What Is ViDA? Real-Time VAT Reporting Explained

VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) is the European Union’s (EU) massive overhaul of value-added tax (VAT). It will switch businesses from quarterly reporting to real-time digital compliance starting in 2025. 

If you’re a SaaS company selling to EU customers, you’ll need to understand the new normal. This includes electronic invoicing, platform economy rules, and simplified registration through the One Stop Shop (OSS). The rollout will happen in phases through 2035, but smart finance teams are already preparing for these big changes.

What Is ViDA (VAT in the Digital Age)?

ViDA Defined

ViDA stands for “VAT in the Digital Age.” It’s a package of reforms the EU passed to modernize VAT compliance. Instead of all 27 EU member states making their own unique VAT reporting rules, the ViDA initiative creates one central, standardized VAT system.

The reforms have three main parts:

• Digital Reporting Requirements (DRRs) that demand real-time e-invoicing
• Platform economy rules that make marketplaces collect VAT
• One Stop Shop (OSS) expansion that lets you file VAT for all EU countries in one place

ViDA will fundamentally change how VAT works in Europe.

Why the EU Introduced ViDA

The EU reports losing about €89 billion annually in VAT revenue to VAT fraud and errors. Traditional quarterly reporting gives fraudsters months to act before anyone notices something’s wrong. 

Real-time reporting catches problems immediately. When every transaction gets reported as it happens, tax authorities can spot fraud patterns, calculation errors, and missing payments right away. ViDA is bringing tax compliance in line with the capabilities of modern technology.

ViDA helps legitimate businesses, too. Instead of juggling 27 different sets of rules, formats, and filing deadlines, businesses will now follow one streamlined process. The new system is overseen by the European Commission.

ViDA’s Pillar 1 – Digital Reporting & E-Invoicing

Reporting: From Quarterly to Real-Time

Under ViDA, every B2B invoice crossing EU borders must be reported electronically in real time. E-invoicing isn’t optional. By 2030, if you sell B2B services or products anywhere in the EU, you’ll need a system that can:

• Generate structured e-invoices instantly
• Submit them to government portals automatically
• Track confirmation and validation responses

Some countries are even requiring real-time digital reporting for domestic transaction data. Italy already requires real-time reporting for transactions within the country. France will start in 2026. Others will follow. This new system will create heavy administrative burdens on companies selling into the EU.

Mandatory Formats

ViDA requires structured XML invoices with specified fields that machines can read and automatically validate. 

Every invoice will need:

• Buyer and seller VAT numbers
• Detailed tax breakdown by rate
• Timestamp down to the second
• Product codes and descriptions
• Unique invoice identifiers

This system is rigid because the EU will need to process millions or billions of these daily. One missing field or wrong format means rejection.

ERP and Billing Impact

Most current ERP and billing systems were built for quarterly, not real-time, reporting. One of the biggest challenges businesses will face is updating their software to a process that can:

• Generate ViDA-compliant structured invoices
• Connect to multiple government validation systems
• Handle rejection and resubmission workflows
• Store everything for audit trails

ViDA’s Pillar 2 – Platform Economy Rules

Deemed Supplier Rule

SaaS businesses that facilitate things like transport or short-term accommodation need to understand this rule. If you provide those services and the actual provider isn’t VAT-registered, you may now be on the hook for VAT. While these rules target the AirBNBs and Ubers of the world, any SaaS company that connects buyers and sellers should be on the lookout for these new rules. 

Deemed Supplier Rule Examples

• Travel booking engines connecting hotels to customers
• Delivery apps linking restaurants to hungry people
• Freelance marketplaces matching workers with projects
• Any SaaS facilitating third-party services

Even if your business is just the middleman taking a commission, ViDA might make you responsible for the entire transaction's VAT. 

Implications for Compliance

Platforms providing these services will need sophisticated systems to track every associated seller’s VAT registration status across all EU countries. Info you’ll need includes:

• Is the seller registered for VAT?
• In which country are they registered for VAT?
• For which services are they registered?

