EU VAT Registration in Ireland

Introduction

In order to stay VAT compliant when trading in Europe, there are three different registrations that fall under the context of "EU VAT", and they aren't interchangeable. Misunderstanding the requirements for your business can result in costly compliance failure and can even cause issues when your products need to cross borders when your business does not have the correct paperwork.

Which one you need comes down to two questions. Where do your goods sit when the customer buys them, and are you selling goods at all?

Which EU VAT registration do you actually need?

Most non-EU sellers require more than one to cover their business needs. A US brand that ships small parcels direct to customers and also keeps stock in a Dublin warehouse needs IOSS for the parcels and an Irish VAT number for the stock. The schemes sit alongside each other rather than replacing each other. For B2C sales for consignments of €150 or less the IOSS system requires an intermediary.

Who needs to register for an EU VAT number?

If you sell goods or services to consumers in the EU and you have no EU establishment, you will need at least one of the four registrations above.

Revenue's position on Irish registration is stricter than most sellers expect. Non-established traders must register regardless of the level of their turnover where they:

• import goods into the State,
• Supply goods in the State,
• Engage in distance selling to a person who isn't a taxable person here,
• Install or assemble goods, or
• Supply services connected with property located here.

One threshold does exist, and it applies narrowly. Intra-Community distance sales of goods, plus cross-border telecommunications, broadcasting and electronic services, are measured together across every member state. Cross €10,000 in a calendar year and you tax the sale in your customer's country whereas anything below it you can keep charging your home rate. That threshold falls away entirely though if you're established in more than one member state.

Business-to-business services are usually the exception to all of this. The place of supply is generally where your customer is established, and the customer self-accounts under the reverse charge, which means you may have nothing to register at all. All of these are worth checking with your tax consultant before you buy a registration you don't need.

What is a European VAT number?

A European VAT number is a unique identifier assigned to a business registered for Value-Added Tax in the EU. Each member state issues its own, in its own format. Every one opens with a two-letter country code.

• Ireland: IE1234567X or IE1X23456X, 8 or 9 characters
• Germany: DE123456789
• Italy: IT12345678901
• Hungary: HU12345678
  

The number identifies your tax status and fixes the place of taxation. It has to appear on your invoices, and it lets B2B counterparties apply the reverse charge. It's also what you file returns and recover VAT against. (European Commission)

IOSS for imported parcels under €150

IOSS covers goods imported into the EU in consignments with an intrinsic value of €150 or less, sold to private consumers. You charge the customer's local VAT rate at checkout, the parcel clears customs without the courier chasing your customer for money, and you file one monthly return.

This is the only one of the four where a non-EU business can't hold the registration itself. You have to appoint an EU-established intermediary, and that intermediary carries joint and several liability for the VAT. Nathan Trust acts as intermediary for sellers in the US, the UK, India and China. Our IOSS registration service covers the registration and the monthly filing, and the intermediary guide explains what the role actually carries.

Since 1 July 2026 a flat €3 customs duty applies to low-value imports, charged per item rather than per parcel. It isn't VAT, and no VAT is due on it in IOSS transactions, but it does change your landed cost and if you haven’t made adjustments with the new fees you may be losing out.

OSS for EU stock and for services

The One Stop Shop has two variants that are applicable to different types of businesses.

The Union scheme covers goods you sell from stock already inside the EU to consumers in other member states. If you hold inventory in a European warehouse, whether that's your own or a fulfilment centre, and ship it across borders, this is your scheme. A non-EU business can use it, but registration has to be in the country the goods are dispatched from.

The Non-Union scheme covers services supplied to EU consumers by a business with no EU establishment. Software, digital products, online courses, consultancy, professional services. Here you can pick any member state you like, and Ireland is an obvious choice for a US business as everything runs in English making the paperwork easier to file and compliance easier to understand, and Revenue is used to dealing with foreign-owned operations.

Neither OSS scheme requires an intermediary. Neither one covers imports, which is what IOSS is for, and neither replaces a local registration where you hold stock in a country and make domestic supplies there.

When you need an Irish VAT number

You need a local Irish registration where you:

• Import goods into Ireland in your own name,
• Hold stock in Ireland for onward sale,
• Make domestic supplies within Ireland, or
• Sell consignments above €150 that no import scheme reaches.

Excise goods are excluded from IOSS and OSS at any value, so alcohol and tobacco sit here too. A local registration is more administrative work than a special scheme but is crucial as it also does something neither OSS nor IOSS can. It lets you recover Irish input VAT.

Do you need a fiscal representative in Ireland?

For a standard Irish VAT registration, no. There's no fiscal representative requirement for non-established businesses here, inside the EU or outside it. You can register and account for VAT directly with Revenue in your own name.

That's not true across the EU. Several member states require non-EU businesses to appoint a representative who becomes jointly liable for the VAT, which adds cost and means somebody else's risk appetite decides whether you get registered. Ireland doesn't work that way. It's one of the key reasons many US and non-EU businesses register here.

The exception is IOSS, where an EU-established intermediary is mandatory for any non-EU business which causes confusion as it gets quoted as though it applies to EU VAT registration generally, and it doesn't.

Can you recover Irish VAT?

On a local Irish VAT registration, yes. Input VAT on qualifying business costs is deductible through your Irish return, and VAT incurred before registration can often be recovered in your first return, subject to the normal Irish deduction limits.

