The Future of VAT in Financial Services and Insurance

The complexity of the FSI sector, as a whole, has increased considerably and over the past decade in particular, with fin-techs and non-traditional FSIs playing a significant role. The current rules relating to the VAT treatment of FSI services no longer reflects this complexity and resultantly, these rules are no longer fit for purpose. The volume of FSI VAT litigation being brought through the EU-courts serves to underline the inadequacy of the current VAT rules relating to FSI services. These rules are being criticised for their complexity, for being difficult to apply, and for their failure to adapt to account for new technological advancements and types of activity in the FSI sector. 

Recent publication: Deloitte’s point of view on The Future of VAT in FSI

We have taken notice of the public consultation on the ongoing review of the VAT treatment of financial and insurance services in the EU with much interest. As a complement to our responses to the questionnaire, we are happy to provide some viewpoints for consideration. These comments result from the common reflections on this topic by our global team of Financial Service and Insurance (FSI) VAT practitioners, who on a daily basis help a wide range of financial services and insurance providers in being compliant with the indirect tax framework that applies to their European and global activities.