For questions and answers about AWS South Africa (Pty) Ltd and the changes you are experiencing, please read through our FAQs below.
1. What is Amazon Web Services South Africa (Pty) Ltd. (AWS ZA)?
2. Which of my AWS accounts are affected?
3. Why is AWS launching AWS ZA as a new service provider?
5. What can I do to prepare for the launch of AWS ZA?
6. Will my access to AWS services change? Will I experience service down time?
7. What will change when my contracting party changes to AWS ZA?
Billing, Payment, and Remittance Questions
8. What invoicing documents should I expect?
9. What payment currencies and payment methods are supported by AWS ZA?
10. I pay for my AWS services on invoicing terms. Is there anything I need to do?
11. I pay for my AWS services by credit card or direct debit. Is there anything I need to do??
12. AWS, Inc. was already charging me Value Added Tax (VAT). Did this change?
13. If I update my tax address mid-month, how is VAT calculated?
14. What Tax Registration Numbers (TRNs) and formats does AWS ZA accept?
Consolidated Billing Customers and Reseller Questions
17. I am an AWS Partner/Solution Provider. How does AWS ZA impact me?
18. I am an Enterprise customer. How does AWS ZA impact me?
19. What happens to my AWS Marketplace services?
20. What happens with my existing RIs/Savings Plans?
21. I have more questions or wish to continue purchasing services from AWS, Inc. Whom can I contact?
1. What is Amazon Web Services South Africa (Pty) Ltd. (AWS ZA)?
AWS is introducing Amazon Web Services South Africa (Pty) Ltd. (AWS ZA), a level 1 B-BBEE certified company and an affiliate of Amazon.com, Inc. based in South Africa. Starting November 1, 2020, AWS ZA has replaced Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS, Inc.) as the AWS services provider for all accounts located in South Africa using the credit card payment method, and starting August 1, 2020 for all accounts located in South Africa using the invoicing payment method. AWS ZA also provides all AWS invoicing, billing and payment services for AWS service usage for these accounts. Please see FAQ #2 for more information about which AWS accounts are affected.
The AWS Customer Agreement has been updated to reflect AWS ZA replacing AWS, Inc.
2. Which of my AWS accounts are affected?
AWS accounts determined to be located in South Africa will be served by AWS ZA. AWS will determine each individual account’s account location based on the account’s Tax Settings and/or billing and contact addresses.
Please see FAQ #16 for more details regarding Organizations with linked accounts in multiple countries.
3. Why is AWS launching AWS ZA as a new service provider?
We regularly review our business structure to ensure that we are able to best serve our customers. We launched AWS ZA to allow customers based in South Africa to purchase AWS services from a local B-BBEE certified entity based in South Africa and to support the growing adoption of cloud computing across the region.
AWS ZA was launched for all accounts located in South Africa as of November 1, 2020.
5. What can I do to prepare for the launch of AWS ZA?
Please make sure that your account details are all up to date to ensure proper invoicing and to receive any notifications or updates regarding the launch. We recommend checking that the following are all up-to-date for each of your AWS accounts:
(1) Tax Settings
Please also make sure that your Accounts Payable (AP) department or the person responsible for making payments for your accounts is aware of this launch, and is ready to make payment to AWS ZA. This may include updating records in billing systems, opening purchase orders, or verifying that your bank can remit payment in ZAR to a South African bank account. Please check your request for payment for remittance instructions.
6. Will my access to AWS services change? Will I experience service down time?
No, there will be no change in the services currently offered through AWS, Inc., and you can continue using the same services you use today with AWS ZA. Your account number, content, configurations, access rights, and security settings will remain the same.
7. What will change when my contracting party changes to AWS ZA?
(1) Request For Payment (RFP) will replace your commercial invoice and will be issued in South African Rand (ZAR).
(2) South African Rand (ZAR) will be the only payment currency. Please see the AWS Payment Currency Terms and Conditions (also available on the My Account page in the AWS Management Console).
