VAT-only invoices typically come from Customs or from freight shippers and relate to the VAT element for goods previously imported. They usually relate to goods imported from outside the EU. Typically an invoice with no VAT element will have already been received from the foreign supplier.
The best approach to entering VAT-only invoices is to think of them in conjunction with the original invoice from the foreign supplier, and is best understood by example. In this case, an invoice has already been received without a VAT element, for €10,000, with the VAT Type been recorded as Foreign – Non-EU and a rate of 0%.
For the VAT-only invoice which follows, the amount of VAT that would have been paid would have to be calculated manually; in this case it would be €2,300 at 23%.
The VAT-only invoice works simply by entering a Customs (or freight line) for the original invoice amount of €10,000 at the 23% VAT rate. Then adding another line, in the exact same way as the first line, but for a negative €10,000 and at 0% VAT. This then leaves the invoice with just the €2,300 VAT shown. The following illustration demonstrates how the entry is made:
