Blog

Turkey’s Digital Transformation and E-Invoicing Landscape

For companies operating in Turkey, 2019 was an eventful year for tax regulatory change and in particular, e-invoicing reform. Since it was first introduced in 2012, the e-invoicing mandate has grown, and companies are having to adapt in order to comply with requirements in 2020 and beyond.  According to the General Communique on the Tax […]

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EU VAT Measures in Response to Coronavirus

Countries worldwide are introducing indirect tax measures intended to mitigate the economic consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. Prospective measures by EU Member States include:   Austria Austria has announced that taxpayers can seek elimination of default interest and penalties for late submissions resulting from coronavirus.  Belgium Belgium has announced that businesses encountering financial difficulties can […]

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Prepare to Pay Taxes on Crypto Held in Foreign Accounts

The Government Accountability Office (GAO), a U.S. Congress watchdog, published a report evaluating the IRS’s approach to regulating virtual currency (crypto) and the guidance it has offered the public. The GAO’s Recommendation However, a portion of the report was directed at the IRS and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the U.S. […]

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ECOFIN Speaks on EU VAT Reforms

Pivotal projects in the development of EU VAT The EU’s Economic and Financial Affairs Council (“ECOFIN”) issued a report in December. This followed its review of EU tax policies and developments since Finland took over Presidency of the Council of the European Union in July 2019.  In a previous article we summarised their status review […]

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Insurance Trends: The Reshaping of the Insurance Market

The insurance market for 2019 was marked by two key trends:  insurers implementing post-Brexit strategies, and the continuous rise of insurtech companies. But classic and more traditional insurance companies and captives have not surrendered. A hard Brexit has been anticipated by UK insurers British insurance companies have carefully planned for the different flavours of Brexit […]

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Ongoing Trends in VAT Determination and Reporting

2019 was an exciting year for VAT and, given the ever-increasing pressure on governments to increase revenues, it’s likely that 2020 will be just as eventful. Although VAT is an ever-shifting landscape, below are three recent trends that we believe are poised to continue in 2020 and beyond: 1.  VAT obligations for remote sellers Globally, […]

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Technology Enhancements in Insurance

The insurance world is often seen as slow and reluctant to fully embrace technology. However, new competition from the growing number of insurtech companies and the digitisation of reporting to local authorities are forcing insurers to wake up to the wave of technology transformation the sector is experiencing. Still, people behind technology remain key. Perhaps […]

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Incoterms 2020: A New Coat of Paint and Important Clarifications for a New Decade

The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has released the new 2020 version of the Incoterms.  Incoterms are important business shorthand and understanding their express meaning and intended usage is incredibly important in minimizing business risk and ensuring compliant VAT reporting.  The following information provides some basic guidance for tax compliance professionals looking to refresh their […]

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HMRC Overhauls its Business Risk Review (BRR) Regime

HMRC administers the whole of the tax system for the UK and Northern Ireland.  Although there are some 5.7 million active businesses in the UK, less than half a percent are responsible for 40% of the tax HMRC collects (approximately £217 billion in 2017).  So, how well those businesses manage their tax compliance will make […]

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Norway to Mandate SAF-T Reporting from 2020

Mandatory SAF-T (Standard Audit File-Tax) reporting will be introduced in Norway from 1 January 2020. Use of SAF-T, a standardized XML format containing exported accounting information, remains voluntary until that date. SAF-T is designed to reduce compliance and administrative costs for businesses and revenue bodies and enhance audit outcomes.  Its standardized, easily readable layout and […]

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New Global VAT Compliance Report Provides Guidance for Multinationals

Companies are dealing with a fundamental shift in the way they do business with trading partners. In a rapidly increasing number of countries, there’s a third party inserting itself into every transaction. It’s the government, and it’s wedging its way into every order a company ships or receives.  In an effort to close a massive […]

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Poland’s Departure from the Traditional VAT Return

In Europe, Poland seems to be the first country to move away from the traditional VAT return replacing it with a detailed Standard Audit File for Tax (SAF-T). This is basically an expansion of the SAF-T system already used in Poland since 2016. Large enterprises must start working with the expanded SAF-T system from April […]

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Hungary Expands Scope of Real-Time Reporting

Since July 2018, taxpayers in Hungary have been obliged to disclose the data of electronic invoices issued for transactions with accounted VAT exceeding HUF 100,000 (approximately €300). This data must be transmitted to the National Tax and Customs Administration of Hungary (NAV) in a structured manner once the electronic invoice has been issued.  This fiscal obligation […]

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Is Your Business Ready for Turkey’s Digital Tax Transformation?

The value of data is rising The value of data is becoming more precious than oil.  Technology has transformed market dynamics across all sectors and the way businesses operate. Big data has grown in importance and data-based platforms are today’s new technology giants. On one hand; Facebook, Google and other data-based platforms are collecting data […]

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Revisiting the EU VAT “2020 Quick Fixes”

Part 4 – Call-Off Stock Arrangements This is the last in a series of four blogs providing explanatory detail to the EU’s “2020 Quick Fixes” that aim to standardise certain VAT rules throughout the EU.   Part one of this series focussed on VAT Identification of the Customer, part two provided guidance on the Exemptions of […]

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Italy to Introduce Pre-Completed VAT Returns by July 2020

The Italian government has introduced an ambitious new program for collecting VAT, under which the tax authorities will pre-populate VAT returns on behalf of taxpayers. This program is aimed at reducing the VAT gap in Italy, which reached 33.5 billion Euros in 2017 – in absolute terms, the largest loss of revenue in the European […]

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Revisiting the EU VAT “2020 Quick Fixes”

Part 3:  Chain Transactions This is the third in a series of four blogs providing explanatory detail to the EU’s “2020 Quick Fixes” that aim to standardise certain VAT rules throughout the EU. Part one of this series focussed on VAT Identification of the Customer, whilst part two provided guidance on the Exemptions of Intra-Community […]

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Revisiting the EU VAT “2020 Quick Fixes”

Part 2: The Exemptions of Intra-Community Supplies of Goods This is the second in a series of four blogs providing explanatory detail to the EU’s “2020 Quick Fixes”. This article focuses on updated guidance around the Exemption of Intra-Community Supplies of Goods coming into effect on 1 January 2020.    The EU Implementing Regulation contains a […]

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