When did Bandcamp start charging VAT?

As per the title really. I just bought a digital download album on Bandcamp and it added VAT at the last minute which I’ve never noticed before. Also, and slightly strangely, it said 20% VAT but actually only added 10% (£0.80 on £8.00)

Under EU regulations, digital downloads have been liable for VAT since 2015.

One time at band camp….

so they moved their base to the UK/EU, good on them for paying tax

It’s the OP who is paying the tax.

But you could say good on them for not trying to circumnavigate it as it pushes their prices up.

Well the op. Pays it and they pay the government win win really

Wetting myself at the people keen enough to spot the American Pie reference. Any more?

It depends on the seller/label, I believe. Some charge tax, some include it. I shall ask bandcamp. BandCamp! Arf! Like in American Pie! 😆 😆 😆

Thanks all. To be fair, the American Pie references are probably more entertaining than my original post! Amazingly, in all my years of using Bandcamp I’ve never put the two things together!!

To be clear, I don’t have any issue with paying the VAT. Just interested that it had popped up.

When they branched out into cryptography.

Here ya go lucky7500, a reply from the lovely Bryan at bandcamp!

”Hey Dez,

Good question! When you purchase tracks or albums on Bandcamp, we’re obligated to collect any applicable VAT if you’re located in the EU. The discrepancies you’re seeing between sellers is likely due to the fact that this charge is only calculated on the item’s minimum sale price.

So, for example, if you purchase an album with a minimum price of €10.00 and you’re located in a country with a 20% VAT rate, we’ll charge an additional €2.00 VAT. However, if you purchase another album with that’s available for free, but you generously decide to pay €10.00 to support the artist, then that entire purchase price would be considered a “donation” as far as tax purposes are concerned, and no VAT would be applied to the order at all.

If you purchase any physical goods on Bandcamp, that adds another variable to the process. In those cases, where payments are made directly to the sellers and not processed through Bandcamp, it’s up to the seller to collect any additional taxes if applicable, so that may vary from seller to seller.”

So now ya knows.