From there, you’ll need to:

• Calculate VAT correctly on each transaction
• File VAT returns in multiple countries
• Keep audit-ready records
• Update constantly as you add new sellers or sellers’ status changes

Without automation, this would be a full-time job for an entire team. And mistakes can mean penalties from multiple countries. 

ViDA’s Pillar 3 – Single VAT Registration (OSS Expansion)

OSS (One Stop Shop) lets you file and pay VAT for all EU countries through one portal in one country. Instead of registering in 27 countries, you register once and handle everything centrally.

Previously, OSS only covered B2C digital services such as Netflix or Spotify subscriptions. ViDA expands that dramatically to include:

• Physical goods
• B2B services
• More transaction types

What Expanded OSS Solves

Before OSS, selling across the EU meant:

• Registering for VAT in every country where you have customers
• Learning each country's unique filing system
• Meeting different deadlines (some monthly, some quarterly)
• Dealing with language barriers and local requirements

OSS consolidates all of this. You file one return showing sales by country, make one payment, and you're done. The system distributes everything to the right tax authorities.

Expanded OSS Technical and Process Needs

While OSS sounds simple, it requires precise tracking. Your business must:

• Identify the correct VAT rate for each customer's country
• Split revenue by destination country accurately
• Reconcile everything for consolidated filing
• Handle currency conversions properly

One misclassified transaction can throw off your entire VAT filing. And since you are reporting to multiple countries at once, errors multiply quickly. 

Your billing system needs to capture customer location accurately, apply the right rates automatically, and generate reports that map perfectly to OSS requirements.

ViDA Timeline – What Happens When

2025

ViDA officially kicks off. The framework is adopted, and member states can start implementing domestic e-invoicing mandates. 

2027

The OSS will expand to cover new service categories like digital utilities. 

2028

Single VAT registration will become fully operational. You can now officially use one registration for all your EU VAT obligations.

2030

This is the big deadline. Structured e-invoicing and real-time B2B tax reporting will become mandatory across the EU. There will be no more quarterly filings. 

Platform economy rules will be enforced EU-wide, meaning that if you facilitate third-party services, you will become responsible for their VAT.

2035

The e-invoicing system in every EU country must fully conform to ViDA standards. At this time, non-compliance means you can't do business in the EU.

What This Means for SaaS Finance Teams

Reporting Pressure Grows

VAT reporting is about to undergo an unprecedented change. Instead of filing quarterly, you’ll be required to continuously transmit daily, real-time submissions.

Your legacy system won’t be able to handle e-invoicing at scale. Your team will need to switch from periodic reporting to live reporting. Getting it wrong can lead to fines and penalties from multiple countries.

DIY is No Longer Scalable

Building an internal system may sound tempting, but attempting to keep up with ViDA compliance is a losing battle.

Here’s what you’d need to do:

• Monitor all regulatory changes in 27 countries
• Maintain API connections to multiple government systems
• Update formats as requirements evolve
• Build validation and error-handling workflows
• Create audit trails for every transaction

The risks of getting this wrong include fines and audits. 

Where Sphere Fits

Sphere handles ViDA compliance across all three pillars automatically. Sphere generates structured e-invoices, manages real-time submissions, handles platform VAT obligations, and consolidates everything for OSS filing.

Sphere maintains connections to every EU tax authority, updates automatically when rules change, and keeps your finance team focused on growth. No patchwork of solutions needed.

Think of Sphere as your ViDA compliance on autopilot.

Wondering how to get ViDA-ready?

Schedule a demo with Sphere today.

Book a Call

Why ViDA Compliance Starts Now

Don’t wait until the 2030 deadline to start complying with ViDA. That may be the enforcement deadline, but businesses that wait will scramble to keep up.

Companies that standardize their processes early avoid the scramble. They can test systems, fix problems, and streamline workflows before mandates become mandatory.

Plus, early adoption often comes with benefits. Some countries offer reduced penalties, simplified audits, or faster VAT refunds for businesses using approved e-invoicing systems.

The technical debt of delaying is massive. Every month you wait means more legacy invoices to migrate, more processes to rebuild, and more staff to retrain. Start now, and the transition is gradual. Wait until 2029, and it’s an all-hands-on-deck emergency.