Value-added tax rate on digital books and periodicals

A Bill providing for the application of the reduced value-added tax rate to digital books and periodicals has been put out for public consultation. The reduced rate is to apply to the electronic supply or lending of books, dailies, weeklies, magazines and journals whose annual publication frequency amounts to at least three, in an amendment which will do away with the existing discrepancy in terms of value-added tax between “hard” and “soft” publications. It has been a recent adjustment of the European tax directive that has paved the way for the proposed legislative amendment.

All input regarding the Bill is gratefully received, at internetconsultatie.nl, until 16 May 2019.

Additional reference is made to our earlier report on the subject headed “Scope for future application of reduced VAT rate to digi-books”.

Dutch version: Toepassing verlaagd btw-tarief op digitale boeken en tijdschriften