- The Italian Revenue Agency clarified that sales of animal litter are subject to the standard VAT rate, regardless of the materials used.
- The VAT rate should be determined based on the product’s functional purpose, aligning with EU Court of Justice principles.
- Operators questioned the applicable VAT rate for goods like straw, sawdust, or wood shavings, which could be used as animal litter.
- Assonime’s June 2025 document provides guidance on the correct VAT rate for these products.
- Wood shavings, a byproduct of wood processing, can be classified under tariff heading 44.01, which includes various types of wood and wood waste.
- According to Table A, part III, of DPR 633/72, products under tariff heading 44.01, except pellets, are subject to a 10% VAT rate.
- Wood shavings should benefit from the reduced VAT rate unless they are packaged or processed in a way that changes their original classification.
- If a producer packages and sells wood shavings as animal litter, altering their classification, they lose the reduced VAT rate.
- The customer’s use of the product as litter affects only the VAT treatment of their sales, not the producer’s, who can still apply the 10% rate.
- Assonime’s conclusion may apply to other similar products, maintaining the reduced VAT rate until the product’s classification changes.
Source: eutekne.info
Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.
