ᐅ Reduced value-added tax until the end of 2020. How to proceed with invoices?

Alessandro schrieb:

Does anyone know how the tax saving is calculated if I have already paid everything except the final invoice at 19%?
Is the agreed gross fixed price for the construction simply reduced by 3% here (that's what my construction company did)?

As I understand it, you would have to multiply the total gross price (calculated with 19%) by 0.81 to get a net amount, and then multiply it by 1.16, right?

Oioioioio :p 😉

Out of a hundred, within a hundred, under a hundred – what was that again?

Regardless of what would be legally correct, the calculation would be:

Old gross price / 1.19 equals net price.

Net price × 1.16 equals new gross price.

There are a few other ways to get to the same result.

How it is actually handled in practice and what you agree on is, of course, something else.

Yes, I realized that after I had already sent the post 😱 :p

That sounds a bit adventurous.

However, I don’t think an answer can be provided here in a forum. I guess my only option is to consult a specialized lawyer.

Unfortunately, there are no experiences to be found on this issue, probably due to its recent nature.

Boomercringe schrieb:

Unfortunately, due to the recent nature of this issue, there are no experiences to refer to yet.

As mentioned here earlier, the procedure is the same as with the last value-added tax change.

Basically, for you:

If the construction company actually changes the contract afterward (i.e., after June 30, 2020), agrees on partial services, and bills you accordingly—with 16% VAT—and the contract does not include any reservation for claiming an additional VAT increase to 19% by the tax authorities later on (if this is even legally permissible under civil law), then you are in the clear. The legally correct value-added tax is owed by the contractor.

For the contractor, the following applies:

If the partial services were either agreed upon before July 1, 2020, or the agreement was changed to partial services before July 1, 2020, the tax authorities generally accept this. Therefore, 16% VAT applies to all partial services performed and accepted between July 1 and December 31, 2020.

If the agreement was changed after July 1, 2020, and before December 31, 2020, the reason for the change matters. The tax authorities initially assume this was done to save taxes. Accordingly, this would be rejected according to § 42 AO, unless you can provide a plausible, justifiable reason for the subsequent amendment to the agreement.
I cannot imagine any reason that would convince the client (property owner) to agree to such a change other than tax savings. Key points here are the transfer of risk and the start of warranty periods.

This forum obviously cannot and should not replace legal advice.

The real question is: as a private individual, what do you expect to gain from such advice?
In my opinion, it is the contractor who needs good advice here if they do not want to end up on the losing side in the next business or VAT audit.

Today, the contractor informed me that everything delivered or completed this year will be charged with 16% VAT. So, if anything is delivered this year but installed in 2021, the tax rate will be split (16% / 19%)... 🙂 It therefore depends on the date of the invoice issuance.

No, it depends on the date of service. For example, the builder stores a caravan over the winter of 2020–21. He settles the account in April 2021. The customers receive an invoice for October to December with 16%, and for January to March with 19%.