Concerts and events in Europe for promoters based outside the EU
You run a promotion company in the US, Canada, the Gulf, Egypt, Lebanon or Turkey and you are booking dates in Berlin, Paris or London. Each country then taxes the tickets, withholds tax on the artists' fees and has its own licences and permits. This guide sets out what applies, country by country, with a link to the official text for each rule.
Promoters and organisers with no company in the EU
Concerts first, and the same rules for festivals, conferences, comedy and sports events.
Tours and one-off shows
Production and promotion companies bringing Arabic, Persian, Turkish or English-language artists to European audiences, and the management teams that sell the dates themselves.
Festivals, conferences and sports events
Organisers of festivals, trade conferences, comedy tours or sports events based outside the EU who sell tickets or passes for an event held in Europe.
The main rules, country by country
Rates and dates in force on 4 November 2026, each with its official source.
| Country | Ticket VAT | Artist withholding | Licences and levies | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 7% on concerts, 19% on most other events (§12 UStG) | 15.825% of the gross fee, filed by the payer (§50a EStG) | No promoter licence. GEMA music licence, artists' social levy (KSK) | Germany guide |
| France | 5.5% on concerts (art. 278-0 bis F CGI) | 15% after a 10% allowance, so 13.5% of the gross fee (art. 182 A bis CGI) | Contract with a licensed French producer and notice to the DRAC one month before (Labour Code). CNM tax of 3.5% on ticket revenue (CNM), SACEM licence | In preparation |
| Netherlands | 9% on concerts, 21% on seminars (Belastingdienst) | 20% of the fee, only for artists resident in a country without a tax treaty with the Netherlands. A foreign principal files too (Belastingdienst) | Municipal event permit or notification (Ondernemersplein). Buma 3%, 5% or 7% of receipts (Buma 2026) | In preparation |
| Sweden | 6% on concerts (Skatteverket) | 15% (A-SINK), withheld by the payer. A foreign organiser's own ticket income is also taxed at 15% (Skatteverket) | Police permit for public events (Polisen). STIM 4% of the ticket price up to SEK 675 excl. VAT, 3% above (STIM 2026) | In preparation |
| Spain | 10% on concerts (art. 91 Ley 37/1992) | 24% of the gross fee, 19% for EU and EEA residents. Whether a promoter with no Spanish establishment must withhold is not settled (arts. 24, 25 and 31 TRLIRNR) | SGAE 8.5% of ticket revenue excl. VAT, licence requested 30 days before (SGAE) | In preparation |
| Italy | 10% on concerts until 31 December 2026, new VAT code from 2027 (DPR 633/1972) | 30% of the fee, withholding rules move to a new code on 1 January 2027 (art. 25 DPR 600/1973) | Event licence from the municipality (art. 68 TULPS). SIAE 10% with minimums (SIAE 2026) | In preparation |
| United Kingdom (outside the EU) | 20% standard rate (GOV.UK). Registration from the first sale, no threshold for a business based abroad (HMRC) | Basic rate of income tax, 20% in 2026-27, once payments exceed the personal allowance, through the Foreign Entertainers Unit (GOV.UK) | Local council licence for the event or venue (GOV.UK). PRS for Music 4% of gross box office excl. VAT (Tariff LP) | UK guide |
Each country guide covers the rule, who owes it, the deadline and the official text. A country is added once every rate on it has been checked against its source.
Ticket VAT and the non-Union One-Stop Shop
The venue decides the country. One registration can cover every EU date.
Admission to a cultural, artistic, sporting, scientific or educational event is taxed in the country where the event takes place. This holds for tickets sold to the public and for tickets sold to companies (articles 53 and 54 of the EU VAT Directive). Where your company or your buyer is based does not change the country.
A company with no establishment in the EU can declare the VAT on tickets sold to the public through the non-Union One-Stop Shop (OSS). It registers in one EU country of its choice and files one quarterly return listing the VAT due in each EU country of the tour, at each country's rate (European Commission). Registration by the 10th day of the month after the first sale makes the scheme apply from that sale (art. 57d of Regulation 282/2011). The return and the payment are due by the end of the month after each quarter (European Commission).
Tickets sold to the public
Concert, festival, comedy and sports tickets bought by individuals, in every EU country of the routing, through one return.
What needs other filings
Tickets and passes sold to companies, merchandise and drinks you sell at the venue, and every UK date. The rules for business buyers differ by country: check them first for a conference or a trade event.
Change on 1 January 2027
Until 31 December 2026, the VAT Directive limits the non-Union scheme to customers established or living in the EU, so tickets bought by UK, Gulf or US residents fall outside it. From 1 January 2027, the amended article 359 covers all non-business customers (Directive (EU) 2025/516). For a 2026 date with many buyers from outside the EU, confirm the treatment with the tax office of your OSS country.
The VAT you pay on European costs, such as hotels or venue hire, can be claimed back. EU countries refund it to businesses established outside the EU on request, by 30 June of the following year in Germany (§61a UStDV) and France (impots.gouv.fr). The Germany guide gives the German procedure.
Tax withheld on artists' fees
Paid in each country where the artist performs, by whoever pays the fee.
European countries tax artists and athletes who are not resident there on the fees for their performances on their territory, and tax treaties generally allow it. The tax is collected at source: the payer withholds it from the fee and pays it to the tax office, and in Germany, France and the UK this applies to a promoter based abroad as well. Paying the artist's own company does not remove it.
- Germany: 15.825% of the gross fee, filed with the Federal Central Tax Office by the 10th day of the month after the quarter of payment (§50a EStG).
- France: 15% after a 10% allowance, so 13.5% of the gross fee, with expenses paid for the artist added to the base, declared on form 2494-SD by the 15th day of the month after the quarter of payment (art. 182 A bis CGI).
