I am a jewelry designer/creator under my own brand and I outsource the manufacturing, am I liable for the HBJOAT tax?
Short answer
Yes. As a designer who markets jewelry under your own brand — even if you outsource all manufacturing to workshops — you are considered the economical manufacturer and are liable for the HBJOAT tax.
Why is the creator subjected even without creating anything himself?
The HBJOAT tax does not distinguish between physical manufacturers and economic manufacturers. Therefore, as long as you:
- Design the jewelry (designs, plans, prototypes),
- Have them manufactured under your responsibility by subcontracted workshops.,
- And market them under your own brand,
You are the operator who places the products on the market. Therefore, you are subject to the HBJOAT tax on your sales turnover, at the rate of 0,19 %.
And are the subcontracting workshops also liable?
No, not in this scheme. The workshops that manufacture for you do not market the products under their own name: they carry out a service provision manufacturing. You, the client and distributor, are solely responsible for the tax on the final sales of these jewels.
Distribution to resellers: who pays the tax?
If you distribute your jewelry to resellers (retailers), the taxation chain works as follows:
- You (the creator/brand) : payable on your sales turnover to resellers (wholesale under your brand).
- Retail resellers : liable on their own sales revenue to the end consumer.
There is no deduction mechanism: each link in the chain declares and pays on its own turnover.
Calculation basis and declaration
The tax is calculated on the revenue excluding VAT of your sales of jewelry falling under taxable NC codes, at the rate of 0,19 %. The declaration is made on teletax.fr.