(3) The AWS Customer Agreement or other agreement with us governing your use of AWS services has been updated to replace Amazon Web Services, Inc. with Amazon Web Services South Africa (Pty) Ltd as your service provider for your eligible South African accounts. The AWS Customer Agreement has been updated to reflect this change, and your continued use of AWS services after the change constitutes your acceptance of the new agreement.
(4) Invoicing payment methods are limited to EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) and wire transfer.
(5) RFPs will continue to include Value Added Tax (“VAT”) on all service charges.
Billing, Payment, and Remittance Questions
8. What invoicing documents should I expect?
AWS ZA will issue a commercial Request For Payment (RFP) to replace your AWS, Inc. commercial invoice. This document will replace the word “invoice” with “request for payment”, and all references to AWS, Inc. will change to reflect AWS ZA as the new service provider. Your commercial RFP will reflect the paying account’s billing address.
AWS ZA will also generate VAT invoices for all customers. Please check your Tax Settings to ensure that all details are correct. If you are a part of an Organization, please note that tax invoices will be consolidated when possible for all accounts with the same Tax Settings.
Please see FAQ #16 for more information about Organizations with linked accounts in different countries.
9. What payment currencies and payment methods are supported by AWS ZA?
South African Rand (ZAR) is the only supported currency for payments to AWS ZA. All commercial Requests for Payment will reflect amounts due in ZAR, and all payment must be remitted in ZAR. Service pricing will continue to be published in United States Dollars (USD), and amounts due will be computed in USD and converted to ZAR for billing, subject to the AWS Payment Currency Terms and Conditions (also available on the My Account page in the AWS Management Console).
Please see FAQ #19 for more information about invoices for AWS Marketplace usage and FAQ #16 for more information about Organizations with linked accounts in different countries.
10. I pay for my AWS services on invoicing terms. Is there anything I need to do?
Please make sure that you and your Accounts Payable (AP) department or the person responsible for making payments for your accounts are prepared to remit payment in South African Rand (ZAR) to AWS ZA to a bank located in South Africa. You may need to check with your AP department or your bank to ensure you can remit payment to a new back account in South Africa in ZAR, or to verify that any existing purchase order will cover usage billed by AWS ZA.
We will inform you of new remittance instructions as we approach launch of AWS ZA.
11. I pay for my AWS services by credit card or direct debit. Is there anything I need to do?
If you are paying with one of these payment methods, please check that your Default Payment Method is correct and able to accept and process charges in ZAR. Direct Debit is not supported for making payment in Rand.
VAT/Tax Questions
12. AWS, Inc. was already charging me Value Added Tax (VAT). Did this change?
No, if your account was already being charged Value Added Tax (VAT), you will continue to be charged VAT. You may notice a few changes on your VAT invoices: they will be issued by AWS ZA and will reflect its VAT number and location in South Africa. Please make sure that your Tax Settings are updated with the correct details to ensure your VAT invoices are correct.
13. If I update my tax address mid-month, how is VAT calculated?
AWS calculates and applies applicable VAT based on the tax address for each individual account at the time an invoice is generated. One-time purchases like Reserved Instances, Domain Names, or Savings Plans will be invoiced at the time of purchase. Your regular monthly usage will be invoiced around the third day of the month following usage. Please check your Tax Settings to make sure that your tax address is always correct to ensure that your VAT invoices reflect the correct details and that you are billed by the correct entity.
14. What Tax Registration Numbers (TRNs) and formats does AWS ZA accept?
AWS ZA will accept your ten-digit VAT registration number. This can be added to your account(s) on the Tax Settings page in the AWS Management Console. If you are the owner of a master (payer) account for an Organization, you can edit the Tax Settings for all member (linked) accounts based in South Africa or any other country where we accept a Tax Registration Number (TRN). If all accounts in your Organization share the same TRN, please consider enabling Tax Settings Inheritance.
Consolidated Billing Customers and Reseller Questions
15. My account is the master (payer) account for an Organization (consolidated billing family). How do I check that all my member (linked) accounts have the correct address and associated AWS seller entity?
