I’ve written a couple articles now about the changes in the VAT laws and how they may affect small, indie, and self-publishers. After reviewing the guidelines for Barnes & Noble’s Nook Press, I confess I remained confused. Even after emailing support, I was confused. So I just had to see what they were doing in action.
I visited Barnes & Noble’s Nook UK site at http://www.nook.com/gb/ and put in one of my titles, DEFCON One, by Joe Weber. I found the customer-facing price was “£5.40 including VAT.” The price I had set for the UK was £4.50. The UK VAT is 20% and so the math works out. My price plus VAT equals the price shown to customers, including VAT.
Phew!
Now, unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a Nook site outside of the US and UK that I can access. Presumably they ask publishers to enter pricing in Euros for customers who are using a Nook in Europe but still buying from the US or UK site.
It would have been awesome if Nook Press was more clear in their guides and even in their emails when I asked questions about the VAT changes, so that I wouldn’t once again be repricing everything there. If you have been waiting to see how this VAT business shakes out before repricing, you were probably smart!
A.