Sweden’s Ministry of Finance has proposed a draft bill to combat VAT fraud in cross-border EU trade. The plan would give the Tax Agency greater powers over registrations, VIES numbers, and input VAT credits, effective 1 July 2026.
Sweden’s Ministry of Finance (MoF) has published a draft bill proposing measures to combat tax evasion through VAT fraud in cross-border EU trade by strengthening the Swedish Tax Agency’s ability to control access to the VAT system.
This announcement was made on 17 February 2026.
The bill proposes, among other things, that the Tax Agency be granted:
- Expanded powers to conduct checks in connection with VAT registration
- Authority to deny registration or deregister a person from VAT
- Authority to decide that a VAT registration number be marked as invalid in the VAT Information Exchange System (VIES)
- Authority to decide that excess input VAT should not be credited in cases where there is a risk of tax evasion
“To cut off the criminal economy, we must tackle tax evasion. The Tax Agency therefore needs more tools to strengthen controls and stop VAT fraud,” said Minister for Finance Elisabeth Svantesson.
The legislative amendments are proposed to enter into force on 1 July 2026.
