What is intra-community acquisition? Meaning and explanation

In an intra-community acquisition, the supply is zero-rated in the supplier's country and the acquisition is taxed with Dutch VAT in the Netherlands. The buyer calculates that VAT itself at the Dutch rate applicable to the goods and reports the purchase amount and the VAT in box 4b of the VAT return. If entitled to deduction, it deducts the same VAT as input VAT in box 5b of the same return. On balance it then pays nothing. For services from other EU countries, the invoice usually states 'btw verlegd' (reverse charge), and it is not an acquisition but a reverse-charged service.

For a firm, the pitfall is that an invoice with 0% VAT looks harmless. If it is booked as a domestic purchase without VAT, the VAT due is missing from box 4b and the return is wrong, even though the balance is zero. In addition, the supplier relies on the buyer's VAT identification number, name and address being correct: the supply appears on the supplier's ICP declaration and is compared with the buyer's return.

During processing, Autoboeker recognises whether a supplier is within or outside the EU, checks VAT numbers via VIES and flags missing VAT and deviating VAT codes. This prevents an invoice from an EU supplier at 0% VAT from being silently booked as a domestic purchase without VAT. ICP support and international VAT situations are available for all four connected packages.