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New regulations for 2018

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Main new VAT changes introduced by Royal Decree 1512/2018 of 28 December, which amends, among others, the Value Added Tax Regulation and the Regulation governing billing obligations.

Real Decreto 1512/2018, de 28 de diciembre,

por el que se modifican el Reglamento del Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido, aprobado por el Real Decreto 1624/1992, de 29 de diciembre, el Reglamento por el que se regulan las obligaciones de facturación, aprobado por el Real Decreto 1619/2012, de 30 de noviembre, el Reglamento General de las actuaciones y los procedimientos de gestión e inspección tributaria y de desarrollo de las normas comunes de los procedimientos de aplicación de los tributos, aprobado por el Real Decreto 1065/2007, de 27 de julio, y el Reglamento de los Impuestos Especiales, aprobado por el Real Decreto 1165/1995, de 7 de julio.

VALUE ADDED TAX

A) AMENDMENTS TO THE VAT REGULATION (RIVA)

The following amendments, approved by Royal Decree 1624/1992 of 29 December and Royal Decree 1512/2018 of 28 December, have been introduced in the Value Added Tax Regulation:

  1. Option of exemption of certain deliveries of goods and provisions of services (art. 22 of the RIVA)

    Establishment that taxable persons that opted to taxation in the Member State of consumption regarding all telecommunications, broadcast or television, and electronic services provided to an individual end consumer who is resident in another Member State of the European Union must justify before the Tax Agency that these services have been declared in the other Member State. In addition, this option must be reaffirmed after two calendar years for it not to be deemed as revoked.

  2. Application of the rules for taxpayer investments (art. 24 quater.7.b RIVA)

    By means of this amendment, the regulatory content is adjusted to the provisions established in the Tax Law on the subject of waiving real estate exemptions.

  3. Reduced tax rate (sections one and two of article 26 bis of the RIVA)

    The references to legal texts included in the Corporation Tax Regulation and regarding the rights of disabled people are updated according to the current regulation.

  4. Refund of deductible tax payments to taxpayers who undertake carriage of passengers or goods by road (art. 30 bis.1 paragraph two of the RIVA)

    This purpose of this amendment is that the reference to the legal text included in the article on the subject of the approval of motor vehicles makes reference to the current Directive.

  5. Scope of application of the Special agriculture regime (art. 43.2.b of the RIVA)

    In relation to the income of activities not included in the Special agriculture, livestock and fishing regime, the limits established for applying the regime using the method of objective evaluation of the Personal Income have been adjusted.

  6. Waiver of specific exemptions and obligations in the Special Regime of the Group of Entities (arts 61 quater and 61 quinquies of the RIVA)

    The reference to the legal text on the subject of billing, which should be the current regulation and which governs the obligations on this subject, is corrected.

  7. Regulation applicable to invoices issued in special regimes applicable to telecommunications, broadcasting, television or electronic services (art 61 quinquiesdecies. 3 of the RIVA)

    The purpose of the amendment is to establish the regulation applicable to invoices issued by taxpayers belonging to the Special regimes of one-stop shops for telecommunications, broadcasting, television or electronic services, which up to this date was governed by the regulation of the Member State of consumption and now becomes the Member state of identification. This amendment has been carried out to avoid the taxpayer from being subject to different regimes on the subject of billing due to these obligations.

  8. VAT register books (art. 62.2 of the RIVA)

    The reference made to the activities subject to the special regimes applicable to telecommunications, broadcasting, television or electronic services are updated. Previously, they only referred to electronic service.

  9. Register book of issued invoices electronic documents for refunds (art. 63.3a of the RIVA)

    The purpose of this amendment is to include, within the electronic registry fields established in the Ministerial Order that sets forth specifications to identify invoices that should be submitted in the Immediate Supply of Information system, a reference to the electronic documents for refunds. As of 1 January 2019, Tax refunds in the travellers regime must be documented mandatorily using these documents.

  10. Option to keep SII record books electronically (art 68 bis paragraph one of the RIVA)

    The option of voluntarily applying the SII can be exercised during the entire calendar year with effects in the same year.

