- As the owner of the IKEA brand and worldwide IKEA franchisor, Inter IKEA Group works together with its franchisees and suppliers to co-create an even better IKEA offer and franchise system that benefits the many.
- We welcome the European Commissions VAT in the digital age initiative in order to modernize VAT reporting, adapt VAT treatment of the platform economy and facilitate VAT registration and compliance. We are encouraged to see the consideration the European Commission has made towards e-invoicing and digital reporting requirements (DRRs) to make the compliance process less cumbersome.
- Nevertheless, we would like to continue to emphasize the importance for the requirements to be fully harmonized so that there are no deviations between Member States, both in terms of the requirements and in terms of systems. It is important to have a clear streamlined process and clear explanation on the requirements to limit the discrepancies in interpretation between Member States. For example, we believe that invoicing deadlines could also be made clearer in the proposed text. As a business, invoicing can take place on arrival or on dispatch. Harmonization on what is meant with the time at which a transaction is finalized would be welcome.
- We also support e-invoicing as a default system (i.e. also applicable on local transactions). However, as mentioned above, it is important that the requirements on the invoices and invoicing systems are harmonized to avoid the need to have various systems in place.
- Furthermore, all B2B invoicing needs should be considered with the new standard as B2B flows include more non-VAT related requirements that businesses must adhere to.
- Overall, access to more transactional data increases the importance for Member States to secure the data remains confidential.
- We would like to express reservation regarding the removal of the possibility to issue summary invoices for all types of transactions (including local transactions). We understand the need to report on a transactional basis and on a (almost) real time basis. However, we believe that the removal of this possibility will lead to an unnecessary increase in the administrative burden for businesses. We believe it is important that summary invoices are clearly defined and specified, as they are a beneficial instrument overall.
- Finally, we believe there may also be a missed opportunity to not include local transactions in the same DRR reporting which could make it possible for Member States to provide pre-filled returns. This ultimately could have a positive impact on the overall compliance burden.
- To conclude, we support the European Commissions tax action plan for fair and simple taxation including modernizing and harmonizing VAT rules across the digital age. We remain ready to provide further information on our experiences as needed.
Source ec.europa.eu
Input by other organizations into the public consultation
- EESPA
- InHouse Tax Forum (Belgium)
- Italian Banking Association (ABI)
- ETNO/GSMA
- DATEV eG
- Siemens AG
- Sovos
- EuroCommerce
See also – The Library of VAT in the Digital Age (VIDA)
Join the LinkedIn Group on ”VAT in the Digital Age” (VIDA), click HERE
