The biggest reform of the European VAT rules, the EU VAT landscape has gradually changed with the definitive EU VAT system implementation. The system is less compound, additionally fraud-proof, more business-friendly and ready for the challenges of the century, beginning with the successful digital economy. The key principle of the definitive VAT system is that the supplier is liable to collect the VAT and settle the tax in the member state of residence. This tax is however to be collected following the rules (and tax rates) of the destination country, i.e. the presumed state of consumption.

Tax departments deeply rely on accurate & correct data and decision making, it becomes imperative, the processes and systems which collect, analyse the data, and manage the tax information should be state of the art. Nevertheless, distributed, redundant, and undependable data results in making the most of the systems deficient and also make processes inefficient.

VAT implementation was fairly a simple tax and determination logic developed:

• VAT treatment on most EU cross-border trade of goods treated as ‘exports’
• Little concept of cross-border VAT registrations
• No Intra EU exemptions, simplifications, triangulation, Intrastats , EC Sales lists, etc.
• No requirement for ‘Plants Abroad’ for intra-company, cross-border stock movements

But the taxation procedures have changed globally especially in Europe:

• Significant and regular changes in EU VAT rules and disclosure requirements
• Businesses have become more global
• ERP common platforms and standards migration
• Supply-chain and corporate restructuring is a common practice
• Greater focus on “indirect tax compliance”