Value-Added Tax Consolidation Act 2010

Chapter 7

Record keeping

Duty to keep records.

[VATA s. 16(1), (2), (3) and (4)]

84.—(1) Every accountable person shall, in accordance with regulations, keep full and true records of all transactions which affect or may affect his or her liability to tax and entitlement to deductibility.

(2) Every person (other than an accountable person) who supplies goods or services in the course or furtherance of business shall keep all invoices issued to him or her in connection with the supply of goods or services to him or her for the purpose of such business.

(3) The following:

(a) records kept by a person pursuant to this Chapter or section 124 (7) and that are in the power, possession or procurement of the person;

(b) any books, invoices, copies of customs entries, credit notes, debit notes, receipts, accounts, vouchers, bank statements or other documents whatsoever which relate to the supply of goods or services, the intra-Community acquisition of goods, or the importation of goods by the person and that are in the power, possession or procurement of the person; and

(c) in the case of any such book, invoice, credit note, debit note, receipt, account, voucher, or other document, which has been issued by the person to another person, any copy thereof which is in the power, possession or procurement of the person,

shall, subject to subsection (4), be retained in that person’s power, possession or procurement for a period of 6 years from the date of the latest transaction to which the records, invoices, or any of the other documents, relate.

(4) Notwithstanding the retention period specified in subsection (3), the following retention periods shall apply:

(a) where a person acquired or developed immovable goods to which section 4 of the repealed enactment applied, the period for which the person shall retain records pursuant to this Chapter in relation to that person’s acquisition or development of those immovable goods shall be the duration that such person holds a taxable interest in such goods plus a further period of 6 years;

(b) where a person exercised a waiver of exemption from tax in accordance with section 7 of the repealed enactment, the period for which the person shall retain records pursuant to this Chapter shall be the duration of the waiver plus a further period of 6 years.

(5) This Chapter—

(a) shall not require the retention of records or invoices or any of the other documents in respect of which the Revenue Commissioners notify the person concerned that retention is not required, and

(b) shall not apply to the books and papers of a company which have been disposed of in accordance with section 305 (1) of the Companies Act 1963 .