Forgot to file a VAT return? Here’s how to fix it

Forgetting a VAT return can happen, even faster than you think. You are certainly not the first: we regularly see it come up in our support.

A forgotten VAT return can be fixed, but don’t wait. If you don’t fill in a return, the VAT administration will fill one in for you.

I forgot to file my VAT return, now what?

First the most important thing: there is no special procedure. No separate form, no explanation to attach, nobody you need to call.

In Dexxter, everything is ready automatically. You see which quarter is missing, the return has already been calculated on the basis of your invoices and expenses, and the payment instructions are right there. You check it and file it, just like any other time.

A quarter in which you had not started yet is also ready, as an empty return. Be sure to file it. Without a return, that quarter stays missing for the tax authorities, even if there was nothing to report.

Is there VAT to pay? Pay it at the same time. Filing late and paying late are two separate fines.

What fine do you risk?

If you file now, you pay 100 euros per return and per month of delay, with a maximum of 500 euros per return.

Note the “per return”. Two forgotten returns means twice the fine.

On top of that, there is a fine on the VAT you pay late. It amounts to 10% if your return was filed late.

If you file a return late, the administration also has four years to audit that period, instead of three.

And if you keep waiting?

This is where it gets more expensive, in two steps.

After three months, the tax authorities fill in a return themselves

If you don’t file, the administration draws up a return itself after three months. This is called a proposed replacement return, and you receive it by registered mail.

The amount they fill in is not lenient. They take the highest VAT amount from your returns of the past twelve months, with a minimum of 2,100 euros. If you have not filed any returns yet, expect at least 2,100 euros.

You then have one month to file the return yourself after all. If you do, the proposal disappears, your figures apply and you stay in the fine category of 100 euros per month. If you don’t, the replacement return becomes final and that amount is due.

After that, you can still lodge an objection via Intervat, within six months. You enter the correct amounts there, and they replace those of the replacement return. But by then you are much further from home than necessary.

After five months, the fine changes category

From then on, the administration no longer speaks of late filing, but of non-filing. And that costs a lot more:

• 500 euros per return for a first offence
• 1,250 euros for a second
• 2,500 euros for a third
• 5,000 euros for each subsequent one

Whether it is a first or second offence is assessed over the previous four years.

If the payment was also late, that fine rises to 15% in the case of a final replacement return.

In short: that same forgotten return costs you 100 euros or 500 euros, depending only on when you file it.

And the interest?

If you still had VAT to pay in those late returns, you are paying that VAT later than intended. The VAT administration charges late-payment interest on it.

It is calculated per month, with a month that has started counting as a full month. The rate is set every calendar year. You can find the current percentage at the FPS Finance.

Where can you see your overview?

When you have to pay fines and interest, you quickly lose track of what you still owe.

Fortunately, everything is in one place. In MyMinfin, you can view your VAT provision account. There you see your available provisions, add new ones and request a refund.

The FPS Finance can automatically use those provisions to settle your debt, fines and interest included.

Do you pay your VAT with a standing order? Then check that you are still using the correct account number. You can find the current number at the FPS Finance.

Can you challenge a fine?

Asking costs nothing, and it is worth it.

Were there exceptional circumstances that prevented you from filing, and were you acting in good faith? Then submit a request for remission or reduction. The easiest way is via MyMinfin, where you are guided through the process step by step. It is also possible on paper, addressed to the director of the competent centre.

Do you think the established facts themselves are not correct? Then you do not submit a request, but an objection. It states your identity, the decision you are objecting to and the reasons why.

You have the best chance if it is a first offence and your situation is in order by now, with all returns filed.

You will always have to pay the VAT itself and the interest charged, though.

How do you avoid this next time?

Most forgotten returns are not caused by carelessness, but by a lack of clarity. About your start date, about who files what, or about your VAT status.

Four things that help:

1. Check your exact start date with your business counter, don’t rely on memory. It often happens that you were already registered as active in the quarter before the one you thought you started in.
2. When you switch accountants, put in writing who files which quarter. Otherwise you will both think the other one is doing it.
3. Know that your deadline is the 25th of the month after the quarter, and that it does not move if that day is a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday.
4. Put your deadlines in a calendar that reminds you, don’t just keep them in your head 😉

In Dexxter, you get a tax timeline tailored to your file, with all your deadlines in one place. And we guide you through your return step by step. Even a late one.

Accounting. But not a second too much.

With Dexxter, you will never forget a VAT return again. Your accounts in order. Without time, cost or effort.

Try it free for 30 days