Estonian VAT Registration for a Foreign-Owned Company

An Estonian VAT number lets the company charge VAT, deduct input VAT and trade with EU businesses under the reverse charge. For a company run from abroad it is also the number the Tax and Customs Board looks at most closely. This guide explains when registration is mandatory, when it is voluntary, what the Board checks and how to prepare an application that is not refused.

The guide is general information, not tax advice. The Tax and Customs Board (Maksu- ja Tolliamet, EMTA) decides on every registration.

When registration is mandatory and when it is voluntary

Mandatory: when the company's taxable supplies in Estonia exceed EUR 40,000 from the beginning of a calendar year, the company must apply within three business days (Value Added Tax Act § 19). Other cases, such as acquiring goods from other Member States above the threshold, also require registration.
Voluntary: below the threshold a company may register if it has, or is about to start, economic activity connected with Estonia. This is the usual route for a new company that sells to EU businesses or needs to deduct input VAT from the start.

What the Tax and Customs Board checks

For a voluntary registration EMTA must be convinced that the company carries on, or will soon carry on, real economic activity with a connection to Estonia. With a board located abroad the Board typically asks:

what the company sells, to whom and from where, and who performs the work;
evidence: contracts, invoices, orders, letters of intent, a website, supplier offers;
the connection with Estonia: the registered address and contact person, an Estonian bank or EMI account, an accountant, staff or partners;
who the beneficial owners and board members are, and whether they have tax history elsewhere.

The statutory term for a decision is five business days, but questions extend it. An application without evidence of real activity is refused, and a refusal is recorded; a well-prepared first application matters.

How we prepare it

we review the business model and the evidence you have, and tell you what is missing;
we prepare the application and an explanatory letter describing the activity and its connection with Estonia;
we answer the Board's questions until the decision.

With a new company the VAT registration costs ; for an existing company the VAT number application is . If you need a VAT number from day one, a ready-made company with an active VAT number is the faster route. There is no state fee for VAT registration.

After registration

A VAT-registered company files a VAT return (KMD) by the 20th of each following month, even when there were no transactions, and keeps its books in a way that supports the return. Many owners combine the registration with monthly accounting.

What you receive

an Estonian VAT number, also valid in the EU VIES system;
the explanatory letter and application as filed;
a short note on the monthly VAT obligations.

We prepare and manage the application; the decision is the Tax and Customs Board's and we do not guarantee it. Prices exclude VAT. All communication takes place by email.

Ready to start? VAT registration for an existing company, or with a new company. Open the order form.

Frequently asked questions

Is VAT registration mandatory for a new Estonian company?

Only when its taxable supplies in Estonia exceed EUR 40,000 in a calendar year, or in the other cases the Value Added Tax Act lists. Below that, a company with real economic activity connected with Estonia may register voluntarily — the usual route for companies that sell to EU businesses.

Why does the Tax and Customs Board refuse VAT registrations?

Most often because the application does not show real economic activity or its connection with Estonia. Contracts, invoices, a website, an Estonian account and a clear explanation of who does the work and where make the difference. We prepare the explanatory letter with the application.

Related guides

More on this topic: E-resident services.

Estonian VAT registration