VAT on Conferences and Member Meetings

When a U.S. company hosts an event in the Europe and charges attendee fees they legally need to register for VAT in that country, and charge VAT to most of the attendees.

- Good news: the U.S. organizer can most likely claim back most of the VAT from the vendors. Registering and reporting VAT reduces your event costs around 20%
- Each country has their own specific VAT rules.
- If the attendee is a European company they most likely can reclaim their VAT.
- VAT should generally never be a cost to any company only to private people.

If a U.S. company does not comply with EU VAT rules:
None of the VAT paid to European vendors is refundable. Your event will cost significantly more. Potential tax-penalties for violation.

If you are NOT charging fees to attendees:
the VAT incurred from your vendors in some of the European countries can be reclaimed without VAT registration. Please email vat@eurovat.com to ask if your event qualifies for a "13 directive claim".

Euro VAT Refund assist companies in the pre-planning phase and then as needed all throughout the event; with VAT registration, processes to efficiently gather the original invoices; and all tax reports are prepared and filed from our Los Angeles office. You can always reach us by phone 310-204-0805 or vat@eurovat.com when needed.

Return to Latest VAT News