VAT Invoices, Formal Defects and the Right to Deduct: The Evolution of the CJEU’s Case Law

• The CJEU’s jurisprudence on VAT invoicing has evolved to balance the requirement for valid invoices with the fundamental principle of VAT neutrality, allowing for the deduction of input VAT even with formal invoice defects if substantive conditions are met and sufficient information is available.
• Key cases like Barlis and Senatex shifted the focus from strict adherence to formal invoice details towards a substantive assessment of underlying transactions, permitting retroactive correction of invoices and emphasizing the tax authorities’ responsibility to consider all available evidence.
• Despite this flexibility, the CJEU in Vădan and G Kft. clarified that proper invoicing remains essential and that national procedural rules, such as limitation periods and the finality of tax audits, can legitimately limit the right to adjust invoices, provided these rules do not make exercising EU VAT rights impossible or excessively difficult.

Source Meridian

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