VAT returns for Irish businesses, filed on time every period
We prepare and file your VAT3 returns, reconcile them to your books, and handle the annual Return of Trading Details that Revenue uses to check them. Fixed monthly fee, a named accountant, and no scramble on the 23rd.
In short
Most Irish businesses file a VAT3 return every two months, due by the 19th of the following month, or the 23rd when the return and payment both go through ROS. We prepare the return from your bookkeeping, reconcile it before filing, submit it, and file the annual Return of Trading Details that has to agree with it.
The Irish VAT calendar, and what it actually demands
VAT is the obligation that catches Irish businesses most often, because it recurs six times a year and the deadline does not move. Revenue assigns your taxable period at registration; most businesses are put on a bi-monthly cycle running January–February, March–April and so on.
| Return | Frequency | Due |
|---|---|---|
| VAT3 | Every two months, for most businesses | 19th of the following month, 23rd via ROS |
| Return of Trading Details | Annually | After the VAT year end, and must reconcile to your VAT3s |
| VIES statement | Monthly or quarterly, if you trade B2B within the EU | By the 23rd |
| Intrastat | Monthly, once you pass the volume thresholds | By the 23rd |
Revenue may assign a four-monthly, six-monthly or annual cycle where your liabilities are small. That is worth asking about: fewer returns is less administration and better cash flow, and it is not offered automatically.
The return is the easy part. The reconciliation before it, and the Return of Trading Details after it, are where the problems surface.
How the engagement runs
- Your bookkeeping is kept current, either by us or by you in Xero, Surf or Sage.
- We reconcile the VAT control account before the period closes, so errors are found while they are still fixable.
- We prepare the VAT3, send it to you with the figure and the reasoning, and file on your approval.
- We monitor the payment deadline and tell you the amount well before the 23rd.
- At year end we prepare the Return of Trading Details and check it agrees with the six VAT3s already filed.
The mistakes that produce Revenue assessments
Almost every VAT problem we are brought in to fix falls into one of five categories, and none of them are exotic.
- Reclaiming VAT on petrol, on most passenger cars, or on entertainment — none of which is recoverable, and all of which are easy to spot in a purchases listing.
- Applying the wrong rate, particularly in food, construction and mixed supplies where the boundaries are not intuitive.
- Zero-rating an EU sale without a valid VIES check, which makes the Irish VAT your liability rather than the customer's.
- A Return of Trading Details that does not agree with the VAT3s already filed — a direct prompt for a Revenue query.
- A run of nil returns from a business that is visibly trading.
Registration, and whether you should
You must register once turnover in any continuous twelve-month period passes €42,500 for services or €85,000 for goods — or as soon as you can reasonably expect it to. The test is forward-looking as well as backward-looking, so signing a single large contract can create the obligation on the day you sign.
Registering early is often right where your customers are themselves VAT-registered businesses, because they reclaim what you charge and you start recovering VAT on your own costs. It is usually wrong where you sell to consumers, because it acts as an immediate price rise.
What it costs
VAT is quoted as a fixed monthly fee, agreed before you commit. The price depends on transaction volume, whether we do the bookkeeping or work from yours, and whether you trade across borders — cross-border work brings VIES, OSS and place-of-supply questions that a domestic-only business never encounters.
You get the fixed figure in a written proposal within 48 hours of talking to us. There is no hourly billing and no charge for asking a question mid-period.
Moving from your current accountant
It is routine, and we handle it. We write to your existing accountant for professional clearance and the handover records, take over the ROS agent link, and pick up from the next period. The cleanest moment to move is straight after a VAT period closes, but it can be done at any point in the cycle.
Sources
VAT Returns questions we get asked
- How often do I need to file VAT in Ireland?
- The standard taxable period is bi-monthly, beginning on the first day of January, March, May, July, September and November. The Collector-General may authorise four-monthly returns where your annual VAT liability is between €3,001 and €14,400, or six-monthly where it is €3,000 or less. We confirm your correct period at registration.
- What is the VAT registration threshold in Ireland?
- €85,000 for goods and €42,500 for services, measured over any continuous twelve-month period. If you expect to exceed either, you should register before the threshold is reached. Voluntary registration below it is also possible.
- When is the VAT3 actually due?
- By the 19th of the month following the end of the taxable period. Filing the return and paying the liability through ROS extends that to the 23rd. Doing only one of the two through ROS loses the extension.
- Do I need to charge VAT on sales to EU customers?
- It depends on who they are. Business-to-business supplies to a VAT-registered EU customer are generally zero-rated under the reverse charge, provided you have validated their VAT number through VIES and kept the evidence. Business-to-consumer sales require OSS registration once cross-border sales pass €10,000 a year.
- What happens if I file a VAT return late?
- Interest runs on the late payment on a daily basis, and a pattern of late filing raises your risk rating with Revenue. Persistent default can also affect your tax clearance certificate, which many contracts and grants depend on.
- Can you deal with a Revenue VAT audit?
- Yes. We handle the correspondence, prepare the records Revenue asks for, and attend on your behalf. Where an error is found, an unprompted qualifying disclosure made before the audit begins substantially reduces the penalty, so tell us early rather than late.
Read more on this
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Get a fixed quote for vat returns
Tell us about your business and we will send a fixed-fee proposal within 48 hours.