- United Kingdom: the basic rate of income tax once payments in the tax year exceed the personal allowance, declared to the Foreign Entertainers Unit within 14 days of each quarter end (GOV.UK).
The Netherlands, Sweden, Spain and Italy also withhold tax on artists' fees, at the rates shown in the country table.
A fee guaranteed net costs more than it looks
Artists' contracts often state a fee net of local tax. The promoter then pays the withholding on top, calculated on a grossed-up fee. In Germany, a net fee of EUR 100,000 becomes a gross fee of EUR 118,800.12, with EUR 18,800.12 withheld. Write in every contract whether the fee is gross or net, and which company receives it.
Your own ticket income
Promoters are exposed too. Some countries tax the organiser on the income of a performance held there. Germany treats that income as German-source income of whoever earns it, foreign organisers included (§49 EStG). Sweden taxes a foreign organiser's ticket income at 15% and asks for a special tax return giving the date and place of the event (Skatteverket). France taxes the profit of a foreign company that runs a full commercial cycle on its territory, from buying the show to selling the tickets (BOFiP). A tax treaty with your home country can protect you, but only on conditions you must be able to prove, and the wording differs from one treaty to the next.
Licences, music rights, safety and visas
Usually the paperwork promoters from outside the EU notice last.
France requires a licensed partner
A company established outside the EU cannot produce a show in France on its own. It contracts with a French producer holding a licence and informs the regional cultural affairs office (DRAC) at least one month before the show (Labour Code). In the UK, the Netherlands, Sweden and Italy, permits are issued per event or per venue by the council, the municipality or the police.
A collecting-society licence per country
Public performance of music needs a licence from the local collecting society, GEMA in Germany, SACEM in France, PRS for Music in the UK, Buma in the Netherlands, STIM in Sweden, SGAE in Spain or SIAE in Italy, and it covers foreign repertoire too. The organiser requests it before the event and reports the setlist and revenue after it.
Large crowds trigger extra filings
In France, an event for more than 1,500 people is declared to the mayor, or to the police prefect in Paris, at least one month before (Internal Security Code). German venue regulations set their own thresholds.
Visas and work rules
Whether artists and crew need a Schengen visa depends on their nationality (Regulation (EU) 2018/1806). Each country then has its own work exemption for short performances, and the UK has a separate system.
What to do, and when
Counted back from the first on-sale and from the show date.
Before the artist contract
Decide who pays the artist, whether the fee is gross or net, and check the treaty position on your own ticket income in each country of the routing.
Before the on-sale
Choose your OSS country and prepare the registration, which must be in place by the 10th day of the month after the first sale. For France, sign with a licensed French producer.
Two months before the show
Request the music licences, any treaty exemption certificate for the artist, and the visas.
One month before the show
File the DRAC notice and, above 1,500 people, the safety declaration for a French date.
After the quarter of the show
Withholding returns (10th day in Germany, 15th day in France, 14 days after the quarter in the UK), then the OSS return by the end of the month.
By 30 June of the following year
Claim back the VAT paid on your German and French costs.
Do you need an EU company?
Not for one date. Possibly for a tour or a season.
Stay with your home company
The non-Union OSS handles ticket VAT, and VAT on your costs is refunded on request. No European entity is needed to sell tickets.
Consider an EU company
An EU company gives you an EU VAT number, the Union OSS and a European counterparty for venues and banks. It does not remove artist withholding, music rights or licences, and it needs real management in Europe to be taxed where it is registered.
If an EU company fits your plans, see our pages on EU company formation for non-residents and on a European subsidiary for a foreign company. Selling goods online rather than tickets? Our e-commerce page covers that case.
What Balt Partners coordinates
One contact for the European paperwork of your dates, with licensed partners in each country.
Obligation map per routing
VAT, withholding, licences, music rights, safety and visas for each city, with the deadlines in one calendar.
OSS registration and returns
The registration file and the quarterly returns, prepared with our accounting partners.
Withholding and treaty files
Withholding returns, exemption certificates and refund requests, handled by licensed tax advisers in each country.
An EU company when it pays off
A Latvian SIA with its VAT number, bank account and accounting, if your plans go beyond a few dates.
How the coordination runs for a whole routing, from the first call to the VAT refund: tour compliance coordination.
Questions from non-EU promoters about Europe
Not for a single date. A company based outside the EU can declare the VAT on tickets sold to the public through the non-Union One-Stop Shop, without an EU entity. An EU company becomes worth considering for a tour, recurring dates or merchandise sales. The UK has its own VAT registration.
The country where the event takes place. A ticket for a show in Paris carries French VAT whether the buyer lives in France, the Gulf or the US, and whether the seller is European or not. The rate depends on the country and the type of event.
For tickets sold to the public, yes. One registration in one EU country covers every EU country of the tour, and each quarterly return lists the VAT due in each country at its own rate. Merchandise sold at the venue, tickets sold to companies and UK dates follow other rules.
Usually whoever pays the fee, and in Germany, France and the UK that includes a promoter based abroad. The rate differs by country: 15.825% in Germany, 13.5% of the gross fee in France, 15% in Sweden, 20% in the UK above the personal allowance, 24% in Spain and 30% in Italy. A fee guaranteed net is grossed up.
Yes, in some countries. Germany treats the income from a performance on its territory as German-source income of whoever earns it, including a foreign organiser. Sweden taxes a foreign organiser's ticket income at 15% through a special tax return. A tax treaty can remove the charge in some cases, but only on conditions you must be able to prove. Check this before signing the artist contract.
Until 31 December 2026, the non-Union One-Stop Shop only covers customers who are established or live in the EU. From 1 January 2027, Directive (EU) 2025/516 extends it to all non-business customers, so tickets bought by UK, Gulf or US residents can go through the same return.