Circular 807-1, issued in October 2025, removed the ability for Luxembourg resident employees in taxable rental car policies to reduce the taxable base for business mileage, potentially increasing VAT costs for those with significant professional travel. The change also raises operational questions about the backdating of adjustments and filing corrections, and highlights challenges for cross‑border employees. Companies may need to rethink their car policies in light of these developments.

Austria has lowered its reduced VAT rate from 10% to 5% for a defined basket of goods, effective 1 July 2026. The change applies only to specified goods and does not affect the standard rate.

Moldova’s legislature has amended the Tax Code to raise the VAT registration threshold to 3.2 million lei, a move that the Ministry of Finance only partially supports by proposing 1.7 million lei. The current threshold, effective 1 January 2026, stands at 1.5 million lei, and the EU directive caps the limit at 85 000 € or its equivalent.

The Ghana Revenue Authority has raised the VAT registration threshold from GH¢200,000 to GH¢750,000 per annum, effective 26 January 2026. Businesses below the new threshold will be deregistered and placed under the Modified Tax Scheme, which offers simplified compliance options. The move aims to reduce the compliance burden on micro and small businesses in the informal sector.

France will transfer all VAT provisions from the General Tax Code into a new consolidated framework, the Code de l’imposition sur les biens et services (CIBS), effective 1 September 2026. The reform modernises the legislative structure, codifies EU measures such as the ViDA package and IOSS, and allows a transition period until 31 December 2027. E‑invoicing rules remain outside the CIBS for the time being.

The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s House of Representatives adopted a draft law on fiscalization of transactions, establishing obligations for electronic invoicing, a real‑time transaction recording system, monitoring mechanisms, and criminal provisions to curb tax evasion. The law builds on the 2009 fiscal systems law and aims to modernize tax compliance across the Federation.

Poland’s Ministry of Finance and Economy has signed four executive regulations that finalize the technical and organisational aspects of the National E‑Invoicing System (KSeF). The new rules set exemptions for certain services, change simplified invoice handling, and introduce mandatory JPK_VAT reporting with KSeF identifiers from 1 February 2026. Businesses must update their accounting and ERP systems to comply with the new authorisation, authentication and data‑scope requirements.

The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina has approved a bill that would make B2B and B2G e-invoicing mandatory via a Central Platform for Fiscalisation (CPF) and require B2C transactions to use approved Electronic Fiscal Systems (EFS). The proposal aims to align with the EU ViDA model by July 2030 and has moved from the Lower House to the upper house for final approval.

Belgium has amended its VAT Code to introduce a fifteen‑year adjustment period for durable renovation works that exhibit characteristics comparable to immovable property, replacing the previous five‑year period for such works. The change, approved on 21 January 2026, will take effect on the day the law is published in the Official Gazette and applies retroactively to works whose adjustment period is still running. The amendment aims to align Belgium’s rules with EU law after the Court of Justice’s Drebers ruling.

The Finance Bill 2026/27 will cut the input VAT for agricultural exporters from 16% to 8%, remove excise duty on packaging materials such as kraft paper, and scrap export promotion levies. It also allows faster offsetting of VAT refunds, offers special tax treatment for long‑standing 100% exporters, and rationalises regulatory levies to ease logistics costs. The bill is scheduled to be tabled in Parliament in March 2026.

Slovakia will expand its special method of tax payment from 1 January 2027, allowing tax authorities to mandate split payments when there is a reasonable concern a supplier will not remit VAT. The new rule requires customers to pay the VAT directly to the tax authority and imposes penalties equal to the full VAT amount for non‑compliance. It is part of Act No. 385/2025 Coll. and aligns with the 2027 e‑invoicing mandate.

Bosnia and Herzegovina MPs have tabled a proposal to abolish the gambling sector's VAT exemption, aiming to bring the activity under standard VAT rules. The amendment would raise Federation revenue to at least KM 150 million annually, with an extra KM 50 million for local communities, and redirect funds to healthcare and social initiatives. The move follows a 2025 proposal that allocated 60% of gambling tax to the treasury, 20% to social initiatives, and 20% to specialised healthcare.

Cyprus has extended the zero percent VAT rate on a range of essential items until 31 December 2026. The extension, announced by the Cyprus Tax Department on 15 January 2026, covers baby milk, diapers, feminine hygiene products, and certain fresh fruits and vegetables.

Brazil’s 2026‑2032 VAT reform introduces a targeted “Cashback” mechanism that refunds part of the new CBS and IBS taxes to low‑income families. The scheme will reimburse 100% of CBS and 20% of IBS on essential utilities (draft figures) and is expected to start in 2027 with a phased rollout. Refunds will be transferred electronically to families’ bank accounts linked to their CPF.

The UK government will introduce a new electric vehicle excise duty (eVED) from April 2028, charging 3p per mile for electric cars and 1.5p per mile for plug‑in hybrids. The levy will be administered by the DVLA and integrated into the existing VED system, with a consultation deadline of 18 March 2026.

China’s State Taxation Administration announced new mandatory VAT registration rules effective 1 January 2026, requiring businesses with annual taxable sales above RMB 5 million to register as general VAT taxpayers. The announcement introduces retroactive compliance, mandatory registration for specific sectors, and automatic reclassification for late registrants, increasing compliance risk for businesses near the threshold.

The Bahamas Prime Minister announced that unprepared food will be zero-rated for VAT effective 1 April 2026. The change applies to all unprepared food items sold within the country.

The EU is proposing two new customs charges for small‑value imported parcels: a €2 handling fee effective November 2026 and a flat €3 duty on goods below €150 effective July 2026. These charges would be paid via the IOSS monthly return and could undermine the scheme by increasing costs and operational complexity. The measures are temporary, pending 2028 customs reforms, and will be reviewed every three months.

China’s Ministry of Finance announced the cancellation of VAT export rebates for photovoltaic glass products effective 1 April 2026, which is expected to give a short‑term boost to soda ash prices. Battery product rebates will be phased out during 2026 and fully eliminated by 2027. The policy, declared on 9 January 2026, is part of a broader effort to curb excess inventory in the soda ash market.

Hungary has raised its Intrastat reporting thresholds for EU intra‑community dispatches and arrivals effective 1 January 2026. The arrivals threshold rises to HUF 500 million and the dispatches threshold to HUF 200 million, while the statistical reporting thresholds remain unchanged. The electronic Intrastat form now requires detailed data such as goods description, commodity code, delivery terms, transport mode, destination and origin countries, weight or quantity, and invoice value, and since January 2022 also the country of origin for dispatches and the VAT ID of the recipient.