VAT guides

Last reviewed 16 October 2026

The rules explained the way a colleague would over coffee — with the numbers to back them up.

Start here

VAT for small businessesRegistration, invoices, returns and the five mistakes to avoid — a practical starting point. The reverse charge, explainedWhy some invoices show no VAT, who accounts for it instead, and how to word the invoice.

How to use these guides

The guides cover principles that hold across the countries this site supports; where a rule is country-specific, it is labelled. They pair with the calculators — read the guide to decide, use the calculator to do. Nothing here is tax advice for your specific situation: for registration decisions, unusual transactions or anything with a deadline attached, check with your accountant or the tax authority.

What should we write next?

Likely future guides: choosing between VAT schemes, cross-border selling for small shops, and a walkthrough of a VAT return line by line. If you have a topic you would find useful, tell us — the queue is shaped by what readers ask for.