VAT Registration Just Became Simpler For New Irish Ventures

Beginning last month, Ireland made it even simpler for Ireland-only ventures to register for value-added tax. Soon the process will be quicker too.

In Ireland, you are required to register for VAT when your business's annual turnover exceeds or is likely to exceed one of a number of thresholds.

With the exception of distance selling (for which turnover is calculated on a calendar year basis), you should register your business for Irish VAT when its turnover reaches any one of the following thresholds within 12 months:

• €37,500 in the case of persons supplying services only;
• €41,000 for persons making acquisitions from other European Union member states;
• €75,000 for persons supplying goods;
• €75,000 for persons supplying both goods and services where 90% or more of the turnover is derived from supplies of goods.

Non-resident persons who supply taxable goods or services in Ireland should register and account for VAT irrespective of their turnover.

In addition, you can sometimes register when you intend to trade and can demonstrate that your business's turnover will exceed one of the registration thresholds. This can be beneficial in enabling you to recover the VAT incurred on inputs needed to start a new venture in Ireland.

On 15 June 2019, the Irish Revenue Commissioners newly made it possible for those applying to register for VAT to do so only for Irish VAT purposes, rather than for EU VAT purposes also. It announced that when taxpayers apply for VAT registration, they should specify to Revenue whether they wish to apply for "domestic-only" or "intra-EU" status.

Domestic-only registration is available to those supplying goods or rendering services in Ireland only and involves a simplified registration process.

Revenue said taxpayers not undertaking any intra-EU trade should apply for "domestic-only" status. Taxpayers intending to trade with businesses elsewhere in the EU should apply for "intra-EU" status, as this will enable them to make zero-rated intra-EU acquisitions.

Taxpayers applying for "intra-EU" status will be required to provide additional information at the point of application. Companies that currently have "domestic-only" status may at any time apply for "intra-EU status," at which point they will be requested to supply additional information.

Taxpayers with live VAT registrations granted prior to the introduction of Two-Tier Registration will be treated as having "intra-EU" status. These businesses need not contact Revenue.

As well as simplifying the process to register for VAT in Ireland for Ireland-only ventures, the Revenue is to speed up the registration response process for these simplified "Ireland-only" registrations from September, making it even easier to set up operations in Ireland.

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