ARTICLE · 23 MARCH 2018

Understanding How EU VAT Rules Impact Electronically Supplied Services

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Businesses based in Ireland who provide electronically supplied services (e-services) to customers need to understand how to apply VAT correctly, explains Siobhán O'Hea, Partner of Tax Services.

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Siobhán O’Hea

Businesses based in Ireland who provide electronically supplied services (e-services) to customers need to understand how to apply VAT correctly, explains Siobhán O'Hea, Partner of Tax Services.

Value Added Tax can be a complicated area for businesses who provide electronically supplied services to customers in the EU or elsewhere.

While the rules may appear daunting, it is important to familiarise yourself with the basics as getting it wrong can be costly.

What are e-services?

The first step in getting to grips with VAT is understanding what is considered an 'electronically supplied service' for VAT purposes.

Electronically supplied services, sometimes called 'e-services', cover a broad range of services delivered over the Internet or an electronic network. Examples include electronically supplied software and software updates, web hosting, online publications and e-books, the provision of online advertising on websites, music downloads, online games,

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