By Richie Lennon
To get an Irish VAT number, apply to Revenue using the correct registration route for your business. Businesses established in Ireland normally apply through ROS, themselves or through a tax agent. Sole traders and companies use different registration forms. Choose domestic-only or intra-EU status, provide evidence supporting the business and agree the effective date. Incorporating a company does not automatically register it for VAT, and a VAT number does not settle how every sale should be taxed.
Getting the company registered and getting the VAT position right are separate jobs. The delay often comes when an application cannot explain what the business does, where it operates and why it needs the registration requested.
We would work through those questions before the first invoice or shipment. The registration needs to fit the trade, rather than being a number you obtain now and try to make sense of later.
First check why you need to register
For an eligible business established in Ireland, the main domestic thresholds are €42,500 for services and €85,000 for goods. Turnover is sales excluding VAT, not profit. Mixed supplies and certain manufactured goods have additional rules.
The domestic small-business exemption uses the current and previous calendar years. International transactions and purchases from abroad can create obligations that are not answered by the domestic sales threshold alone.
Use our VAT threshold guide for the fuller threshold decision. Revenue publishes the thresholds and exceptions.
You can also elect to register in qualifying circumstances below the threshold. Consider what this does to customer pricing, eligible input VAT recovery and the work of filing returns. It is not automatically a saving.
For an illustration of the pricing issue, if a service subject to 23% VAT remains priced at €123 including VAT, the net sale is €100 and VAT is €23. Keeping the same customer price changes what the business retains. That is a pricing illustration, not a statement that every service is liable at 23%.
Choose domestic-only or intra-EU registration
Revenue operates a two-tier registration system.
| Status | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Domestic-only | Trading within Ireland and with non-EU countries where this status fits the activities |
| Intra-EU | Trading with businesses elsewhere in the EU, with additional application information and VIES registration on approval |
Domestic-only does not mean you can only have Irish customers. Intra-EU registration is also not the same as joining OSS for qualifying consumer sales.
Explain whether customers are businesses or consumers, where goods move and where services are supplied. The registration route follows those facts. If your activity changes, review the status rather than assuming the original application covers everything.
Apply through the correct route
For a business established in Ireland, you or your tax agent can normally use ROS. Revenue’s online registration guidance identifies TR1 for individuals, sole traders, trusts and partnerships, and TR2 for limited companies.
These are registration categories within the online process. Do not assume downloading a paper form is the normal first step. Revenue returns paper applications that could have been completed online, with exceptions where ROS cannot be used.
For businesses not established in Ireland, Revenue specifies the paper TR1(FT) or TR2(FT) route, as appropriate. That is a different case from a locally established business with a director living abroad.
Follow Revenue’s current registration instructions, particularly where your business crosses jurisdictions or already has some Irish tax registrations.
Prepare evidence that explains the trade
The application should give a coherent picture of the business. Assemble the information needed to support the route you are applying for, including the legal entity, activity, expected turnover and trading arrangements.
For an intra-EU application, Revenue specifically asks for additional information such as customer type, expected supplies and evidence of trade or intention to trade. Supporting records can include contracts, invoices, leases and business plans, depending on the circumstances.
Useful preparation includes:
- a clear description of what you sell and to whom;
- where the work is performed or goods are stored and shipped;
- actual or prospective customer and supplier arrangements;
- expected turnover with assumptions you can explain;
- relevant business premises and operating arrangements;
- the requested start date and why it is appropriate.
A CRO number or registered office does not, by itself, establish every VAT fact. Equally, there is no universal rule that every applicant must have Irish employees, Irish customers, an Irish-resident director and a conventional physical office. Non-established businesses can also have Irish VAT obligations and registration routes.
The assessment depends on the business’s actual circumstances. Avoid building an application around a checklist of claims that are not true of the trade.
Agree the effective date
Revenue says registration generally takes effect from the date stated on the application. Backdating can be agreed in certain circumstances. Voluntary registration has its own limit on the earliest effective date.
The date matters for invoices, VAT charged and the treatment of eligible purchases. Do not treat the day the number arrives as automatically the start of every obligation.
If you have already made sales or incurred costs, give the accountant the dates and records before applying. A late application does not necessarily make earlier taxable activity disappear.
Agree what happens to invoices already issued, rather than adding VAT or changing the customer balance without understanding the treatment.
How long does a VAT number take?
There is no processing time we would promise for every application. Missing information, establishment questions or intra-EU checks can extend the process.
Keep the application reference and monitor requests from Revenue. Respond with the evidence asked for, using consistent figures and explanations. Repeated applications with conflicting facts can make the position harder to resolve.
Plan important invoices, purchases and shipments with the registration work in mind. Ask what can proceed, how the transactions should be recorded and what needs confirmation. Do not assume that waiting for a number means the business has no VAT exposure.
If Revenue asks questions or refuses the application
Start with the particular reason given. Identify whether Revenue needs more evidence, a corrected fact or a different registration basis.
If there is a formal refusal, ask your adviser to review the decision and the applicable appeal rights and deadline. Do not simply resubmit the same unsupported application or assume a refusal proves you have no VAT obligations.
This is where the quality of the original explanation pays off. Contracts, transaction routes and operating evidence are easier to assess than an unsupported assertion that the business “needs a VAT number”.
Once the number is issued
Check the effective date and registration status. If intra-EU status is needed, verify the number’s VIES position before relying on it in transactions that require that validation.
Set up the invoicing and accounting system using the correct VAT treatment for the actual supplies. Zero-rated and exempt sales are different; “no VAT on the invoice” does not tell you which treatment applies.
Agree the filing period and responsibility for preparing, reviewing, submitting and paying returns. Two-monthly periods are common, but authorised alternatives exist. Do not assume every business has the same return frequency.
Input VAT recovery also has conditions. Business use, valid evidence and the nature of the supply matter; a VAT number does not make every expense recoverable.
Keep the records complete from the effective date. Buying software or connecting a bank feed does not ensure purchase invoices, import documentation or cross-border transactions are recorded properly.
Make the registration part of the operating plan
The application should end with a clear working process: the right entity on invoices, agreed VAT codes, complete evidence, a return calendar and someone accountable for each task.
Around Finance’s tax accounting service can connect the registration decision with ongoing accounting and tax work. If you run a growing Irish business turning over €250,000 or more, a Finance Fit Call can establish whether our service fits. Agree any specialist registration or cross-border advice separately.
Keeping track of VAT
FAQs
Yes. Sole traders can have mandatory registration obligations or elect to register where eligible. The normal route for an established business is online through ROS using the appropriate registration category.
No. Company formation and VAT registration are separate. Explain the actual trade and apply on the correct basis.
It is not a universal VAT registration requirement. Establishment and the transactions matter, and non-established businesses have separate registration routes. Company-law requirements are another question.
It depends on the application and any further checks. No fixed seven-to-ten-day promise applies to every business. Track the application and respond promptly to evidence requests.
Check your transaction types. Trading with businesses elsewhere in the EU generally calls for intra-EU status under Revenue’s two-tier system. Consumer distance sales and OSS involve separate questions.
No. Recovery depends on the expense, evidence, business use and the applicable rules. Exempt activity and restricted expenses can limit it.
