Cargo Intelligence
VAT and excise refund detection
A carrier driving through Poland, Germany and the Netherlands pays foreign VAT every day on fuel, road tolls and repairs. Part of that VAT is refundable — but only when the documents qualify and the application is filed on time. The module recognizes foreign VAT in your documents, accumulates amounts by country, and warns you as the threshold or deadline approaches.
The same documents also serve another purpose — the fuel receipts you already upload for consumption analysis in the Fuel module carry VAT paid abroad. This add-on uses those same documents, no new upload step.
Not only fuel
Directive 2008/9/EC lists ten categories of expenditure whose VAT can be reclaimed in another Member State. At least four are relevant to a carrier: fuel, road tolls, vehicle running costs and hire.
The fuel module already extracts fuel receipts, and the toll audit extracts toll invoices from Austria, Czechia, Poland and elsewhere. Those same documents are the material for a refund claim.
The add-on reviews every document already in the system and flags which of them carry reclaimable foreign VAT.
Three things the module notices
A document that won't be accepted
A till receipt without buyer identification doesn't qualify for a claim in most countries. That becomes clear four months later, when it can no longer be fixed. The module flags this at upload time — while you can still ask for an invoice.
A Polish receipt without NIP
In Poland, a paragon without the buyer's NIP can no longer be converted into an invoice later — that's a structural, not a risk-based, discrepancy. The module flags this immediately, while you can still ask for an invoice with the NIP.
The €400 threshold and 30 September
A quarterly application is possible from €400 for one country, an annual one from €50. An application for the previous year is filed by 30 September of the following year; for Norway and Switzerland, by 30 June. The module shows how far you are from the threshold and how much time is left before the deadline.
What the module does and doesn't do
The module recognizes foreign VAT in your uploaded documents, classifies documents by whether they qualify for a refund claim, accumulates amounts by country, and tracks deadlines.
The module does not provide tax advice and does not file the claim with the tax administration. You file it yourself through your own tax portal, or your chosen intermediary does.
Deductibility under the rules of the Member State of refund the module does assess — but only for those states and categories whose rule we have read in the primary source. Where we have not, the document is left out of the claim, and that is visible in the report with a reason. This is deliberate: a refund obtained incorrectly is recovered with penalties, while an amount left out simply does not come back.
Every country's list of disallowed expenses differs. The final decision rests with the tax administration of the Member State of refund — the module prepares the claim and says how much of it is well founded.
400 or 50 euros
The threshold depends on the claim period. For a quarterly or half-yearly claim it is 400 €, for an annual one 50 €.
The practical consequence is unexpected: a quarterly claim for 380 € is inadmissible, while the same 380 € in an annual claim are admissible.
Which means amounts too small for a quarter are worth holding back and including in the annual claim. A system that sees the whole year's documents says exactly what to file now and what to hold.
Why a quarterly claim is rejected and an annual one is not →
30 September
The claim must reach your own tax administration by 30 September of the year following the period. For costs from 2025 — by 30 September 2026.
The deadline is absolute. The Court of Justice of the European Union has held that a late claim is invalid regardless of whether it is well founded.
Once missed there is no alternative procedure — the foreign VAT stays your cost.
What you will not get back
Only the share of VAT that would be deductible in the Member State of refund is repaid. Every state has its own restrictions, and they differ fundamentally: accommodation is deductible in one and not in another, and in some places meals are limited by a percentage.
A refund obtained incorrectly is recovered directly, together with penalties and interest. That is why we leave out documents from states whose rules we have not yet confirmed, and say so in the report.
Why an over-broad claim is more dangerous than a narrow one →
The excise side: reconciliation against your intermediary's report
This add-on detects more than foreign VAT: it also finds gaps in commercial diesel excise refunds. If you use an excise intermediary, they process only their own card transactions — fuel bought in cash or in another supplier's network never enters their claim.
We compare your fuel receipts against their refund report and show how many litres went unclaimed. Without that report there is no reconciliation. Rates change quarterly, and a suspended rate (zero) and an unknown rate are different states to us: the first is a correct answer, the second stops the calculation.
Ongoing detection is included in this add-on at no change in price. Historic reconciliation carries its own success fee.
More on excise reconciliation →
Pricing
Monthly add-on €49/mo
On top of any Cargo plan with the Fuel module selected. Checked as a box on the pricing form, activated immediately — no separate approval needed. Includes up to 500 documents a month; you can see your usage against this limit in the portal.
Annual Check €490
A one-time purchase of a review of one calendar year's archive before the 30 September deadline — no ongoing subscription. The report groups refundable VAT by country and flags which documents won't qualify for a refund.
Prices exclude VAT. Reverse charge applies to clients from other EU member states with a valid VAT number.
Frequently asked questions
Can I file the application myself, without an intermediary?
Yes. In Lithuania, applications are filed via EPRIS or "My VMI". An intermediary is useful for language and for knowing each country's list of disallowed expenses, but is not legally required.
Does the module itself submit the application to the tax authority?
No. The module recognizes and classifies documents and tracks amounts and deadlines, but the application is always filed by you through your own tax authority account or by your chosen intermediary.
What happens if the annual threshold isn't met in one country?
If less than €50 of VAT accumulates in one country over a year, no application can be filed — the amount remains a cost. The module shows this threshold in real time, by country.
How many documents are included in the €49/mo price?
Up to 500 documents a month. You can see your usage against this limit directly — you won't upload documents blind.
What is the €490 Annual Check?
A one-time purchase, with no ongoing subscription, of a review of the previous calendar year's archive — for clients who want to check they haven't missed anything before the 30 September deadline. The report groups refundable VAT by country, just like the monthly add-on.
How long are uploaded documents kept?
Original documents are kept for 24 months from upload, customs documents for 40 months. After the period expires the original file is deleted automatically, the data extracted from it remains. If you want a specific document removed earlier (GDPR Art. 17 right to erasure), contact us by email — there is currently no self-service delete button in the portal.
What is needed
- Road expense documents (required)
If you do not have it: Without the documents there is nothing to detect.
Requires the Fuel module. Existing clients with at least one year of VAT-document history can order the €490 Annual Check directly in the client portal.