Compliance Toolkit

EU plans 'one-stop shop' for VAT

Kable

Published: 18 May 2004 17:10 BST

The EU is planning to set up a "one-stop shop" allowing businesses to make VAT declarations online, it announced on Tuesday.

Under the plans, businesses would be able to submit VAT to different countries through a single point of access. The aim is to simplify VAT procedures and help traders who are often unfamiliar with tax administration in other countries. Users would only have to register once through the system and would get a single VAT number.

At present, businesses have to pay VAT in the member state where consumption of the goods takes place, but often they don't have an office in that country.

"The present onerous VAT compliance obligations deter small companies and individual traders in particular from engaging in cross-border business," said Frits Bolkestein, commissioner for the internal market and taxation.

"We would like to obtain the views of stakeholders before making a proposal for a simplified electronic one-stop-shop system that would be designed to enable all traders to benefit fully from the internal market."

The European Commission is running a consultation on the plans until 31 July, 2004.