A clearance agent (shipbroker) who informs a port service provider that the shipping company will instruct it to provide services – which are only partially determined at that time – establishes contact with a specific customer, so that there is only one intermediary service and not several individual intermediaries in relation to a large number of different types of services. This brokerage service is not exempt from VAT if, as a result of the mediation of the business contact, there are a large number of different transactions that have not yet been conclusively determined in terms of type and scope at the time of the brokerage, which can be both taxable and tax-exempt.
Source: datenbank.nwb.de
Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.
