What is VAT?
Written by Christine Mathew
Why are all EU nations using VAT?
When the European Community was formed, the initial six EU nations used distinct types of indirect taxation, most of which were cascade taxes. These were multi-stage charges, each levied on the actual value of production at each phase of the production cycle, rendering it difficult to determine the actual quantity of tax actually included in the initial cost of a specific item. As a result, there was always a danger that EU nations would intentionally or inadvertently subsidize their exports by overestimating tariffs refundable on imports.rnIt was obvious that if there was ever to be an effective single market in Europe, a balanced and transparent sales tax scheme was needed that guaranteed tax transparency and permitted the precise quantity of tax to be rebated at the stage of the sale. As described in VAT on imports and exports, VAT provides the assurance that exports there are totally and transparently tax-free.How is it charged?
The VAT national on any purchase is a proportion of the purchase cost, but from that, the taxable individual is allowed to deduct all the charges already paid at the previous point. Therefore, double taxation is prevented and tax is only charged on the value added at each point of manufacturing and delivery. In this way, as the final price of the product is equal to the sum of the added values at each preceding stage, the final VAT paid is made up of the sum of the VAT paid at each stage. A number is given to registered VAT traders and the VAT charged to customers on invoices must be shown. In this way, if the customer is a registered trader, he knows how much he can deduct in turn and the consumer knows how much tax he has paid on the final product. In this manner, the right VAT is charged in phases and the scheme is self-police to a degree. You can calculate VAT on VAT Calculator here.Article author
About the Author
Christine has been writing on business & finance since 2001. He is member of Economics Bar and author of multiple books.
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