Every fulfilment provider publishes a list of what is included. Almost none publish what is not. That gap is where most friction in a new partnership comes from \u2014 not because anything was hidden, but because nobody asked, and it surfaces in week three when a VAT return is due and nobody owns it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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European fulfilment services cover everything between stock arriving at a warehouse and a parcel reaching your customer, plus the returns leg back. In practice that means seven components:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We have covered how each of those is priced separately<\/a>. The rest of this piece is about the other half of the conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n None of this is unreasonable to exclude. All of it is work that has to happen anyway, and a brand that assumes it is covered finds out at the worst moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n A provider stores your stock. It does not register you for VAT, file your returns or act as your tax representative. Holding stock in the Netherlands means Dutch VAT registration<\/a>, and OSS covers cross-border B2C sales \u2014 but the registration, filings and liability sit with you or an accountant you appoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Who owns it:<\/strong> you, with a tax adviser. Start it early \u2014 it is usually the longest item in an onboarding timeline, longer than anything the warehouse does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n A provider can handle customs paperwork on a shipment. It cannot tell you the correct commodity code for your product, because that depends on what the product is made of and how it is constructed \u2014 information only you have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who owns it:<\/strong> you. Commodity codes, country of origin and accurate values at SKU level. Misclassification is the most common cause of a held consignment, and the liability stays with the declarant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Since December 2024 the EU\u2019s General Product Safety Regulation requires an EU-based responsible person for most consumer products sold into the EU. A fulfilment provider is not that person by default. Labelling, safety documentation and category rules sit outside the scope of storing and shipping a box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who owns it:<\/strong> you, or a compliance service you appoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Getting stock from the factory to the fulfilment centre is usually yours. A provider receives, counts and books in what arrives. Arranging the freight, paying import duty and clearing customs on the way in is a separate arrangement to be agreed rather than assumed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who owns it:<\/strong> you, or a freight forwarder \u2014 unless it is explicitly written into your agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n A provider executes your returns rules<\/a>. It does not write them. Whether an opened item is resellable, how long the window is, who pays the return leg, what happens to something damaged in transit \u2014 your decisions, and the warehouse needs them written down before the first return arrives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who owns it:<\/strong> you. Expect to be asked for them, in detail, during onboarding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n A provider packs to your specification using your materials. Designing the unboxing, sourcing the boxes, tissue and inserts, and keeping them in stock is a separate workstream. Some providers will hold and replenish your packaging; it is not automatic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who owns it:<\/strong> you, with the provider holding stock of it by agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Every warehouse has a list of what it cannot store, driven by insurance, fire regulation and carrier rules. efulfilment.eu cannot store lithium, including lithium batteries. Flammables, aerosols and temperature-sensitive goods carry their own conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who owns it:<\/strong> check this before anything else. A restriction discovered after a contract is signed is a much worse conversation than one discovered in the first meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Three things that are sometimes included, sometimes not, and almost never clarified unprompted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Six questions. Any provider worth working with answers them directly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Efulfilment Europe dispatches from Almere in the Netherlands with access to 75+ carrier options<\/a>. What sits inside the service and what sits with you is agreed in writing before go-live rather than discovered afterwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat is not included, and who owns it instead<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
VAT registration and filing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Customs classification and product data<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Product compliance<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Inbound freight to the warehouse<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Returns policy and commercial decisions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Packaging design and sourcing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Restricted and prohibited goods<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The grey areas worth pinning down<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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What to ask before you sign<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n <\/div>\r\n
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