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Translation - art & business » Money matters »
VAT when invoicing France from the UK
Thread poster: Aisha Maniar
Aisha Maniar
Aisha Maniar  Identity Verified
Member
Arabic to English
+ ...
May 1, 2003

I would just to know if anyone knows if I would have to pay French VAT if I send an invoice to a French company for a French-English translation (I am in the UK). This is what I was told by HM Customs and Excise, although the woman I spoke to did not seem too sure herself. She told me I\'d need to register for VAT in France, although I find that somewhat strange.
 
Ralf Lemster
Ralf Lemster  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 11:01
English to German
+ ...
Consult a tax advisor for a precise answer May 2, 2003

As always, it\'s best to consult a tax advisor for these kinds of questions.



There are certain cases where French VAT would apply - it depends on the kind of service rendered. To my knowledge (subject to the \"disclaimer\" shown above), that does not apply to translation - in any case, you will need the French company\'s EU VAT ID, to make sure they are VAT-registered.



HTH - Ralf
 
OlafK
OlafK
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:01
English to German
+ ...
No May 2, 2003

There are some new regulations regarding VAT within the EU but of course you don\'t have to register for VAT in France since you live and work in the UK. I doubt that it is possible to register without an address in France. I work for clients in Germany and France and live in Britain and have been asked for a VAT number by a French agency. Since I am not registered for VAT and don\'t have to I just sent them my tax reference number. I wouldn\'t worry about VAT too much.

If customs and ... See more
There are some new regulations regarding VAT within the EU but of course you don\'t have to register for VAT in France since you live and work in the UK. I doubt that it is possible to register without an address in France. I work for clients in Germany and France and live in Britain and have been asked for a VAT number by a French agency. Since I am not registered for VAT and don\'t have to I just sent them my tax reference number. I wouldn\'t worry about VAT too much.

If customs and excise don\'t train their staff properly how do they expect us do get everything right? Actually I\'ve never had any dealings with customs and excise at all.

 ▲ Collapse
 
Ralf Lemster
Ralf Lemster  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 11:01
English to German
+ ...
Careful... May 2, 2003

...there are some services (such as training) that may be subject to VAT in the country of delivery - as I said, I don\'t believe this applies to translation, but a blanket \"no\" doesn\'t quite hit the mark. (Note that I had extensive discussions with my tax advisors in the UK on this issue.)



Best, Ralf
 


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VAT when invoicing France from the UK


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