What to Do When You Receive an Invoice with Incorrect VAT
Incorrect VAT on an invoice is always corrected by the issuer — via a corrective tax document. The customer must not deduct incorrectly charged tax; the deduction right exists only for tax due under the law.
Short answer: the invoice issuer makes the correction, using a corrective tax document. As the customer you must not deduct tax that was charged incorrectly — the right to deduct arises only for tax due under the law.
Typical errors and their fixes
1. Wrong rate (21% instead of 12% or vice versa). The supplier issues a corrective tax document (Sec. 45 of the Czech VAT Act) and corrects the tax amount (Sec. 43). You claim the deduction only in the correct amount — if you deducted more, you file a supplementary return.
2. VAT charged where the reverse charge applied. The most dangerous scenario: the customer has no right to deduct tax the supplier charged unlawfully and must recover the paid amount from the supplier (corrected document, refund). The CJEU confirmed this in C‑424/12 Fatorie — tax paid to the supplier in error creates no deduction.
3. VAT from a non-payer. A non-payer must not charge VAT at all; their "invoice with VAT" cannot support a deduction. Verify registration here.
4. Wrong VAT ID or missing invoice elements. Have formal defects corrected — the control statement matches documents by VAT ID and any mismatch triggers a call from the tax authority.
Practical steps for the customer
- Do not book the invoice "as received" — return it to the supplier and request a corrective document.
- Claim the deduction only per the corrected document, in the correct amount.
- For new suppliers, verify the VAT ID and registration upfront — most errors are prevented before the first invoice.