Providing cross-border services to clients in other European Union member states is standard practice for Spain-based freelancers and small businesses. However, international VAT rules can quickly become complex without a clear grasp of place-of-supply principles and Spanish reporting requirements.
B2B services: general place-of-supply rule and reverse charge
When your client is another business or self-employed professional in the EU, the service is localized where the customer is established (Article 69 of the Spanish VAT Act):
1. Reverse charge mechanism: You issue the invoice without Spanish VAT. The client accounts for local VAT in their own member state.
2. VIES / ROI registration: Both you and your client must hold an active intra-Community VAT ID verified on the European Commission's VIES registry. If your client lacks a valid VIES number, you must charge 21% Spanish VAT.
3. Mandatory invoice statement: You must include the note: *«Operation not subject to Spanish VAT / Reverse charge mechanism (Article 196 of Council Directive 2006/112/EC)»*.
B2C services to private individuals and the OSS regime
If your client is a private EU consumer, Spanish VAT normally applies. However, for telecommunications, broadcasting, and electronically supplied services (TBE), exceeding the €10,000 pan-European annual threshold requires charging the VAT rate of the customer's home country, declared via the OSS (One Stop Shop) scheme.
Tax filings in Spain: Forms 303 and 349
Invoicing without VAT does not exempt you from declaring the transaction to the Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT):
* Form 303 (Quarterly VAT): Report the turnover under the box for operations not subject to VAT due to place-of-supply rules.
* Form 349 (Recapitulative statement): Submit this monthly or quarterly statement detailing your client's country, intra-EU VAT number, and invoiced amount.
Compliance with VeriFactu and e-invoicing mandates
Spain's electronic billing roadmap sets clear deadlines: corporate entities must comply by January 1, 2027, while freelancers and micro-businesses have until July 1, 2027. You can review the exact milestones in our electronic invoicing guide for freelancers and the breakdown of VeriFactu 2027 deadlines.
Every intra-EU invoice must generate an immutable record with verifiable digital footprints. Upgrading your workflow is straightforward:
* Freelancers can easily importar Excel a VeriFactu.
* If you manage legacy desktop accounting, you can importar Factusol a VeriFactu or importar Sage 50.
* Cloud users can seamlessly importar Holded contacts and item catalogs.
* For custom business software, using a specialized API VeriFactu or a pasarela VeriFactu para software enables direct integración ERP VeriFactu.
With Fakturia.es, you can verify VIES numbers instantly, invoice European clients under correct reverse charge rules, and remain fully compliant with Spanish anti-fraud and VeriFactu standards.