Buying IT hardware from another EU country: VAT, reverse charge, VIES and the invoice
Eurokommerz, Vienna, since 2006: Private AI/ML · IT Managed Services · Enterprise Training · AI Hardware & Software
- When a business buys goods from a supplier in another EU country and the goods are transported there, Your Europe says the supplier does not charge VAT "if the customer has a valid EU VAT number"
- The European Commission describes the buyer's side as an intra-Community acquisition, for which "the acquirer is liable to pay the VAT under the reverse-charge mechanism" in the country where the goods arrive
- Since 1 January 2020 the exemption in Article 138 of Directive 2006/112/EC requires the buyer's VAT number from another member state and the supplier's recapitulative statement
- The Commission lists the customer's VAT number, a description of the goods and a reference to the exemption among the items such an invoice carries, or the words "reverse charge" where the customer is liable for the tax; Your Europe adds that the supplier's own VAT number goes on every invoice
- This is general information from EU sources read on 24 October 2026, not tax advice: national rules implement the directive and your tax adviser confirms the treatment for your company
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How VAT works on a cross-border hardware purchase in the EU
When a VAT-registered company buys servers, GPUs or other IT hardware from a supplier in another EU country and the goods are transported to it, the supplier does not charge VAT, provided the buyer has a valid EU VAT number. The buyer accounts for the VAT in its own country, where the goods arrive, under what the European Commission calls the reverse-charge mechanism. The invoice therefore shows no VAT amount, carries both VAT numbers and refers to the exemption; your tax adviser confirms how your company records it.
This guide is for the purchasing, finance and IT staff of a company that orders hardware from a supplier based in another member state, and it takes our own case as the example: Eurokommerz is based in Vienna and delivers across the EU. It describes the rules only as the EU's own sources describe them, the Your Europe portal, the Commission's taxation pages, the VIES service and Directive 2006/112/EC, all read on 24 October 2026. Each member state writes the directive into its national VAT law, and details such as filing deadlines and invoice formats are set there. Nothing here is tax advice, and nothing replaces your adviser's view of your company's situation.
What the EU says about a sale of goods between two businesses
Your Europe, the EU's information portal for businesses, puts the supplier's side in one sentence: when goods are sent to a business in another EU country, "you do not charge VAT if the customer has a valid EU VAT number". If the customer has no valid number, the same page says the supplier "should usually charge VAT on the sale at the rate applicable in your country". The portal adds a warning that applies to everything in this article: "Be aware that there are several important exceptions to the rules."
The buyer's side is called an intra-Community acquisition. The Commission's page on taxable transactions defines it, quoting Article 20 of the VAT Directive, as "the acquisition of the right to dispose as owner of movable tangible property" that has been dispatched or transported from another member state, and states that "the acquirer is liable to pay the VAT under the reverse-charge mechanism". Its page on the place of taxation places the acquisition "where the goods are finally located after dispatch or transportation", that is in the buyer's country.
In practice the two sides mirror each other. The supplier's country does not tax the sale, and the buyer's country taxes the purchase through the buyer's own VAT return. Whether the buyer can deduct that VAT in the same return depends on its own right to deduct, which its tax adviser assesses.
The conditions for a VAT-free intra-EU supply
Article 138 of Directive 2006/112/EC sets the conditions for the exemption. Council Directive (EU) 2018/1910 of 4 December 2018 rewrote them, and member states have applied the new wording since 1 January 2020; the Commission's explanatory notes call these changes the "2020 Quick Fixes".
| CONDITION | WHAT THE EU TEXT SAYS | WHO PROVIDES IT |
|---|---|---|
| Transport | goods dispatched or transported to another member state | supplier or buyer, with evidence |
| Buyer status | another taxable person, or a non-taxable legal person acting as such | buyer |
| VAT number | buyer identified for VAT in another member state, number given to the supplier | buyer |
| Listing | supplier reports the supply in its recapitulative statement | supplier |
Article 138(1) and (1a) of Directive 2006/112/EC as amended by Council Directive (EU) 2018/1910 (EUR-Lex), and the Commission's explanatory notes on the 2020 Quick Fixes (published December 2019), read on 24 October 2026.
