The German Federal Finance Ministry issued a new template for the domestic residency certificate required under Section 13b(7) sentence 5 of the VAT Act (UStG), with the BMF circular dated April 10, 2026.

The certificate template, designated as USt 1 TS, replaces the previous version and must be used to confirm domestic residency status for VAT reverse charge purposes. Under Section 13b UStG, certain transactions require the recipient rather than the supplier to account for VAT, with specific documentation requirements including proof of the recipient's domestic tax residency.

The updated template maintains the core function of certifying that a business is resident in Germany for VAT purposes, which is essential for proper application of the reverse charge mechanism. German tax authorities use these certificates to verify compliance with reverse charge obligations, particularly for cross-border transactions and specific domestic supplies subject to the reverse charge rules.