Council of the European Union 4 December 2018, Council Directive (EU) 2018/1910 of 4 December 2018 amending Directive 2006/112/EC as regards the harmonisation and simplification of certain rules in the value added tax system for the taxation of trade between Member States

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Council Directive (EU) 2018/1910 of 4 December 2018 amends Directive 2006/112/EC to harmonise and simplify VAT rules for intra-Community B2B trade, with Member States required to transpose its provisions by 31 December 2019 for application from 1 January 2020. Key provisions introduce a uniform EU-wide regime for call-off stock arrangements (treating qualifying transfers as a single exempt supply in the Member State of departure and a single intra-Community acquisition in the Member State of arrival, subject to a 12-month window and registration requirements), establish a common attribution rule for chain transactions (ascribing intra-Community transport to the supply made to the intermediary operator, unless the intermediary communicates a VAT number from the Member State of dispatch), and elevate the acquirer's VAT identification number in the VAT Information Exchange System (VIES) to a substantive condition for the intra-Community supply exemption under Article 138, with non-compliance with recapitulative statement obligations precluding the exemption absent good-faith justification. These measures are adopted as interim harmonisation steps pending implementation of the definitive VAT system for intra-Community trade.AI