The VAT number is now a condition of the exemption itself. The explanatory notes say the customer's number "should constitute an additional substantive condition" for intra-Community supplies, and the amended Article 138(1)(b) requires that the acquirer "has indicated this VAT identification number to the supplier". A number from the member state where the transport begins does not qualify, which is usually the supplier's own country: the buyer has to be identified for VAT in another member state, normally the one where the goods arrive.
The supplier's reporting is a condition too. Under the amended Article 138(1a), the exemption does not apply where the supplier has not filed the recapitulative statement under Articles 262 and 263, or has filed it with incorrect information, unless the supplier can duly justify the shortcoming to the authorities. Article 262 lists who appears in that statement: the VAT-identified acquirers to whom the supplier delivered goods under Article 138(1).
Transport needs evidence. The Commission's explanatory notes deal with the proof of transport in Article 45a of Implementing Regulation (EU) No 282/2011, and they refer to a written statement from the acquirer "by the tenth day of the month following the supply" for the case in which the buyer arranges the transport. Which documents your supplier keeps, and which statement it asks you to sign if you collect the goods yourself, depends on the national rules it applies.
Checking a VAT number in VIES
The Commission's VIES service tells a supplier, or a buyer checking its supplier, whether a VAT number is registered for intra-EU transactions. Your Europe describes it as "a search engine (not a database) owned by the European Commission" that queries the national VAT databases. A result is either valid or invalid, and it can indicate whether the number is associated with a given name and address; Your Europe notes that national authorities "will not supply the name and address corresponding to a VAT number".
An invalid result does not always mean the number is false. Your Europe lists three reasons: the number does not exist, it is not activated for intra-EU transactions, or the registration "is not yet finalised (some EU countries require a separate registration for intra-EU transactions)". In each case the customer can ask its own tax office to confirm the number. The portal advises suppliers to "keep track of your validation in case of tax control", which is why a supplier may ask you for a check result or confirmation before it invoices without VAT.
For a buyer this means one practical step before ordering: check that your own company's number returns a valid result in VIES, under the legal entity that will appear on the order. A new subsidiary, a branch registered separately or a number not yet activated for intra-EU trade is the usual reason a supplier asks questions at the last moment.
Our team quotes the hardware and the delivery on one EU contract and invoice; send us your company details and VAT number with the configuration, and we prepare the quote on that basis.
What the invoice shows
The Commission's page on EU VAT invoicing rules lists what a full VAT invoice contains. For a cross-border sale between businesses the entries that matter are the two VAT numbers and the mention of the exemption or of the reverse charge.
| ENTRY | WHAT THE COMMISSION LISTS |
|---|---|
| Date and number | issue date, a sequential number that identifies the invoice |
| Parties | full names and addresses of supplier and customer |
| VAT numbers | customer's number where the customer is liable for the tax; supplier's number on every invoice |
| Goods | description and quantity of the goods |
| Price | unit price before tax, discounts or rebates |
| Supply date | the date of the supply or payment, where it differs from the issue date |
| Tax | VAT rate and amount, or the breakdown by rate or exemption |
| Exemption | reference to the EU or national provision, or another note that the supply is exempt |
| Reverse charge | the words "reverse charge" where the customer is liable for the tax |
European Commission, Taxation and Customs Union, "Invoicing rules", read on 24 October 2026; the supplier's own VAT number from Your Europe, "Charging and deducting VAT" (last checked 11 May 2026), which states that it "must be shown on all invoices"; wording shortened in the table.
The reference to the exemption follows Article 226(11) of the directive, which asks "in the case of an exemption, reference to the applicable provision of this Directive" or of national law. The Commission's explanatory notes on invoicing add that the word "Exempt" can serve as that reference. They also state that "The VAT legislation does not prescribe the use of any language", so an invoice in English or German is valid in principle, although a tax authority may ask for a translation of a specific invoice during a check.
Electronic invoices are allowed. The Commission states that "Electronic invoices are equivalent to paper invoices", and that a business may issue them when the recipient accepts them. Public bodies are a special case: the same page says public administrations "must accept structured electronic invoices", so a university or a public research centre may ask for a specific e-invoice format in its order.
