Servicios de cumplimiento

Last month, we said progress around on the Bookkeeping Act, which aims to digitise accounting records in Denmark, had stalled somewhat due to the introduction of a new government. The Danish Authorities have since issued a new update in respect of the Bookkeeping Act.  

From 1 February 2023, a new schedule for the digital bookkeeping standard came into effect. 

All digital standard systems that need to be registered will need to do so by 1 January 2024.  

We are awaiting more detailed requirements from the Danish government, as well as exact timeframes as to when companies are expected to comply with the Bookkeeping requirements.  

One of the most discerning observations of the past year has been the sharp increase in the deployment of environmental taxes. Through the taxation of elements that contribute to the proliferation of environmental issues that impact society today, the underlying objective of these taxes is ultimately the improvement of ecological affairs. This is a stark example of how countries can exploit fiscal measures to serve wider societal agendas. 

More recently, the United Kingdom and Spain have introduced a Plastic Packaging Tax (PPT). Portugal is the latest country to propose a similar initiative.  

Portugal has recently published guidance relating to a contribution required on single-use packaging made of either plastic or aluminium (or a combination of the two). This is expected to apply on read-to-eat meals and takeaways.  

The tax was initially expected to come into effect on 1 January 2023 but has been delayed until September 2023.  

Tungsten will follow developments in relation to the tax and assess whether we can support the upcoming tax in Portugal.  

The ongoing inflation crisis has a direct correlation with the VAT rates that countries deploy.  

Germany has introduced the following VAT rate revisions: 

• Temporary VAT reduction to 7% on energy supplies- specifically gas supplies, as well as supplies of heat via a heating network, effective 1 October 2022 to 31 March 2024 
• Restaurant and catering services were subject to a reduced rate since the start of the Covid pandemic. The reduced rate of 7% has now been extended until 31 December 2023 
• Subject to certain conditions, certain photovoltaic systems and their main components will be zero-rated from January 2023.  

Such policies serve to illustrate how societal issues and seismic events, such as inflation and the Covid pandemic, dictate VAT rates both in Europe and globally. 

Germany is a compliant territory for Tungsten Network and our e-invoicing solution supports all valid VAT rates in the country.  

The Polish government, via Ordinance No. 28048/2022, has introduced the following VAT modifications: 

• The goods subject to 0% have now been altered; 
• Specific goods subject to the 8% VAT rate, including those relating to soil fertiliser and soil product supply and acquisition, were due to have the 8% VAT rate expire as of 31 December 2024. For now, this VAT rate expiry date has been removed. 

Please refer to the Ordinance for further details.  

Spain has further widened the scope of goods subject to the reverse charge, in addition to our update last month, which cited specific goods now subject to the reverse charge in the country. As previously stated, the reverse charge shifts the onus of paying VAT on the buyer rather than the seller and consequently, regulates the flow of VAT to governments and is therefore an effective mechanism to guard against tax evasion.  

Gold, mobile phones, games consoles, laptops and computer tablets are now also subject to the reverse charge in Spain.  

In comparison to other countries, Sweden’s intent to drive e-invoicing in the country has been somewhat muted- but this appears to be changing. In light of the VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) proposal, the next few months is expected to be intriguing period as we await individual country responses to the demands imposed by the proposal. 

The proposal will compel Member States to review their fiscal procedures. The Swedish Agency for Digital Government (DIGG) are now promoting mandatory B2B e-invoicing in Sweden and, in collaboration with the Swedish tax agency has requested that the government delve further into analysing the potential for B2B e-invoicing to commence in the country. 

The timing cannot be considered coincidental, given the recent publication of the proposal. Under current ViDA plans, cross-border e-invoicing will become mandatory in January 2028, and, as a result, Sweden is proposing to review its own domestic e-invoicing framework to ensure that the two are aligned for greater consistency.  

As well as reducing VAT gaps, multiple countries deploy new fiscal processes as a means to simplify the VAT process, relieving taxpayers of cumbersome duties. This has also been one of the key objectives of the VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) proposal, which aims to digitise the VAT process. You can read further about the proposal on our recent post here.  

Individual countries have a similar motivation for reviewing their fiscal practices- with Sweden being no exception. Sweden is advocating a reform of its VAT law as we know it today, with the specific intention that VAT regulations can be better assimilated by taxpayers and understood more easily. The overhaul would also ensure better alignment with content in EU VAT Directive.  

The changes are extensive, but a notable change is the proposal of VAT exemptions on internal services.  

Sweden is a compliant territory for Tungsten Network, and we will monitor e-invoicing developments in the country. 

The new CFE v23.3 format has been made available by the tax authorities, with minimal modifications: the description of field B.2: Type of Code related to the nomenclature of GTIN codes. The defined validations are left unchanged.

The Mexican Tax Authorities have published a revised list of foreign providers of digital services on 12 January 2023. This includes foreign providers who are registered for tax purposes in Mexico as of 31 December 2022. 15 new entities were added to the existing list.

The Bolivian tax administration (SIN) has released new resolution Nº 102200000025, which extends the transition period of selected taxpayers to implement e-invoicing.

Initially, taxpayers of the third group were expected to be adhere to e-invoicing obligations as of 1 December 2022. However, the resolution extends this to 1 February 2023.