Intrastat and VIES in Ireland
Intrastat and VIES are two separate Revenue obligations that often catch growing exporters off guard. Both apply to intra-EU trade and both attract penalties for late or missing returns.
Intrastat — Statistical Returns on Goods
Intrastat captures the statistical data Revenue and the EU need on intra-EU goods movements. It applies to goods only — services are reported through VIES.
Who Must File
You must file an Intrastat return in Ireland if your annual value of intra-EU trade exceeds:
- Arrivals (imports from EU): €500,000
- Dispatches (exports to EU): €635,000
Once you exceed the threshold in any rolling 12-month period, you are obliged to file from that point onwards for at least the rest of the calendar year and the next full year.
What's Reported
For each EU member state of arrival/dispatch:
- CN8 commodity code
- Net mass (kg)
- Supplementary units (where applicable — pairs, litres, etc.)
- Invoice value
- Country of consignment / destination
- Mode of transport
- Nature of transaction code
When to File
Monthly, by the 23rd of the month following the reference period. So January data is due by 23 February.
Filings are submitted through ROS (Revenue Online Service) — either by uploading an EDI file or by manual entry.
VIES — VAT Information Exchange System
VIES tracks intra-EU B2B supplies for VAT cross-verification. Unlike Intrastat, there is no value threshold — every intra-EU B2B sale of goods or services must be reported.
Who Must File
Every Irish VAT-registered business that:
- Sells goods to a VAT-registered customer in another EU member state (zero-rated under the intra-EU dispatch rules), or
- Supplies services that are treated as supplied where the customer is established (reverse charge B2B services)
What's Reported
- The customer's VAT number (validated through VIES)
- Country code
- Total invoice value for the period
- Indicator: goods (0), services (1), or triangulation (2)
When to File
- Monthly if your intra-EU dispatches exceed €50,000 per quarter
- Quarterly otherwise
Returns are due by the 23rd of the month after the reference period (same as Intrastat).
Common Mistakes
- Filing VIES with an unvalidated VAT number. Use the VIES validation tool before zero-rating. If the customer's number isn't valid, you must charge Irish VAT.
- Reporting at gross value instead of net (Intrastat). Intrastat uses invoice value excluding VAT.
- Late submissions. Revenue can issue penalties of up to €4,000 for repeated late Intrastat filings; missing VIES returns can lead to denial of zero-rating.
- Forgetting triangulation. A→B→C trades have specific reporting that's often missed.
We File These for You
We monitor your thresholds, prepare the returns from your accounting export, and file them through ROS — accurately and on time. Get in touch for a quote on monthly Intrastat and VIES compliance.