When 2015 rolled around, new VAT tax laws set in place by the EU affected all sellers with buyers in the EU. itch.io responded by giving sellers all the necessary information to comply with the new regulations, but the burden of registering as a VAT MOSS seller and filing taxes was left up to the seller. This wasn’t that great.

Starting today a new payout model is available to itch.io. A method where itch.io will collect money on your behalf, and distribute it to you in bulk when you request to be paid. In this method itch.io will automatically apply country specific tax to all your purchases where necessary, and will file the taxes with the EU quarterly. If you choose this new payout mode, you’ll no longer need to register as a VAT MOSS seller, and are no longer required to send quarterly reports. (Note: This doesn’t mean you don’t have to do any taxes, make sure to check with your country’s requirements for income tax if necessary.) 

You can enable the new payout mode by navigating the Seller settings page and selecting it as one of the options on the top. That’s it! itch.io will now be collecting on your behalf. At the moment, all purchases done with this new payout mode in USD. Please verify with your project pages that the price of your content is set accordingly.

On the My games page you’ll notice a new tab for payouts. From here you can manage any existing payouts, or request a new one. Currently itch.io is set up to deliver payouts over PayPal, but if you need a special arrangement please feel free to get in touch. You can claim purchases for payout 7 days after they have been completed. 

Note: The old payout mode is still available and you can choose between the two depending on your needs.

Enjoy!