. Our referral fees guide explains how the percentage and minimum interact. Fulfillment fees depend on the setup you pick next.
FBA, Pan-European FBA or FBM: The Short Version
Amazon gives “two basic options”, FBA and FBM, and lists Pan-European FBA as a service within the FBA option (data checked 2026-10-04):
| Option | Amazon’s description | When it fits |
|---|---|---|
| FBA in Europe | “Export inventory to Amazon fulfillment centers in Europe and use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) to store, pack, and ship customer orders.” | You can register for VAT where the stock sits |
| Pan-European FBA (service within FBA) | Amazon will “automatically distribute your units across EU countries to meet customer demand—at no additional cost to you.” | You want Amazon to spread stock across the EU and accept VAT in every storage country |
| Fulfilled by Merchant | “Ship orders to customers directly using a suite of solutions we call Fulfilled by Merchant.” | Testing demand before committing inventory |
The choice between Pan-EU, the European Fulfilment Network and country-by-country FBA is mostly a VAT choice, and it is laid out in Pan-EU FBA vs EFN. Two points from the US page are worth knowing first:
- Germany borrows capacity. Amazon says its “fulfillment network in Germany relies on additional capacity in Poland and the Czech Republic. If you choose to place in Germany only, you will be charged an additional €0.35 for ‘Choice of Placement’ on every unit distributed to these countries from Germany.” Enabling those two countries instead “triggers local VAT obligations for which you will be responsible.”
- The UK is a separate pool. Amazon states the UK has not been part of Pan-European FBA since 1 January 2021 (sell.amazon.de, checked 2026-08-16, quoted in our guide to selling on Amazon UK).
If you are weighing Germany against other first markets, our Germany, Japan and Netherlands comparison covers that. For upstream storage, see Amazon AWD in Europe.
VAT: The First Compliance Gate
Amazon’s sentence is short (data checked 2026-10-04): “If you store or sell goods to customers in an EU country, you may be required to register for VAT in that country.” It adds that “each Amazon seller is solely responsible for being VAT compliant,” that “the time it takes to become VAT registered can vary,” and that it recommends you “start the process as soon as you register your Europe selling account.”
That last line sets the order. VAT is not a step after listing; it runs in parallel with account setup, because it can take longer than everything else. Three questions decide your exposure:
- Will you store stock in the EU? If yes, expect to register in each storage country. Which countries depends on your fulfillment setup (Pan-EU FBA vs EFN).
- Will you ship from outside the EU straight to EU customers? Then check whether the IOSS scheme applies to your orders (IOSS guide).
- Do your sales cross the EU distance-selling threshold? See Amazon VAT thresholds.
Amazon says it “can provide resources and tools for your VAT registrations and filings in EU countries”; our Amazon VAT Services guide covers that program. This article is not tax advice. Your obligations depend on your goods, volumes and establishment, and are set by each national tax authority.
After VAT come product rules. Amazon’s step 3 tells you to “understand requirements for product compliance, safety, and listing in each European country,” and points to its Manage Your Compliance and Compliance Reference tools. Our Manage Your Compliance guide covers the dashboard.
Getting Paid in Dollars
Amazon’s answer to “How do I get paid for sales in Europe?” names two routes (data checked 2026-10-04): Seller Wallet, to “hold your funds until you’re ready, then transfer to your US bank account, or pay suppliers and VAT directly,” and Amazon Currency Converter, to “automatically convert and deposit proceeds from international sales to your US bank account.” Paying VAT straight from wallet proceeds, without a round trip through a US bank, is the practical reason to look at Seller Wallet. Amazon adds that, if you prefer, you “can use a local bank account as your deposit method” for sales in another store.
How to Sell on Amazon Europe from the US: The Six Steps
Amazon’s Sell in Europe page lists six steps (data checked 2026-10-04). Here they are, with the decision each one carries:
- Create your selling account. Regional Europe account, via the paths in Step Zero. Start the VAT process now, too.
- Select your products. Amazon suggests using “the Best Sellers lists in Amazon Europe stores.” Check category rules for each store at the same time.
- Complete requirements. VAT, product compliance and safety. Amazon says its Service Provider Network can help you “find Amazon-vetted experts who offer competitive rates.”
- List your products. Existing Amazon.com sellers can use Build International Listings; new sellers match or create pages on Amazon.com first, then cross-list.
- Ship inventory and fulfill orders. FBA, Pan-European FBA or FBM, per the section above.
- Manage your business. Payouts, currency and multi-store operations. Amazon also offers European Multichannel Fulfillment for non-Amazon orders (MCF guide).
Common Mistakes
- Assuming Amazon.com covers Europe. Amazon says Europe-based customers “often shop in their local Amazon store because they’re in their local languages and offers faster delivery.” Being visible on the US store is not the same as being listed on Amazon.de.
- Listing in one store and expecting all ten. Cross-listing is a separate action per store.
- Leaving VAT until stock is in transit. Amazon recommends starting at account registration.
- Enabling Poland and the Czech Republic without a plan. It removes the €0.35 placement fee but adds two VAT registrations.
- Treating the UK as part of Pan-EU. It is a separate inventory pool.
- Forming a European company first. Amazon’s wording does not require it; let importer, VAT and product-rule needs decide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I sell on Amazon Europe with my US seller account?
Not with the same account. If you sell on Amazon.com with a Professional account, you create a regional Europe account; if you are new, you first create a North America and Brazil unified account, then add Europe through the Sell Globally dashboard (Amazon, checked 2026-10-04). Linked accounts share the fee rule above.
Do I need a European company to sell on Amazon Europe?
Amazon says a business outside Europe “may not be required to form a Europe-based company,” and that forming one “may be advantageous” depending on your business and sales strategy (checked 2026-10-04). The account does not require it; importer, VAT and product-safety questions may still make one worthwhile.
How many countries does an Amazon Europe account cover?
Amazon’s UK seller site lists ten European stores reachable with one account: UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Poland, Netherlands, Sweden, Belgium and Ireland (checked 2026-10-04). Separately, Amazon’s US page says FBA from European fulfillment centers can reach shoppers in 28 countries.
The Bottom Line
Opening Amazon Europe from the US comes down to one account and one early decision. The account is a regional Europe account created from your US Professional account or the Sell Globally dashboard, with no European entity required by Amazon’s own wording, and a linked-account fee rule that caps the plan fee at the lower figure. The decision is VAT: where your stock sits decides where you register, so choose a fulfillment setup with your VAT exposure in mind and start registering when you open the account. For other markets, see our guides to Japan, India and Brazil.