Cases that change the treatment
The simple case is a supplier in one member state delivering goods to a business with a valid VAT number in another. Several common variations change the analysis, and each is a question for your tax adviser before the order.
Installation at your site. The Commission's page on the place of taxation states that for goods installed or assembled by or on behalf of the supplier, "the place of taxation is where those goods are installed or assembled", which is Article 36 of the directive. Whether commissioning a server on site counts as installation in this sense, and what follows for the invoice, your tax adviser decides; tell your supplier early if you want on-site work, so that the quote and the invoice reflect it.
No valid VAT number. Without a valid EU VAT number, Your Europe says the supplier usually charges VAT at the rate of its own country. That applies, for example, to a public body that is not identified for VAT or to a number that VIES does not yet show as valid.
Invoice to one country, delivery to another. A company that orders through its parent company in one member state and has the server delivered to a subsidiary in a third one creates a chain of supplies. The EU changed the rules for chain transactions with the same 2020 Quick Fixes, and which supply in the chain is exempt depends on who arranges the transport. Give the supplier both addresses and both VAT numbers before the quote.
Delivery outside the EU. Article 146(1)(a) of the directive exempts "the supply of goods dispatched or transported to a destination outside the Community by or on behalf of the vendor". Customs, import VAT in the country of destination and export controls apply instead; our article on the end-user certificate for NVIDIA GPUs covers the export side for GPU servers.
Licences and services on the same order. Services to a business follow a different rule from goods. The Commission's page states that for services to a taxable person "the place of taxation is the place where the customer is established", and Your Europe describes the customer paying the VAT in its own country "using the reverse charge procedure". How software licences, support contracts or engineering work on the same invoice are classified is part of your adviser's review.
How Eurokommerz invoices EU businesses
Eurokommerz Handelsges.m.b.H. is registered in Vienna, as our company page lists. The same page states how we invoice: under EU VAT rules, with reverse charge for EU-registered businesses. The VAT number on our quote and invoice can be checked in VIES like any other. Contracts are in English or German, under Austrian law. Our AI servers page describes the offer that goes with it: delivery anywhere in the EU under one contract with EU invoicing, and other destinations on request through our logistics partner.
For a company in another member state, that means one supplier for the server, the cards and the licences, and one invoice for the order. NVIDIA AI Enterprise and vGPU licences come on the same invoice as the hardware, as our AI servers page says. How each line is treated on your side is for your tax adviser to confirm.
The rest of the order works as on any of our builds. Our team sizes the configuration and replies within one business day, the written quote states the price, lead time and warranty terms, and quantities and lead time are confirmed in writing with the quote. Each server is assembled and tested before delivery and carries the manufacturer warranty on every component, handled through us, with the assembly covered by us. Our guide on where to buy an AI server in Europe compares this route with buying from a server maker or a reseller.
What to send with your enquiry
The tax details belong in the first message, together with the technical ones. They let us prepare a quote that matches the invoice your finance team expects.
- Legal entity. The full name and registered address of the company that will order and pay, as registered for VAT.
- VAT number. The EU VAT number of that entity, valid in VIES for intra-EU transactions.
- Delivery address. The site and country where the hardware goes, if it differs from the invoice address.
- Transport. Whether we deliver to the site, as our AI servers page offers anywhere in the EU, or whether you want to arrange the transport yourself.
- On-site work. Whether you want commissioning on site, so that it appears in the quote.
- Invoice format. Any order number, cost centre or e-invoice format your accounts payable needs, in particular for public bodies.
- The workload. Models, users, data or the configuration you have in mind, as our guide on what to specify before a quote explains.
Write to us with these details and the hardware you need, and we reply within one business day with a configuration and a written quote.
FAQ
Do I pay VAT when I buy hardware from another EU country?
What is reverse charge on an intra-EU purchase of goods?
What must an invoice for an intra-EU supply of goods show?
How do I check a supplier's or customer's EU VAT number?
What happens if the buyer has no valid VAT number?
Does Eurokommerz invoice with reverse charge?
Can I buy a GPU server from you for a company outside the EU?
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