VAT Calculator — Add, Remove & Reverse VAT (UK 20%, EU Rates)

Add VAT: net × (1 + rate/100) = gross; gross − net = VAT. Reverse extract: net = gross / (1 + rate/100); VAT = gross − net. Worked example at the EU Spain 21% standard rate: a €100 net sale produces €121 gross with €21 VAT. Reversed: €121 gross extracts to €100 net + €21 VAT, NOT €100.79 net (the naïve "subtract 21%" gives 121 × 0.79 = €95.59 which understates the net amount by €4.41). Per ISO 80000-1:2022 the % symbol is dimensionless (1 % = 0.01), so the math holds across currencies. Two-decimal rounding matches invoice precision; B2B invoices typically itemise net + VAT separately, B2C receipts often show only the gross with a VAT-included note.

EU Council Directive 2006/112/EC Article 97 sets a 15% standard VAT rate floor across all 27 Member States (introduced by Council Directive 92/77/EEC of 19 October 1992; made permanent by Council Directive (EU) 2018/912 of 22 June 2018). Standard rates as of 2026: Spain 21%, France 20%, Germany 19%, Italy 22%, Netherlands 21%, Hungary 27% (highest in EU), Luxembourg 17% (closest to floor). Member States may apply up to two reduced rates with a minimum of 5% (Article 98 + Annex III). UK left the EU regime via Brexit (transition end 31 December 2020) and operates a separate VAT regime under the Value Added Tax Act 1994; UK standard rate has been 20% since 4 January 2011.

Annex III of Directive 2006/112/EC lists categories Member States MAY apply reduced rates to (food, water, pharmaceuticals, books, newspapers, public transport, cultural events, social housing, etc.) — actual application varies by Member State. Examples: Spain food 10% reduced + super-reduced 4% on staple foods + books; France 10% on most food, 5.5% on books and certain basic foodstuffs; Germany food + books + cultural events 7%. Zero-rated categories retained for historical reasons in specific Member States: UK (post-Brexit) zero-rates children's clothes + books + most basic foods + public transport + sanitary products (since 1 January 2021); Ireland zero-rates basic foods + children's clothes. "Super-reduced" rates below 5% are tolerated only for items continuously zero or super-reduced before 1 January 1991.

VAT (value-added tax) is charged at each value-add stage of production and distribution, with B2B sellers reclaiming input VAT against output VAT — only the final consumer ultimately bears the tax. US sales tax is charged once at the final retail sale to the consumer ("single-stage" tax), with B2B exempt via resale certificates. Two consequences: (1) VAT is harder for businesses to evade because each stage involves a paper trail of credits and debits; sales tax has more endpoint-evasion risk. (2) VAT "reverse charge" applies on cross-border B2B EU services — the EU buyer self-accounts the VAT at their domestic rate rather than the seller charging — simplifying cross-EU B2B trade. Since South Dakota v. Wayfair (2018), US states have introduced economic nexus to bring out-of-state remote sellers into the sales-tax net.

EU One-Stop Shop (OSS) / Import One-Stop Shop (IOSS) reform took effect 1 July 2021, replacing Mini-One-Stop-Shop (MOSS): a single €10,000 EU-wide distance-selling threshold replaced 27 separate Member-State thresholds — below it, the seller charges home-state VAT, above it destination-state VAT. IOSS handles consignments ≤ €150 imported from outside the EU, closing the prior €22 low-value-import VAT exemption (European Commission estimates the OSS/IOSS package will increase EU VAT revenues by approximately €7 billion annually). UK left the EU VAT regime on 31 December 2020 (transition end) — UK businesses selling to EU consumers above thresholds now register under EU OSS (or use Member State portals); EU businesses selling to UK consumers above the £90,000 UK VAT registration threshold (raised from £85,000 effective 1 April 2024) register for UK VAT separately. Northern Ireland operates a hybrid regime under the Northern Ireland Protocol.