On 5th April 2022 the European Council formally adopted Council Directive (EU) 2022/542 which introduces reforms to currently applicable VAT rates. The relevant rules were initially agreed by the EU Finance Ministers in December 2021 aiming at providing governments with more flexibility in the rates they can apply and ensuring equal treatment between EU Member States.

Under the new rules, EU member states are able to apply reduced VAT rates and even a super-reduced or zero VAT rate to an updated and extended list of supplies.

For more information in relation to the exact content of Council Directive (EU) 2022/542 please refer to the following link:

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32022L0542&from=NL

The legislation will come into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union, allowing member states to apply the new rules as of that date.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.