  11. Information to be provided in relation to the period of time prior to the keeping of record books electronically (art. 68 ter of the RIVA)

    A new article 68 ter is added to the RIVA, which refers to the information to be submitted by the taxpayers that, whether through this option or because they have changed to a monthly declaration-settlement period, become subject to the application of the SII on a different date to the first day of the calendar year. This information is a requirement for taxpayers to adhere to the SII from said date, which results in them being exempt from filing annual informative tax returns, forms 390 and 347, and thus simplifies the change in the processing of the Tax, specifically regarding tax refunds. Comprehensive information shall be provided regarding the invoicing records corresponding to the period of time prior to the application date of the SII and related to the same calendar year in which it occurs.

    The deadline to submit these invoice records and the supplementary information required from these taxpayers is also regulated.

  12. Deadlines for electronic submission of SII billing records. Electronic reimbursement document (art. 69 bis.1.e RIVA)

    With regard to the deadlines for submitting information in the SII, the deadline established for submitting information corresponding to the electronic documents for refunds will be also be applicable to the processing of Tax refunds in the travellers regime.

  13. General rules for tax settlements and non-established obligations (arts 71.3. 2 paragraph three and 82.1 of the RIVA)

    The purpose of these amendments is to correct, respectively, the article's reference to the current Corporation Tax Regulation and to the special regimes applicable to telecommunications, broadcast or, television services and to services provided electronically. Previously, it only referred to services provided electronically.

B) AMENDMENTS TO THE BILLING REGULATION (ROF)

The following amendments have been introduced by Royal Decree 1512/2018 of 28 December in the Regulation which governs the invoicing obligations in the ROF, approved by Royal Decree 1619/2012 of 30 November:

  1. Regulation applicable to the provision of telecommunications, broadcasting and television services and services provided electronically (art 2.3 of the ROF)

    Amendments are made to art. 23 of the ROF to comply with the provisions established in Directive (EU) 2017/2455 on the regulation applicable to the provision of telecommunications, broadcasting and television and services provided electronically. As a result, in line with the amendment to article 61 quinquiesdecies of the RIVA, which establishes that as of its entry into force on 1 January 2019, the regulation applicable to invoices issued by taxpayers belonging to the Special regimes of one-stop shops to declare and process the Tax due for these services, which up to this date was the regulation of the Member State of consumption, now becomes that of the Member state of identification.

    The amendment of article 2 of the ROF governs the operations subject to said regulation; therefore, a series of adjustments are required in its drafting in order to establish that this regulation shall not be applicable to operations that, though they are understood to be carried out in the territory of application of the Tax, are related to the provision of services in which the provider is adhered to any of the aforementioned Special regimes of one-stops shops.

    In addition, an exception to the general rule is established, this being that the Spanish ROF shall be applicable to operations carried out by taxpayers established in the territory of application of the Tax, even if their operations are understood not to be carried out in said territory, when the service provider is adhered to the Special regimes of one-stop shops and Spain is the Member State of identification.

    The aforementioned shall also be applicable when the provider not established in the European Community is adhered to this Special regime of one-stop shops and Spain is also the Member State of identification.

  2. Obligation of issuing invoices in operations carried out by political parties (art. 3.1a of the ROF)

    The obligation of issuing invoices for the exempt operations included in article 20. One.28 referring to political parties.

  3. Exceptions to the obligation to issue an invoice. Management companies of collective investment institutions, management entities of pension funds, securitization funds and their management companies . (art 3.2 ROF)

    This amendment fulfils the widespread demand of certain sectors in the financial and insurance sectors (such as management companies of collective investment institutions and pension funds, among others) that due to not being categorised as credit institutions or insurance firms were required to issue an invoice for their financial and insurance-related operations exempt from the Tax when this obligation was an additional administrative load when compared to the banks and insurance firms and did not have a technical or tax controlling justification. The Tax Agency is authorised to exempt from this obligation businesses or professionals other than those expressly indicated in the Regulation, prior request from the interested party, when this is justified due to sales or administrative practices in the sector of activity in question or due to the technical issuance conditions of these invoices.

  4. Application of the Fourth Additional Provision of the ROF to the services included in the special regime of travel agencies (section 1.c letter h ´ Fourth Additional Provision ROF)

    The fourth Additional Provision of the Billing Regulation is amended to include, within the special billing procedure regulated in said provision, applicable to travel agencies that intervene on behalf of and on account of other businesspeople or professionals in the marketing of travel services provided directly to travelers, travel services subject to the special regime for travel agencies, services that had been excluded from said Additional Provision when its scope of application was expanded in 2017 and that have the same nature as the travel services included.