VAT on commission invoices in Albania: FAQs

From 1 November 2023, in accordance with Albanian VAT Law 92/2014, we’ll apply VAT to commission invoices we send to accommodation partners in Albania who haven’t provided us with a Tax ID (“NUIS”), a confirmation that they are VAT registered, the date and a copy of their VAT registration attestation.

If we do apply VAT, we’ll pay it to the Albanian tax authorities in full. This doesn’t impact any VAT charged to guests on the price of their stay at a property – it only concerns the commission invoices we send to accommodation partners.

As an accommodation Partner in Albania, one of these scenarios will apply to you and your property:

●      If you provide us with a Tax ID (“NUIS”), a confirmation that you are VAT registered, the date and a copy of your VAT registration attestation, we won’t apply VAT to the commission invoices we send you. Instead, you’ll remain responsible for reporting any VAT you might owe to the Albanian tax authorities yourself.

●      If you are not registered for VAT purposes and/or you don’t provide your Tax ID, a confirmation that you’re VAT registered, the date and your VAT registration attestation, we’ll apply 20% VAT to commission invoices that we send you from 1 November 2023. We’ll pay this VAT to the Albanian tax authorities in full. Please note that even in case you are not VAT registered, you are obliged to provide your Tax ID in order for us to be compliant with Albanian VAT legislation.

●   If you don’t provide either your Tax ID, nor confirm that you are VAT registered, and/or you don’t provide the date and a copy of your VAT registration attestation, we’ll still apply 20% VAT to commission invoices that we send you from 1 November 2023. But you will not be able to claim the commission expenses as tax deductible and also shall not be able to recover the input VAT, or expense it for tax purposes. We’ll pay this VAT to the Albanian tax authorities in full.

If you need to update your VAT details with us, take a look at section 2 of this article to find out how to do this.

Please provide us with the requested information by 31 October 2023. Here’s how:

1. Log in to the Extranet
2. Click on Finance
3. Click on VAT Details, or click on Finance settings, VAT details and then Edit details
4. Enter your Tax ID
5. Confirm that you are a registered business or an individual
6. Select ‘Yes’ / ‘No’ to confirm that have a VAT registration
7. Upload your VAT registration attestation
8. Click on Save

A Tax ID number is issued to companies and private individuals. When it is issued to legal entities it’s called a NUIS (“Number Unique for the Identification of Subjects”). When it is issued to private individuals it’s called a Personal Number. For businesses, the first letter of the NUIS refers to the decade during which it is registered (the other letter also refers to the registration date). For individuals, the personal number refers to the year of birth, e.g. A12345678B.

Once you have a Tax ID number this doesn’t mean that you automatically are registered for VAT purposes. In order to obtain a VAT registration, we recommend you get in touch with your own tax advisor. However, for general information regarding VAT registrations in Albania we kindly refer you to the Tax Authority website (www.tatime.gov.al).

As soon as you are VAT registered, you will be able to obtain an attestation from the e-albania portal confirming your VAT registration status at this link. We require a copy of this attestation in order to validate your Tax ID number and your VAT registration.

If you don’t provide us with all this information, we’ll apply 20% VAT to commission invoices that we send you from 1 November 2023. You’ll need to pay the total amount of each invoice – the commission amount and the VAT amount – to us. We’ll pay the VAT to the Albanian tax authorities in full.

We’ll start applying VAT on 1 November 2023 to commission invoices we send to accommodation partners in Albania who haven’t provided us with a Tax ID, a confirmation that they are VAT registered, the date and a copy of the VAT registration attestation. Those invoices will cover reservations where guests checked out in October 2023.

After 1 November 2023, if you receive a commission invoice from us that includes VAT but you believe that you’ve provided us with the information mentioned above, please check in the extranet to make sure that the information you’ve provided is saved. To do this, follow the instructions in section 2 of this article.

In case you provided all information to us, we’re sorry for any inconvenience and we’ll be happy to correct this by crediting the incorrect commission invoice and issuing a correct invoice without VAT. To ask us to do this, please dispute the original invoice by following the instructions in this article.

When you provide us with your Tax ID, we’ll ask you whether you’re registered for VAT purposes in Albania. If so, we’ll ask you to provide your VAT registration date and upload your VAT registration attestation.

Yes, if you’re not registered for VAT then the VAT applied to the commission invoices we send you is unfortunately likely to be an additional cost for you.

Once you are VAT registered please provide us with a copy of your VAT registration attestation by following the instructions in section 2 of this article. Until then, we’ll continue to apply VAT to the commission invoices we send you. Once you provide us with a confirmation of your VAT registration, the date and a copy of your VAT registration attestation, we’ll stop applying VAT to commission invoices we send you as soon as possible. You shall become responsible for reporting any VAT you might owe to the Albanian tax authorities yourself.

In case you have a VAT registration it is of utmost importance that you provide us with the required information. By doing so, we avoid charging Albanian VAT on our commission in a situation where we should actually not do so. However, in the event that you have not been able to provide us with the requested information in time but you will do so in a later stage, we will correct the VAT that we should not have charged by the issuance of (a) credit invoice(s). Naturally, we will only do this in case you provide proof that you had a VAT registration for the applicable period.

You’ll find our VAT number on the commission invoices we send you.

Please visit the Tax Authority website (www.tatime.gov.al) to find more information.

Yes, we’re now registered for VAT in Albania. As a result, we’ll apply VAT to our commission invoices where required in accordance with the Albanian VAT legislation, and we’ll pay that VAT to the Albanian tax authorities in full.

Keep in mind that Booking.com is a Dutch company, and our VAT registration in Albania is separate from our obligations to pay other taxes in the Netherlands.

If you have further questions about your tax obligations, we recommend that you contact your tax advisor or accountant. Unfortunately, we can’t provide advice about your or your property’s specific tax obligations.