Country and European Union News September 2026

30 September 2026

Uzbekistan introduces VAT on online goods sales

From 12 December 2026, foreign businesses selling goods online directly to consumers in Uzbekistan will be required to register and account for 12% Uzbek VAT. As there is no registration threshold, the obligation will arise from the first qualifying sale.

The rules apply where the consumer is resident in Uzbekistan and the goods are delivered to them within the country. However, responsibility for collecting and reporting the VAT may fall on a local marketplace or another payment intermediary involved in processing the transaction. This will depend on the sales and payment arrangements.

We recommend that foreign businesses selling goods to consumers in Uzbekistan review their sales channels, delivery arrangements, customer data and marketplace agreements before the rules take effect. This will help them determine whether they are responsible for registering or whether the VAT obligation will be handled by another party.

Where registration is required, it must generally be completed within 30 days of starting the relevant activity, with VAT returns filed quarterly.

Netherlands plans mandatory B2B e-invoicing from 2030

The Netherlands plans to introduce mandatory structured e-invoicing for domestic business-to-business transactions from 1 July 2030. This will coincide with the introduction of EU e-invoicing and digital reporting requirements for relevant intra-EU transactions under the VAT in the Digital Age reforms.

Businesses within scope will need to issue and receive invoices in a structured, machine-readable format that complies with the relevant European standard. A PDF invoice sent by email will not meet this requirement.

The system that businesses will use to exchange electronic invoices has not yet been confirmed, although “Peppol” is currently the most likely model.

From 1 July 2031, suppliers will also be required to report selected data from domestic B2B invoices to the Dutch tax authority. Introducing this requirement one year after the e-invoicing mandate should give businesses additional time to establish their electronic invoicing processes before transaction-level reporting begins.

It has not yet been confirmed whether the domestic requirements will apply to non-resident businesses that are VAT registered but not established in the Netherlands. Non-resident businesses making domestic or intra-EU transactions involving the Netherlands should therefore monitor the developing legislation and review whether their invoicing systems can issue and receive structured electronic invoices.

Slovakia introduces mandatory e-invoicing from 2027

From 1 January 2027, Slovakia will introduce mandatory structured electronic invoicing for qualifying domestic business-to-business and business-to-government transactions.

Businesses within scope will need to issue and receive invoices in a structured, machine-readable format that complies with the relevant European standard. A PDF invoice sent by email will not meet this requirement.

Invoices will be exchanged through approved service providers, known as Digital Postmen, using a “Peppol” based network. Suppliers will also be required to report invoice data electronically to the Slovak Financial Administration. However, the tax authority will not need to approve an invoice before it is sent to the customer.

The rules will principally apply to businesses established in Slovakia, including businesses with a relevant Slovak fixed establishment.

Slovakia has also proposed a three-month penalty soft-landing period from January to March 2027. However, businesses should not rely on this relief until the relevant legislation has been finalised.

From 1 July 2030, wider electronic invoicing and digital reporting requirements will apply to relevant intra-EU B2B transactions under the EU’s VAT in the Digital Age reforms.

UK plans pre-submission VAT return checks from April 2027

HMRC is developing “VAT Assist”, a service intended to help businesses identify potential errors before submitting their UK VAT returns. HMRC currently expects to launch this around April 2027, although the service remains in development and further guidance is due to follow.

VAT Assist will work through participating third-party VAT software. Before a return is submitted, the software will send the draft return data to HMRC, where a rules-based system will compare it with information HMRC already holds. If the system identifies a potential discrepancy, the business or agent may see a short message through its software prompting it to check the return.