My understanding is it is to remove the loophole of companies being based in a country where VAT is lower then selling to consumers - where they need to charge VAT - and the total cost is lower.
Apple sells all apps through its Luxemburg subsidiary, meaning Luxemburg's low 15% VAT rate applied.
On the buyer side, am I right to assume that as a VAT-registered company/freelancer I will be able to deduct VAT paid on apps purchased through the App Store?
Also countries want to collect the VAT on digital purchases their citizens make. That is understandable, I suppose. The implications looks like a potential nightmare for small businesses though.
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My understanding is it is to remove the loophole of companies being based in a country where VAT is lower then selling to consumers - where they need to charge VAT - and the total cost is lower.
Ole Begemann recently wrote about the changes in the context of selling apps through the App Store: http://oleb.net/blog/2014/07/eu-vat-changes-2015/
Apple sells all apps through its Luxemburg subsidiary, meaning Luxemburg's low 15% VAT rate applied.
On the buyer side, am I right to assume that as a VAT-registered company/freelancer I will be able to deduct VAT paid on apps purchased through the App Store?
Also countries want to collect the VAT on digital purchases their citizens make. That is understandable, I suppose. The implications looks like a potential nightmare for small businesses though.