On IOSS and OSS, no. Those schemes exist to move VAT out to the member state where your customer is. They're a payment mechanism, not a recovery one. If you're carrying meaningful Irish or EU input VAT, that's an argument for a local registration alongside the scheme rather than instead of it to maximise your tax breaks.

This opportunity is seldom mentioned as an option, as providers usually dismiss it in a blanket claim that EU VAT registration never allows recovery. That's true of the schemes and false of a real Irish VAT registration.

How registration works

Irish registration runs on Form TR2 through Revenue's Online Service. Applications go to Business Registration, Office of the Revenue Commissioners, PO Box 1, Wexford. Revenue charges nothing to register, and unlike some member states there's no security deposit or bank guarantee.

Expect around four weeks. It can run longer, and it usually runs longer when the application arrives without evidence that the business is genuinely trading. Revenue wants to see what you sell, who you sell it to, and why you need an Irish number. Have your incorporation documents ready, along with a plain description of what you sell and who buys it. Plan around the delay as trying to register a month before peak season will lead to your company explaining VAT to customs instead of selling to customers.

What records must you keep?

Records for IOSS and OSS transactions have to be kept for ten years and produced to a tax authority on request. For each supply that means:

• The member state of consumption,
• A description of the goods or services,
• The date,
• The taxable amount and currency,
• The VAT rate applied,
• The VAT payable,
• The dates and amounts of payments received, and
• The invoice information where an invoice was issued.

A local Irish registration follows the ordinary Irish record-keeping rules and a six-year retention period, which is a lighter obligation than the schemes carry.

Do UK companies need to register for EU VAT?

Since Brexit the UK is outside the EU VAT area for goods, and a UK business is treated the same as one in the US, China or India. UK sellers shipping to EU consumers need one of the registrations above, chosen the same way.

What's different for UK businesses is how easy Ireland is to work with. Same language, and a legal and tax system built on the same foundations and your goods already cross that border. We've written up how UK retailers are using that route in our Irish Bridge case study.

Why register through Ireland

Any member state can host an OSS or IOSS registration, and the schemes work identically in all of them. What differs for your business is the authority behind the registration and how much friction you may potentially encounter.

Ireland is English-speaking, so nothing you file needs translating and no query comes back in a language your team can't read. Revenue deals with foreign-owned businesses constantly, because much of the Irish corporate base is exactly that. Outside IOSS nobody has to be appointed to stand behind you, and Revenue asks for no deposit. For anyone already holding Irish stock, one registration covers the domestic position and the OSS position together.

What Nathan Trust provides

We handle all three routes, and we'll tell you which you need before you buy anything.

• IOSS registration, with Nathan Trust acting as your appointed intermediary, plus monthly filing
• OSS registration under the Union or Non-Union scheme, and the quarterly returns that follow
• Irish VAT registration for non-established traders, with ongoing returns and input VAT recovery

We're a Chartered Accountants Ireland regulated firm and a registered Irish tax agent, advising internationally owned businesses since 1999. You get a named Chartered Tax Advisor who acts as your personal VAT consultant, not a ticket queue.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need an EU company to register for EU VAT in Ireland?

No. We register non-EU businesses from the US, the UK, India and China for Irish VAT, OSS and IOSS without any of them forming an Irish company. If you'd rather have a local entity, that's a separate decision about market presence, not a VAT requirement.

Can a US company register for OSS in Ireland?

For the Non-Union scheme, covering services sold to EU consumers, yes, and you can choose Ireland freely. For the Union scheme, covering goods, only if your stock dispatches from Ireland. A US company warehousing in Germany registers for Union OSS in Germany.

Is there a turnover threshold for registering in Ireland?

Not for non-established traders importing or supplying goods in Ireland. Revenue requires registration regardless of turnover. The €10,000 threshold people usually mean applies only to intra-Community distance sales and cross-border digital services, measured across all member states together.

Do I need a fiscal representative to register for Irish VAT?

Not for a standard Irish VAT registration or for either OSS scheme. Ireland doesn't require one. An EU-established intermediary is mandatory only for IOSS.

Can I reclaim VAT on an OSS or IOSS registration?

No. Both schemes declare and pay VAT rather than recover it. Recovery needs a local VAT registration, which you can hold alongside a scheme.

How long does Irish VAT registration take?

Around four weeks, sometimes longer. Revenue reviews whether the business is genuinely trading, so applications with thin supporting information take the longest.

Do I need IOSS and OSS at the same time?

Often, yes. IOSS covers parcels imported from outside the EU under €150. OSS covers goods moving between member states from EU stock. A seller doing both needs both, and they're filed separately.

What happens if my consignment is worth more than €150?

IOSS doesn't reach it. Standard import VAT and customs procedures apply, and you'll want either a local registration or a delivered-duty-paid arrangement with your carrier.

Does Brexit change what a UK seller needs?

It changes the starting point, not the options. A UK business is now a third country for EU VAT, so it picks from the same four routes as a US or Chinese seller.

What changes in 2028?

The EU Customs Data Hub goes live on 1 July 2028, the €150 threshold disappears, and normal customs tariffs apply to imports at every value. The registration requirements themselves aren't being removed, but the scheme boundaries will move.