Tax classification on invoices

When you create or finalise an invoice in Jimdo, you are responsible for applying the correct tax rate. Jimdo provides the tools to set rates but does not validate whether they are correct for your business, product type, or customer location.

Note: This article gives general guidance. It is not tax advice. Consult a tax advisor or accountant to ensure your invoices meet the legal requirements for your specific business situation and country.

How tax rates work in Jimdo Invoicing

You define your own tax rates in Settings → Taxes. You can create multiple rates with custom names (e.g. "VAT 19%", "VAT 7%", "No VAT") and set one as the default rate that is applied automatically to new invoices.

When reviewing a draft invoice, you can:

Keep in mind that the tax rate for Store and Bookings is always set to 0% by default, even if a different default rate is configured. You need to adjust the tax rate manually for each line item if needed.
Change the rate on the entire invoice
Apply different rates per line item if your products or services carry different rates

Standard rate vs. per product rate

Most businesses fall into one of two categories:

All items same rate
Standard rate set as the default and apply to the whole invoice.
A bakery selling only baked goods at the standard rate.

Items with different rates
Per product rate assign a different rate to each line item.
A builder charging standard rate on materials and a reduced rate on services. A bakery selling goods (standard) and baking workshops (reduced).

VAT exempt (small business)
Enable the small business / VAT exemption option in your invoicing settings.
A freelancer operating under the Kleinunternehmerregelung in Germany.

Small business exemption (VAT exempt)

If you operate under a small business exemption in your country such as the Kleinunternehmerregelung in Germany you do not charge VAT. To reflect this correctly:

Go to Payments > Settings > Tax rates in your dashboard.
Set the tax rate to 0%.
The legal disclaimer text is automatically added to your invoices.

We also recommend reviewing your invoice terms to ensure they match your local regulations. The exact wording depends on your country's requirements ask your tax advisor.

How to set up tax rates

Go to Payments > Settings > Tax rates in your dashboard.
Click Add tax rate.
Give it a name (e.g. "VAT 19%") and enter the percentage.
To make it the default, enable the Set as default option.
Save. The rate is now available when creating or editing invoices. Please note that this default tax rate is only applied to manually created invoices, and will not be automatically applied to invoices generated from Bookings or Store orders.

Frequently asked questions

Does Jimdo automatically apply the correct VAT rate?

No. You set your own tax rates in Settings > Taxes. For Store orders and Bookings, the tax rate is always set to 0% by default, regardless of your configured default rate. You need to adjust the tax rate manually for each invoice. Jimdo does not validate whether it is legally correct for your situation.

I sell in multiple EU countries. How do I handle different VAT rates?

You can create separate tax rates for each country or scenario. However, Jimdo does not currently have an automatic cross border tax engine. For cross border sales at scale, consult a tax advisor and consider dedicated accounting software.

My invoice shows the wrong tax rate. Can I fix it?

If the invoice is still a draft, yes open it and change the rate before finalising. If it has already been finalised, you need to issue a credit note to correct it.

What does "No VAT" look like on the invoice PDF?

If you have a small business exemption, you need to create a tax rate with 0%. A legal disclaimer text will be shown on the invoice indicating that no VAT is charged.