EU law for applying VAT within the EV charging industry is continually evolving. We have updated our billing engine to align with the latest VAT framework.
It is also an opportunity to update the invoice design to be easier to understand and incorporate into customer financial systems.
What factors are used to calculate VAT?
Road uses 6 criteria to determine the correct approach to VAT calculation:
Road's role in billing for the end customer (CPO or MSP)
Location of VAT registration of the customer
Location of a charging station
Type of transactions: electricity supply (session) or service (subscription)
Counterpart's tax status – registered (B2B) or not registered (B2C)*
Tax residence country of the Road Private Label customer
*To include VAT on an invoice, a Customer Account must have a VAT ID.
In which countries is Road BV registered for VAT?
Netherlands, Italy, UK, Germany, France, Belgium, Switzerland and Spain
VAT calculations for CPO customers
How is VAT calculated if Road bills end customers using the Road bank account + VAT number?
Road issues a self-billing invoice to the charge point owner for the electricity consumed, less the applicable VAT:
If the end customer is registered in the Netherlands:
And is B2B, local rates apply.
And is B2C, VAT is not applicable.
If the end customer is registered in a country outside NL:
And is B2B, reverse charge mechanism applies.
And is B2C, VAT is not applicable.
How is VAT calculated if I use Road’s billing engine and invoice generator?
Your company’s approach to VAT calculation is applied to the costs.
How is VAT calculated if I manage billing myself (Road is not involved)?
For CPO customers the system will generate two different invoices:
CPO Subscription costs: The VAT of the subscription will be calculated based on the Tax Residence Country of the seller (your company) and the location of the buyer (your customer). If your company is registered in Germany, the German VAT will be applied to the subscription costs. There is an exception for B2C customers that are registered in a different country: on their invoice local VAT (based on their country of residence) will be applied.
CPO Reimbursement costs: VAT is calculated based on the country of residence of your customer.
For B2C customers: the supply is not taxable. Hence, VAT not applicable.
For B2B customers: VAT is due where the CPO customer is established (based on their address). If the customer is registered in the Netherlands, Dutch VAT will apply.
VAT calculations for MSP customers
How is VAT calculated if Road bills end customers using the Road bank account + VAT number?
Road controls the full process, which means the billing structure and VAT is attached fully to Road. Road invoices VAT according to the location where the electricity is consumed by the MSP.
The subscription costs of the card plan will be billed with VAT based on the location of the seller (your company). If you are located in the Netherlands, Dutch VAT will be applied.
Exception for foreign customers: B2C customers that are located in a different country will be billed with local VAT for their card subscription. B2B will be excluded from VAT (reversed VAT applies).
How is VAT calculated if I use the Road billing engine and PDF generator for our end customers using our company's bank account + VAT number?
Road provides the charging card solution and invoices the EV-driver, but invoices are issued on the name of the MSP (Third-party billing). For the purposes of VAT:
The customer is the MSP and acts in its own accords.
Payments do not go through the Road bank account.
How is VAT calculated if I manage billing myself (Payments do not go through the Road bank account)?
The invoice will consist of subscription costs and electricity costs. The VAT of the subscription will be calculated based on the Tax Residence Country of the seller (your company) and the location of the buyer (your customer).
If your company is registered in Germany, the German VAT will be applied to the subscription costs. For electricity cost the VAT will be calculated based on the location of the charge station.