Selling dental products in Germany, Spain and France
Germany, Spain and France are among the largest dental markets in Europe, and the ones where a foreign dental supplier has the most opportunities. They do, however, have different rules and habits, and it is better to know them before the first order.
Let us start with VAT, because it is the first question that comes up. The standard rate is 19% in Germany, 21% in Spain and 20% in France.
In sales between businesses, though, the rate of the customer's country matters less than it seems. If the practice has a valid EU VAT number verified in VIES, the sale is normally VAT-free, with the reverse charge: the customer accounts for the tax in their own country. If the customer is not registered for intra-EU trade, different rules apply, which should be checked with an accountant case by case.
A practical detail: many dental practices carry out VAT-exempt activities and are not always registered in VIES. That is why the customer's VAT number should be checked on every order, not taken for granted.
Then there is language, and here the rules are stricter than many think. For medical devices, each Member State sets the language of labels and instructions, and all three countries require their own. France also has a general law requiring French in commercial information about products.
In practice: before selling in a country, check that the instructions for your products exist in its language. It is a job to do only once, but without it the product cannot be sold, whatever the channel.
Language also matters in the catalogue. A German practice searches in German, with German technical terms, and a poorly translated catalogue tells them straight away that nobody on the other side will look after them.
On shipping, you need to be realistic. A German depot delivers to a German practice within twenty-four hours. From a warehouse in another country, with an express courier, it usually takes a few working days. Competing on speed with the depot round the corner is difficult.
Instead, you compete on other things: a product the local depot does not stock, a better price on consumables, a specialisation. And it is precisely on reorder materials, bought a few days in advance, that a few days of delivery matter less.
In Germany there is also a specific obligation to consider: the packaging law may require registration in the national register even for sellers based in another country. It is one of the points to clarify with your adviser before starting.
The three things that make the first order difficult, the language of the catalogue, correct VAT and secure payment, are the same ones a platform can take off your hands. On Oralzon the catalogue appears in German, Spanish and French as well as five other languages, VAT is calculated by country with a VIES check, and the customer pays when ordering.
What remains with you is the part no platform can do: having products with labels and instructions in the language of the country.
If you want to see what a foreign order looks like from the supplier's side, you can explore the vendor dashboard in a demo store, without signing up.
In short: the standard VAT rate is 19% in Germany, 21% in Spain and 20% in France, but between businesses with a verified VAT number the reverse charge normally applies, the language of labels and instructions is a requirement of the product before it is one of the channel, you will not beat the local depot on delivery speed, and it pays to focus on products, price and specialisation.