ADWORDS, VAT & europeans

[polish_aristocrat]

I have signed up for adwords using an european adress.

I recently got this email and a similar reminder 2 days ago:

Dear AdWords Advertiser,

We'd like to inform you of an important change to how VAT impacts
your AdWords account.

I. What has changed?

We recently reviewed your AdWords account to make sure that its
VAT setting is correct.
It was indicated previously either that your account was intended
for non-business purposes, or you have not entered a VAT ID. We
therefore have assessed VAT at the Irish standard rate (currently
21%) and added this amount to your AdWords charges.
During our review, we determined that your VAT setting was
incorrect. Your AdWords account is, in fact, used for business
purposes. This means that it is used to gain an economic advantage
by promoting goods or services on Google AdWords. Note that the
vast majority of advertisers use AdWords for business purposes,
including corporates, affiliates, sole traders, self-employed
merchants, partnerships, etc.

II. How has this affected me?

As a result of this discovery, we have switched your VAT setting
and will no longer add Irish VAT to your AdWords charges. You are
now responsible for self-assessing VAT at your country's local
rate (Ref: article 194 of Council Directive 2006/112/EC).

We will switch an AdWords account's VAT setting whenever a review
finds that the setting is incorrect. This is true even if your
AdWords account is inactive. (Rest assured that the switch will
not reactivate an inactive account.)
Please note that Google AdWords cannot provide advertisers with
VAT advice. For general information about VAT rates,
self-assessing VAT, or receiving services for a business purpose,
we recommend consulting your local tax office.

III. What should I do now?

You may be eligible for a refund of Irish VAT charged by Google
Ireland Ltd.
Please sign in to your AdWords account and update your
VAT information per the instructions at
http://adwords.google.com/support/bi...=6398&hl=en_US.
This will alert our system to check for refund eligibility as well
as ensure that we have the correct address for any refund that we
issue.
When updating your VAT information, you will need to ensure that
you have correctly completed the 'Company Name' field:

- Your account's 'Company Name' field is located on your 'Billing
Preferences' page, under 'VAT Information > Business Address.'
- Make sure that the name in this field matches the name on your
bank account.
- If you only have a bank account in your own name, you can enter
your own name in the 'Company Name' field.
- It is not a requirement for you to enter a VAT Id in your
account. However, we recommend you do, so that the Id will appear
on future invoices issued to you by Google Ireland Limited.

It's important that you follow these instructions, since any
refund check you receive will be made out to whatever you enter
under 'Company name.' You will only be able to deposit this check
in a bank account held in the same name. If you are unable to
deposit your refund check, it may take us up to three months to
issue you with a new one.
Please be sure to update your account shortly per the instructions
above. If you are eligible for a VAT refund but do not update your
account, we will send your refund check to your account's billing
address:

edited

We will send you an email if we determine that you are eligible
for a VAT refund. Due to the high volume of cases, this process
can take up to two months. We appreciate your patience.
Sincerely,

The Google AdWords Team

but I see they are still adding and billing me the Irish VAT

although it seemed to me that they will stop doing it

"As a result of this discovery, we have switched your VAT setting
and will no longer add Irish VAT to your AdWords charges. You are
now responsible for self-assessing VAT at your country's local
rate"

anyone has a similar situation

[will76]

Hey Polish

[polish_aristocrat]

Originally Posted by will76

Hey Polish

hello my dear friend, how is it going? what are you doing up so late?

got any input on the topic perhaps?

[will76]

Originally Posted by polish_aristocrat

hello my dear friend, how is it going? what are you doing up so late?

got any input on the topic perhaps?

no just wanted to say hi

[JamesK]

I think Irish VAT is lower than Polish so you shouldnt be expecting a refund.

[polish_aristocrat]

bump for more input

[polish_aristocrat]

Originally Posted by JamesK

I think Irish VAT is lower than Polish so you shouldnt be expecting a refund.

but i quoted their message and they say that it is my responsibility from now on to claim that VAT in the european country which i used as my adress and that they want to refund me the previous VAT they charged

but my question was especially - why are they still charging me the irish vat rate if they say they stopped charging it?

As a result of this discovery, we have switched your VAT setting
and will no longer add Irish VAT to your AdWords charges. You are
now responsible for self-assessing VAT at your country's local
rate

[hjnet]

I might be talking BS, cause it's a few years ago since I took a few reads about VAT, but as far as I remember they'll charge you Irish VAT (21% isn't it?) as long as you don't add your local VAT number, if you add your VAT number you'll not get charged VAT by google.

Anyway if you pay VAT you'll get it refunded from your local IRS, so since it's hassle to ask for a VAT refund from your local IRS it's easier to just give google your VAT# and be done with it.

If you don't own a company in Poland you'll not get a VAT refund from your IRS, so you'll have to pay the 21% out of your own pockets.

BTW I'm using my VAT# since years with them and other companies and never had any problem.

[Klen]

I hate VAT.

[polish_aristocrat]

thanks hjnet, perhaps you're right

[polish_aristocrat]

hm but honestly, i wouldn't mind a refund... hm....

would be a nice check, lol

and i wouldn't mind not paying that VAT in future....

[u-Bob]

Originally Posted by KlenTelaris

I hate VAT.

don't we all.