On June 27, 2016 the Council of the European Union issued a press release announcing that on that same date it adopted a Council Directive amending Directive 2006/112/EC as regards the treatment of vouchers. The adopted Directive defines single-purpose vouchers and multi-purpose vouchers and sets rules to determine the taxable value of transactions in both cases. The member states will have until December 31, 2018 to transpose the directive into national laws and regulations. Provisions will only apply to vouchers issued after December 31, 2018.
The Directive gives the following definition of ‘voucher’, ‘single-purpose voucher’ and ‘multi-purpose voucher’:
· ‘voucher’ means an instrument where there is an obligation to accept it as consideration or part consideration for a supply of goods or services and where the goods or services to be supplied or the identities of their potential suppliers are either indicated on the instrument itself or in related documentation, including the terms and conditions of use of such instrument;
· ‘single-purpose voucher’ means a voucher where the place of supply of the goods or services to which the voucher relates, and the VAT due on those goods or services, are known at the time of issue of the voucher;
· ‘multi-purpose voucher’ means a voucher, other than a single-purpose voucher.
The Directive arranges that a new Article 30b is inserted in Council Directive 2006/112/EC. This newly to be inserted Article reads as follows:
“Article 30b
1. Each transfer of a single-purpose voucher made by a taxable person acting in his own name shall be regarded as a supply of the goods or services to which the voucher relates. The actual handing over of the goods or the actual provision of the services in return for a single-purpose voucher accepted as consideration or part consideration by the supplier shall not be regarded as an independent transaction.
Where a transfer of a single-purpose voucher is made by a taxable person acting in the name of another taxable person, that transfer shall be regarded as a supply of the goods or services to which the voucher relates made by the other taxable person in whose name the taxable person is acting.
Where the supplier of goods or services is not the taxable person who, acting in his own name, issued the single-purpose voucher, that supplier shall however be deemed to have made the supply of the goods or services related to that voucher to that taxable person.
2. The actual handing over of the goods or the actual provision of the services in return for a multi-purpose voucher accepted as consideration or part consideration by the supplier shall be subject to VAT pursuant to Article 2, whereas each preceding transfer of that multi-purpose voucher shall not be subject to VAT.
Where a transfer of a multi-purpose voucher is made by a taxable person other than the taxable person carrying out the transaction subject to VAT pursuant to the first subparagraph, any supply of services that can be identified, such as distribution or promotion services, shall be subject to VAT.”
Furthermore a new article 73a is inserted into Council Directive 2006/112/EC, which will read as follow:
“Article 73a
Without prejudice to Article 73, the taxable amount of the supply of goods or services provided in respect of a multi-purpose voucher shall be equal to the consideration paid for the voucher or, in the absence of information on that consideration, the monetary value indicated on the multi-purpose voucher itself or in the related documentation, less the amount of VAT relating to the goods or services supplied.”
Click here to be forwarded to the text of the Council Directive amending Directive 2006/112/EC as regards the treatment of vouchers, as agreed upon by the Council of the European Union on June 27, 2017 and as available on the website of the European Council/Council of the European Union.
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