VAT guide and advice

Value Added Tax (VAT) is a favourite means of raising money for governments because it is relatively simple for them to administer and offers a fairly even and predictable flow of income to state coffers.

But the same is hardly true for businesses which bear the brunt of making VAT returns,  payments, and demanding refunds. They are faced with a raft of different VAT rates, filing obligations, and declarations.

And while the general VAT framework is consistent across the European Union, many of the specific rules and regulations are very different from country to country. Added to that, the VAT environment is far from stable. More rules and obligations on companies are being introduced in a bid to clamp down on tax fraud as a whole and on carousel fraud in particular. The Czech Republic, for example, caught up with Slovakia by demanding VAT control statements from the start of 2016.

This concise and easy to use guide from eVAT which takes you through the VAT labyrinth by highlighting the main issues as regards the Czech Republic and Slovakia.  It starts out by spelling out who and when you need to register for VAT, what supporting documents you need to provide, and how often declarations need to be filed.  It details the deadlines which the tax authorities are obligated to meet dealing with this application and with other issues once VAT registration has been completed and regular declarations begin.

It also sets out the powers and penalties which tax authorities have at their disposal and your rights if relations with the tax office start to become tense. The guide helps you deal with some of the tax pitfalls which any business can run into. These can sometimes stem not even from your own actions or failings but those of a business partner if their details and declarations do not add up.

The guide draws on  eVAT’s more than a decade of experience dealing with the specific tax problems of companies in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It is a taster of the expertise eVAT can offer if you prefer not to venture into the tax labyrinth alone but accompanied by an experienced guide.