VATupdate Newsletter Week 1 2026

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SWEAT

The first week of 2026 has already delivered a wave of significant VAT and e-invoicing developments around the world. Multiple countries kicked off the year with rate changes, threshold updates, and new VAT rules, increasing the risk of mis-configurations for businesses adjusting their systems after the holiday break.

At the same time, governments across Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America accelerated the rollout of mandatory e-invoicing and real-time reporting, reinforcing a clear global trend toward continuous, data-driven compliance. Notably, progress on the EU’s ViDA package – along with new digital reporting drafts in France and Spain – signals that Europe is entering a decisive phase of VAT digitalization.

Beyond Europe, several major reforms stand out. Ghana implemented sweeping changes to its VAT system, including rate adjustments, higher thresholds, and the expansion of its e-VAT regime: one of the most ambitious overhauls in the region. China, meanwhile, finalized the implementation rules for its 2026 VAT Law, modernizing its framework and strengthening platform liability. Together, these developments show that 2026 is not easing into the year but sprinting: global VAT systems are transforming rapidly, and businesses will need to keep pace.

A promising start… but January energy doesn’t always make it to February.

Every January, gyms overflow with hopeful people. And by February, most have returned to sofa-mode.

It’s the annual ritual: fresh resolutions, fresh energy, fresh memberships. But by month’s end, enthusiasm often evaporates faster than the sweat on a winter runner’s brow.

Now imagine having a patch that measures your sweat in real time: a tiny sensor that tells you when you’re truly hydrated and working hard, and when you’re merely pretending to be. That technology is already emerging: scientists have developed wearable patches that continuously monitor sweat volume and chemical markers like sodium and glucose, offering real-time insights into hydration and performance.

And while working out on my bike over the past two weeks, I realised that such a patch is much like real-time reporting for VAT.

Just like sweating through a workout, slogging through past VAT returns and compliance checks can be painful. But it’s also where real progress happens. If fitness apps can show you your pace, your hydration, and your effort, why shouldn’t the tax function have its own real-time dashboard?

In the same way a sweat patch signals “hydrate now,” improved digital reporting and compliance tooling can remind you of your VAT to-dos when you actually need to act. Not six weeks later when the books are closed.

At the start of each year, many businesses go through the familiar January routine: reviewing last year’s VAT returns, double-checking calculations, accounting for errors, and making the necessary adjustments. And then there’s updating rate changes, correcting invoices, and cleaning up misallocated tax lines.
For the VAT professional, this is the fiscal equivalent of cardio: essential, but often laborious.

Now extend the fitness metaphor to emerging e-invoicing and real-time reporting regimes. Tax authorities increasingly want visibility into transactions as they happen, with details on rates, amounts, and timing. In some jurisdictions, they’re moving toward near real-time digital reporting, leaving little room for the traditional “we’ll just fix it later” mindset.

In an era of continuous digital data flows, it’s not just your fitness tracker that wants to know when you’re working hard: your tax authority does too. As more countries adopt e-invoicing and continuous transaction controls, the lines between end-of-period compliance and continuous compliance are blurring.

So, this year’s call to action: Stop treating VAT like a marathon and start treating it like a daily training plan. Sweat a little every day. Stay hydrated with good processes. And be ready when inspection (or audit) day comes. Let 2026 be the year you sweat less over surprises and more over strategy.

Cheers to a year of cleaner data, smarter compliance, and maybe even a personal best. Both on your 10k time and on submitting a correct and complete VAT return before the deadline.

The VATupdate Team wishes you all the best for 2026!

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.