An VAT highlight in Germany last week certainly was the 6th Berlin Umsatzsteuertag (VAT Day) which saw various speakers, inter alia from the EU Commission and the German Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF).
The biggest news certainly was that Germany will publish a discussion draft law for the introduction of mandatory B2B e-invoicing. This move was somewhat expected since Germany has applied for a permission to introduce mandatory B2B e-invoicing in December 2022 pursuant to Art 395 of the EU VAT Directive.
The EU Commission’s approval is expected within the next three months.
Little is known about the content of the new law or the possible effective date. The earliest effective date could be 1 January 2024. However, given the complexity of the topic and the fact only a discussion draft of the law is published, this date does not appear to be feasible. The law is also not expected to foresee e-invoicing reporting rules. Overall, the BMF seems to start early with the implementation of the EU Commission’s VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) initiative, which has yet to be approved by the EU Member States.
Source Matthias Luther
