Italian prosecutors have told Amazon’s European unit and two senior managers they could face trial over the sale of Chinese goods without proper payment of import value-added tax and customs duties, Reuters reported on 10 November, citing a document it had seen. Milan prosecutors allege that more than 1.5 million products from outside the European Union were sold through Amazon’s marketplace and logistics network in Italy without proper payment of those charges.
Prosecutors have so far quantified unpaid import VAT at more than €3.52 million, per Reuters. That is about €2.35 per product on the figures so far, by our arithmetic. Amazon called it an “ungrounded proceeding” and said it would “vigorously defend” its position.
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The key insight: Milan prosecutors have told Amazon’s European unit and two managers they could face trial, alleging that more than 1.5 million non-EU products were sold through its Italian marketplace and logistics network without proper import VAT and customs duties, per Reuters. Unpaid VAT is put at more than EUR 3.52 million so far, about EUR 2.35 per product by our arithmetic.
The notice concluding the investigation, which Reuters describes as a procedural step that usually precedes a request for trial, was served on Luxembourg-based Amazon EU S.à.r.l. under Italy’s corporate liability law, and on the two managers. It went to 70 suspects in total, according to Reuters, including scores of operators of online stores accused of importing mainly Chinese-made goods while bypassing customs declarations and import taxes.
Prosecutors allege that Amazon knew, or should reasonably have known, that around 80% of the goods handled through its Italian logistics system originated in China, Reuters reported. They say the company failed to carry out adequate checks on sellers, customs documentation and the movement of goods through its warehouses. The notice also alleges that Amazon relied on automated logistics systems that did not have direct access in Italy to key seller identification data, which prosecutors say was held abroad.
Customs authorities are still calculating the total amount of duties allegedly evaded, so the overall claim could increase once that assessment is completed, per Reuters. The case follows police raids in November last year on Amazon’s Italian headquarters in Milan and a logistics hub near Bergamo.
Amounts in Amazon’s Italian tax and customs cases, as reported: more than EUR 3.52 million of unpaid import VAT so far in the new customs case (Reuters, 10 Nov 2026), and the separate 2019-21 VAT case of about EUR 1.2 billion and a EUR 527 million payment in December 2025 (The Star via MLQ.ai). All are prosecutors’ or reported figures, not court findings.
What Was Posted on X
AMAZON FACES POSSIBLE TRIAL IN ITALY ๐ฎ๐น OVER CHINESE IMPORTS
Milan prosecutors say more than 1.5M non-EU products were sold without proper import VAT and customs duties; unpaid VAT is put at more than โฌ3.52M so far, per Reuters. $AMZN calls the case ungrounded.
Wall St Engine posted on 10 November that Amazon faces a possible trial in Italy over Chinese imports, citing Reuters: Milan prosecutors say more than 1.5 million non-EU products were sold without proper import VAT and customs duties, with unpaid VAT put at more than 3.52 million euros so far. The post notes that Amazon calls the case ungrounded. The figures are prosecutors’ allegations as reported by Reuters.
Amazon’s Response
Amazon said it was “committed to complying with all applicable laws and regulations in every country where we operate and we require all sellers on our marketplace to do the same”, per Reuters. “We will vigorously defend our position in this ungrounded proceeding,” the company said. Under Italian law, recipients of a notice concluding an investigation can submit arguments, documents and evidence before prosecutors decide whether to seek a trial.
A Separate, Larger Tax Case
An MLQ.ai summary citing The Star notes that this is separate from a larger Italian tax dispute. In March, Milan prosecutors asked for a trial of the same European unit and four managers over about €1.2 billion of alleged VAT evasion on sales from 2019 to 2021. Amazon had agreed in December 2025 to pay €527 million, including interest, to Italy’s Revenue Agency. We did not read The Star’s article.
As we read it, the notice is aimed at the marketplace and fulfilment model: prosecutors allege the logistics network, not only individual sellers, failed to stop the goods. Amazon denies the claims.
Amazon, statement to Reuters, 10 Nov 2026
“We will vigorously defend our position in this ungrounded proceeding”
Three Implications
FOR THE CASE The notice went to 70 suspects, including Amazon, two Amazon managers and scores of online-store operators, according to Reuters.
FOR THE AMOUNT Customs authorities are still calculating the duties allegedly evaded, so the overall claim could increase, per Reuters.
FOR THE PROCESS Under Italian law, recipients can submit arguments, documents and evidence before prosecutors decide whether to seek a trial, per Reuters.
What Is Not Established
No request for trial has been reported yet, and no court has ruled. The total of customs duties is still being calculated. The figures in this piece are prosecutors’ allegations as reported by Reuters; we did not see the notice. Amazon denies the claims.
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Milan prosecutors have served Amazon’s European unit and two managers with a notice that usually precedes a request for trial, alleging that more than 1.5 million non-EU products moved through its Italian marketplace without proper import VAT and duties, per Reuters. Unpaid VAT is put at more than €3.52 million so far, about €2.35 per product by our arithmetic, and Amazon calls the case ungrounded.
A note on sourcing. Allegations, figures and quotations come from Reuters’ 10 November 2026 report, read in syndication, which cites a prosecutors’ document we did not see. The separate 2019-21 case figures come from an MLQ.ai summary citing The Star, as reported. The per-product figure is our arithmetic. Allegations are not findings of a court.
Gennaro Cuofano is a CRO and tech executive who has worked in AI since late 2015, starting with bringing NLP, natural-language generation, voice and chatbot products to the marketing industry. His background is in law and finance: he holds a Master's degree in Law and an International MBA with an emphasis on corporate finance (LUISS Business School and the University of San Diego, 2012), and worked as a financial analyst at a real-estate investment firm in San Diego and as an assistant controller. His work focuses on business model strategy, business engineering and, more broadly, structural analysis: how companies make money, read from their own filings. He created FourWeekMBA and leads research there and at The Business Engineer, his newsletter on AI and business strategy, with over 95,000 subscribers and more than 1,000 published analyses. His writing has also appeared on Entrepreneur (for example, How to Digitize a Family Business in Europe) and HackerNoon. Find him on LinkedIn and Substack. See how we source.
