Greece primes for VAT e-invoice 2020

The Greek Finance Ministry is to launch a pilot of its proposed e-invoice live reporting regime in the second quarter of 2019. The plan is to require real-time invoice clearing by VAT registered businesses for B2B and potentially B2C invoices from 1 January 2019. In addition, all taxpayers will be required to keep their accounting records digitally.

Greece is still in public consultation on the model it will use. It will likely follow the Italian SdI regime, which requires e-invoices to be first submitted to the tax office for live validation and clearance. Although Greece is still open to the Spanish SII and Hungarian live invoice reporting post issuance model of invoice details.

Greece’s aim is to reduce the scope for errors and fraud. Greece has one of the largest VAT gaps (the difference between forecast and actual VAT receipts) in Europe. In the longer term, Greece will be able to move toward government completed draft VAT returns for businesses to review, adjust and agree to.