Master (payer) account owners can see the Tax Address and AWS seller of record associated with each account by visiting the Tax Settings page in the AWS Management Console. If you are the owner of a master (payer) account for an Organization, you can edit the Tax Settings for all member (linked) accounts based in South Africa or any other country where we accept a Tax Registration Number (TRN). The far-right column will indicate each account’s seller of record (e.g., AWS Inc., AWS EMEA SARL, or AWS ZA). If all accounts in your Organization share the same TRN, please consider enabling Tax Settings Inheritance.
16. My account is the master (payer) account for an Organization (consolidated billing family) and I have member (linked) accounts based in different countries, what should I expect?
AWS will determine the appropriate AWS seller of record for each individual account based on the account’s account location. If you have member (linked) accounts being served by different sellers, you will receive separate commercial invoices or Requests for Payment (RFPs) from the applicable seller based on each account’s location. Please note that your default payment instrument should allow payment in the currency for each seller entity. If paying by wire, you will be required to remit payment separately for invoices or RFPs from different sellers in the currency displayed on the applicable invoice.
All RFPs from AWS ZA and AWS Professional Services or Training invoices from AWS ZA will reflect amounts due in South African Rand (ZAR). Please see the AWS Payment Currency Terms and Conditions (also available on the My Account page in the AWS Management Console). Any Invoices or Requests for Payment from AWS, Inc., or AWS EMEA SARL will use your preferred currency, as set on the My Account page in the AWS Management Console.
AWS Marketplace invoices will be billed in your preferred currency, from AWS, Inc.
Each seller will have its own remittance instructions on the invoice or RFP. Payment must be remitted in the currency displayed on the applicable invoice to the applicable seller.
17. I am an AWS Partner/Solution Provider. How does AWS ZA impact me?
As an AWS Partner/Solution Provider, please follow the longstanding operational guidance to apply your own Tax Settings to all of your linked accounts. You should enable Tax Settings Inheritance on the Tax Settings page in the AWS Management Console to ensure that your tax details are used for all of your linked accounts. By ensuring your own information is on all linked accounts, AWS can calculate VAT correctly, if applicable. As an AWS Partner/Solution Provider, you are responsible for managing and charging your end customers applicable taxes.
Please reach out directly to your Partner Development Manager (PDM) to determine if the launch of AWS ZA impacts your accounts. You can find your PDM’s contact details by logging in to APN Partner Central.
18. I am an Enterprise customer. How does AWS ZA impact me?
Please reach out directly to your Account Manager to determine if the launch of AWS ZA impacts your account(s). Please use the Sales Contact Form if you are unsure of whom to contact on your Account Team.
19. What happens to my AWS Marketplace services?
There are no changes to the products and services you purchase through the AWS Marketplace. These products and services will continue to be invoiced by AWS, Inc. in the paying account’s preferred currency. You will need to maintain your systems and processes to pay invoices from AWS, Inc. in this currency for all AWS Marketplace purchases. If you also receive a Request for Payment from AWS ZA for AWS service usage for the same billing period, you will need to make two payments: one in your preferred currency to AWS, Inc. for your Marketplace purchases and one in ZAR to AWS ZA for your AWS services.
20. What happens with my existing RIs/Savings Plans?
Any Reserved Instance (RIs) or Savings Plans (SPs) will continue to apply towards any eligible matching usage, regardless of any change in your AWS service provider since purchase. Any recurring hourly charges for an RI or SP will be billed by the seller for the account whose usage is covered by the RI/SP. If the RI or SP does not match any usage, it will be billed by the seller for the account that originally purchased the RI/SP.
For example, if a linked account in Germany purchases an RI, any upfront payment would be billed by AWS EMEA SARL as seller. And if usage by the German linked account is covered by the RI or if the RI does not match any usage, applicable recurring charges would be billed to the German linked account by AWS EMEA SARL. If usage by another linked account based in South Africa is covered by the RI, applicable recurring usage charges would be billed to South African linked account by AWS ZA.
21. I have more questions or wish to continue purchasing services from AWS, Inc. Whom can I contact?
If you have additional questions or wish to continue purchasing services from AWS, Inc., please open a support case, and our Customer Support team will be happy to help.