Reduced VAT rate on basic foodstuffs

21 August 2015

The VAT rate on basic foodstuffs is set to be reduced from 20% to 10% as of 1 January 2016.  Slovakia currently has one of the highest VAT rates in the EU for basic foodstuffs, as most other EU countries apply a reduced or zero rate of VAT to these types of goods.

An amendment to the Slovakian VAT Act could mean the introduction of a reverse charge mechanism on domestic supplies of goods between non-resident and resident Slovak companies.  If approved, this amendment will be implemented on 1 January 2016 and will mean that non-resident companies selling to Slovak companies will not be able to charge VAT on the sale of their goods. Instead, the recipient will be liable to account for this in their VAT return using the reverse charge mechanism.