On 24 October 2017 the OECD issued new implementation guidance on collecting consumption taxes on cross-border sales. The document is entitled “Mechanisms for the Effective Collection of VAT/GST Where the Supplier is Not Located in the Jurisdiction of Taxation”. The guidance aims to assist consistent implementation of the international standards for VAT on cross-border trade and takes into account the increase in e-commerce and its effect on the collection of VAT in relation to business to consumer (B2C) supplies.

The focus is on implementing recommendations of the final report on Action 1 of the action plan on base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) outlining responses to the challenges presented by the digital economy. The OECD notes that these approaches have already been implemented in practice in many countries. Those countries and the business community were consulted in putting together the guidance.

The guidance has the dual aim of enhancing levels of tax compliance while ensuring that compliance costs for digital suppliers are limited. This can be done by ensuring consistent implementation of the collection mechanisms across jurisdictions. Results shown by early adopters of the collection mechanisms such as the European Union indicate that VAT revenue can be boosted and the compliance burden for businesses can be reduced.

The guidance is broadly arranged into three chapters. The first deals with the response to important policy and design issues in relation to collection of VAT on services and intangibles where the supplies is not located in the jurisdiction of taxation. The second chapter looks at a range of specific design questions in implementing a registration-based collection regime. This type of VAT collection regime requires foreign suppliers to register in the jurisdiction of taxation and pay over the tax to that jurisdiction.

The third chapter deals with the operation of a simplified registration and compliance regime for non-resident suppliers. This was recommended in the report on BEPS action 1. Higher levels of compliance can be expected where the compliance obligations are limited to doing what is strictly necessary for collecting the VAT and making sure that compliance burdens are proportional to the revenue collected. Simplification is essential in the case of businesses that have obligations in multiple jurisdictions. Complex procedures would lead to non-compliance or to reluctance by businesses to serve customers in jurisdictions imposing heavy compliance burdens.