VATupdate Newsletter Week 8 2026

BREATHLESS

Here are some items from the latest VAT news from last week:

EU slaps tariffs on Chinese EVs, with possible exemptions.
The EU’s core e-invoicing standard EN16931 is now officially aligned with ViDA.
OECD issues global guidance on digital VAT reporting.
Argentina introduces monthly e-settlement and pre-filled VAT Returns (from July 2026).

It seems as if the VAT world gets steeper every week.

Have you ever noticed that you can walk for miles without breaking a sweat, but the moment you face a flight of stairs (even a modest, polite, not-trying-to-kill-you staircase) you suddenly transform into a heavy-breathing, not-fit person?

This happens to me almost every day. From the parking garage to the office is only two floors, but that translates into six sets of stairs of twelve steps each. Twelve. Not a mountain. Not a boulder. Not even one of those overachieving Dutch dunes pretending to be hills. Just 12 steps. And yet, halfway up, my lungs file a complaint, and my heart rate shoots up like it’s just received an unexpected letter from the tax authorities.

And of course, because we live in a world where self-diagnosis is second nature, I immediately thought: “Am I terribly unfit? Is this the beginning of the end? Should I start writing my will?” Turns out: no. This is perfectly normal. Even fit people get breathless on stairs.

Why?

Because stairs are sneaky. They look innocent, but every step forces you to lift your entire body weight upward: a miniature weightlifting session disguised as architecture. The muscles involved are bigger, need more oxygen, and get less mechanical help from gravity or momentum. So, your heart races, your lungs gasp, and your brain quietly regrets all life decisions that led you to this staircase in the first place.

But then I realised: this is exactly like VAT.

Stay with me.

Just as walking on flat ground feels easy and familiar, many transactions in VAT are wonderfully straightforward. You buy something, you sell something, you charge some VAT, you deduct some VAT, everything moves gently forward. Horizontally. Steadily.

But add just one “step” (a cross-border element, a chain transaction, a change in use, a loss of status, a platform, a triangulation rule, a margin scheme) and suddenly the whole thing becomes vertically demanding. The rules shift direction. The muscles required multiply. Your compliance heart rate spikes. And just like climbing stairs, the effort is packed into a surprisingly small movement.

Some VAT treatments are simply uphill by design. Real estate options? Vague digital supplies involving hypothetical service recipients located in three different Member States simultaneously? Same tax code used for different transactions? That’s the stair-climbing of VAT: short distances, huge effort, instant shortness of breath.

And that’s before we even consider the modern reforms that stack additional steps on top: platform rules, real-time reporting, new definitions, new obligations. VAT is constantly introducing new staircases without installing any escalators.

But there is good news.

Just like stair climbing, VAT gets easier with technique, practice, and understanding where the real weight is being lifted. And for that, yes, you can train. You can plan. And you can breathe.

And if you’re ever unsure, just remember: even the fittest people get breathless on the stairs. It’s not a failure: it’s a feature.

Same with VAT. Just make sure you follow VATupdate.com to stay fit for VAT!

Have a great week!

If you have any comments, questions, or ideas that you want to share with us, please send us an email at [email protected] or leave a comment under the posts of this newsletter on LinkedIn.

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