Adding a foreign Expense

We now (un)consciously buy many goods and services across the border. Foreign expenses are entered in the same way as domestic expenses, but you must take into account VAT differences, different currencies and the language of the description.

Special request from your Bookies: we can decipher Dutch and English invoices and receipts, but please add an explanation of the costs when in Turmenian, Chinese or even Italian and French (in sort: all other languages). Because you might understand them, but its important that we understand what you bought and why.

On this page:

Reclaim VAT on foreign expenses
Intra-Community acquisition or VAT shifted (ICP)
Enter other currencies, such as the pound or dollar
Moss

Have you paid VAT on goods, services or imports in another EU country without giving the supplier your VAT number? This may have been during a business trip (such as travel and accommodation costs) or products that you have imported. In that case, you cannot deduct the foreign VAT in your Dutch VAT return. You enter these costs including VAT and you set the VAT percentage at 0%.

If you order things online from abroad you should try to state your VAT number as much as possible so that the VAT can be reversed to you.

Have you purchased services or goods from an entrepreneur from another EU country (this is called an intra-Community acquisition) or has the VAT been transferred to you? Then you calculate the VAT amount yourself. You state this in your Dutch VAT return. If you use the goods or services for taxable sales, you simultaneously deduct the VAT as input tax. Since you give it up and then subtract it, you pay nothing at the bottom of the line: just like with domestic business costs.

Fortunately, your Bookies do this for you based on the information in The Bookie Webapp.

> This is how an ICP declaration works at The Bookie

If no VAT has been passed on to you on an invoice from within the EU, there is a chance that the VAT has been reversed to you. Examples of this are invoices from Facebook, Google and Adobe. On the invoice you will see "VAT to be accounted for by the recipient" or something in that direction. In this case in the Expense in The Bookie Webapp you select “Relocated Within the EU” for VAT transfer, and 21% for the VAT percentage. Be aware that after the Brexit, the VAT of expenses from the UK should still be shifted within the EU till December 31st 2020, this is the current transition period where the old rules still applies. Any updates about the new rules, which are currently still unknown, shall be posted here.

You can only enter euros in the Bookie App, this is to prevent misunderstandings and miscalculation in your administration. You can, however, enter a receipt of with a foreign currency and note the actual amount paid in euros. You can see this amount on your account statement if you have paid with your pin or credit card or can retrace the currency rate (even with a former date): https://www.wisselkoers.nl/omrekenen

Company's who sell telecommunication-, broadcast- or electronical services to private individuals in other EU-country's with more than €10.000,- revenue are using MOSS (Mini-One-Stop-Shop). Read all about it here on the Dutch belastingdienst site. For example, Spotify and Apple are company's that are using the MOSS. If you get an invoice from a company that is using MOSS you'll find that they invoice you Dutch VAT. You can see this as an invoice from a Dutch company and report it as such on your VAT declaration. Pay attention to the following: these company's can invoice you in another currency than Euro's. In that case see the section above marked: "Enter other currencies, such as the pound or dollar".