25 reforms – improve VAT and other taxes’ fairness and simplicity
The European Commission (EU) unveiled its Tax Action Plan in July 2020, a range of 25 Value Added Tax and other tax reforms to improve the efficiency and fairness of tax collections across the twenty seven member states. It adds to the 1 July 2022 EU e-commerce VAT package, and other EU VAT reforms in progress. It includes three major sections:
- 25 tax proposals, including: extension of the OSS return, gig and sharing economy reforms; review of financial services exemption;
- Directive on Administrative Cooperation DAC 7, which will harmonise the process for EU tax authorities to request and share tax data from digital platforms.
- A reform of the tax Code of Conduct, which address country tax competition and the list of uncooperative tax jurisdictions.
A number of these reforms will go forward under the EU VAT in the Digital Age program. At VAT Calc, we’re keeping ahead of all these reforms by our single platform tax engine and returns filing application. This is the only VAT technology built on national and EU legislation so you don’t have to rebuild manual use cases to keep track. Whatever direction the EU and member states go, we’ll have automated it for you.
EU Tax Action Plan VAT reforms
| Date | Launch dates for reform proposals and implementations (click for details) |
| 2020 | Proposals on upgrade of legal authority of the EU VAT Committee to 'comitalogy committee'. This would give it limited implementation powers |
| Proposition for changes to intra-state mutual assistance to improve missing VAT recovery | |
| Reform ideas for Travel Operators Margin Scheme - TOMS) | |
| 2021 | Crypto-currency and electronic money to be included in rules on automatic exchange of info between member states |
| EU VAT Gap Initiative | |
| Financial Services VAT exemption reform proposals | |
| Standing Committee on Dispute Resolution introduction | |
| 2022 | Excise goods distance selling rules simplication review |
| Draft legislation on extension of OSS single VAT registration to all B2C and B2B | |
| Recommendations on the real-time live reporting and e-invoicing | |
| Reforms for the VAT treatment of the platform economy - gig and sharing marketplaces | |
| Ideas on making IOSS return mandatory | |
| Overhaul of the international passenger air and sea VAT exemption | |
| TOMS travel agent VAT scheme draft legislation | |
| New proposal on VAT Directive dispute resolution regime | |
| Proposals on adoption of electronic payments for all taxes | |
| 2023 | Improvements to mutual assistance mechanisms with third-party countries along the lines of Norway and UK |
| Present range of measure to digitise and automate data exchange between tax authorities | |
| New tax governmance framework for member states | |
| More powers for EuroFisc in tackling cross-border VAT fraud | |
| 2024 | Digital Reporting Requirements - harmonised e-invoicing |
| VAT treatment of the platform economy | |
| Single EU VAT registration; extension of OSS to all B2C and certain B2B |
