EU Member States are free to set their own assimilation thresholds for Intrastat reporting in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 638/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council. These tresholds are set separately for arrivals and dispatches. If traders exceed the threshold during the previous year, they are oblidged to submit an Intrastat declaration. Threshold values depend on the volume of intra-Community trade. As it grows, threshold values change. These limits have increased this year for some EU countries, so I present a complete overview of the assimilation thresholds for Intrastat reporting in 2020.
Complete overview of assimilation thresholds for Intrastat reporting in EU countries for 2020
| 2020 | ||
| Arrivals | Dispatches | |
| Austria (EUR) | 750 000 | 750 000 |
| Belgium (EUR) | 1 500 000 | 1 000 000 |
| Bulgaria (BGN) | 470 000 | 290 000 |
| Croatia (HRK) | 2 200 000 | 1 200 000 |
| Cyprus (EUR) | 180 000 | 55 000 |
| Czech republic (CZK) | 12 000 000 | 12 000 000 |
| Denmark (DKK) | 6 900 000 | 5 200 000 |
| Estonia (EUR) | 230 000 | 130 000 |
| Finland (EUR) | 600 000 | 600 000 |
| France (EUR) | 460 000 | 0 |
| Germany (EUR) | 800 000 | 500 000 |
| Greece (EUR) | 150 000 | 90 000 |
| Hungary (HUF) | 170 000 000 | 100 000 000 |
| Ireland (EUR) | 500 000 | 635 000 |
| Italy (EUR) | 200 000 | 0 |
| Latvia (EUR) | 220 000 | 120 000 |
| Lithuania (EUR) | 250 000 | 150 000 |
| Luxembourg (EUR) | 200 000 | 150 000 |
| Malta (EUR) | 700 | 700 |
| Poland (PLN) | 4 000 000 | 2 000 000 |
| Portugal (EUR) | 350 000 | 250 000 |
| Romania (RON) | 900 000 | 900 000 |
| Slovakia (EUR) | 200 000 | 400 000 |
| Slovenia (EUR) | 140 000 | 220 000 |
| Spain (EUR) | 400 000 | 400 000 |
| Sweden (SEK) | 9 000 000 | 4 500 000 |
| The Netherlands (EUR) | 800 000 | 1 000 000 |
| United Kingdom (GBP) | 1 500 000 | 250 000 |
Differences in Intrastat reporting in EU countries
In some countries, it is possible to send Intrastat reports in two forms – simplified or detailed, depending on the amount of intra-EU trade turnover. There are two limits in these countries, the higher one defines the requirement for Intrastat reporting in detailed form. There is no unified form of such reports, the final form differs in different member states. While the detailed report is completed only by a statistical value compared to the simplified report in some countries, in other contries, there is also requiered infomation about delivery term or mode of transport. The table contains the basic thresholds which define the requirement for Intrastat reporting. It means tresholds for simplified Intrastat reporting.
Although the obligation for Intrastat reporting is based on European Union legislation, reporting rules vary from country to country. In addition to European legislation, the rules are also determined by national legislation. Therefore, there are different assimilation thresholds for Intrastat reporting across EU countries, as well as reporting methods or deadlines for reporting in a given year. There is a more marked difference in threshold values in France and Italy.
French simplified Intrastat declarations must be submitted from the first delivery of goods to another EU member state, regardless of the total value of the goods. In Italy, exceeding of certain reporting threshold for dispatches changes only periodicity of reporting. Intratat declarations must be submitted monthly, if intra-EU transaction exceed 50 000 EUR. If not, the obligation to report Intrastat is quarterly. Traders begin Intrastat reporting from the first dispatches transaction as well. So it is always necessary to familiarize yourself with the rules of the certain country in which the trader has reporting obligation.
Intrastat and the United Kingdom
You have certainly not missed the fact that in the table, I mention the United Kingdom, which left the European Union on 31. January 2020. After that the UK entered the transition period. This period runs until the end of 2020, when the United Kingdom remains in the single market and customs union – without barriers, customs formalities and controls. There are no changes for the reporting units, they still are obligated to report Intrastat.