Key takeaways
- ViDA (VAT in the Digital Age) is an EU package adapting VAT rules to the digital economy, adopted on 11 March 2025.
- It rests on three pillars: digital reporting, the platform economy, and an expanded single VAT registration.
- Structured e-invoicing becomes mandatory for cross-border EU B2B transactions on 1 July 2030.
- For a Belgian business, ViDA complements the domestic B2B mandate in force since 1 January 2026.
ViDA: what the European Union is preparing for VAT
VAT is the EU's leading harmonised tax revenue, and also the one that leaks the most: the EU VAT gap runs into tens of billions of euros a year, a significant share of it cross-border fraud. In response, the EU has adopted ViDA (VAT in the Digital Age), a legislative package that brings VAT rules closer to the digital tools businesses already use.
The package was adopted by the Council on 11 March 2025, published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 25 March 2025 and entered into force on 14 April 2025. It does not apply all at once: its measures are phased through 2035. This article describes what ViDA contains, its real timeline and what it concretely changes for a Belgian business.
The three pillars of ViDA
ViDA is not a single measure but a coherent set built around three pillars. Each answers a different use and follows its own timeline.
The three pillars of the package
Digital reporting and e-invoicing
Near real-time reporting of cross-border B2B transactions, based on the structured e-invoice.
Platform economy
Short-term accommodation and passenger transport platforms become liable for VAT in certain cases (the deemed supplier role).
Single VAT registration
An extension of the OSS system so a business can meet more of its VAT obligations through a single registration in the EU.
The three strands share one goal: cutting fraud and easing the administrative burden tied to cross-border transactions. The first pillar is the one that most directly touches invoicing, and therefore your software.
Digital reporting and cross-border e-invoicing
The heart of ViDA for most businesses is the digital reporting pillar (Digital Reporting Requirements). From 1 July 2030, intra-EU B2B transactions will have to be reported almost instantly to tax authorities, and that reporting will rest on structured e-invoicing, not on a PDF or manual entry.
The mechanism builds on the European standard EN 16931, the same semantic base as Directive 2014/55/EU for public procurement and as the Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 profile. That shared base is what lets an invoice issued in one country be read and reported in another without a bilateral arrangement. ViDA also provides that on 1 January 2035, national reporting systems already in place converge towards this common framework.
Another immediate change: since entry into force, Member States may impose e-invoicing on their own territory without requesting a derogation from the Commission, which was not the case before. Lifting that lock is what legally secured national obligations such as Belgium's.
pillars
reporting, platforms, single registration
cross-border reporting
intra-EU B2B e-invoicing from 1 July
convergence
alignment of national systems on 1 January
The ViDA timeline, from 2025 to 2035
ViDA is a phased reform. Confusing its deadlines with those of a national obligation is the most common mistake. Here are the milestones set by the package.
- 1
Entry into force
14 April 2025Member States may impose domestic e-invoicing without a derogation from the Commission.
- 2
Single registration and platforms
1 July 2028Expansion of single VAT registration and first deemed supplier rules for platforms (optional delay to 1 January 2030).
- 3
Cross-border digital reporting
1 July 2030Structured e-invoicing and near real-time reporting become mandatory for intra-EU B2B transactions.
- 4
Convergence of national systems
1 January 2035Existing national reporting systems align with the European framework.
These dates are set by the texts adopted and published in the Official Journal: Directive (EU) 2025/516, Regulation (EU) 2025/517 and Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/518.
ViDA and the Belgian mandate: two complementary levels
For a Belgian business, the risk is to confuse the national deadline with the European one. The two frameworks coexist and do not cover the same scope. The table below places each.
| Belgian B2B mandate | ViDA (digital reporting) | |
|---|---|---|
| Level | National (Belgium) | European (EU) |
| Scope | Domestic B2B invoices | Cross-border B2B transactions |
| Application date | 1 January 2026 | 1 July 2030 |
| Structured format compliant with EN 16931 |
The good news is that preparing for one prepares for the other. A business already issuing compliant structured invoices for its domestic flows holds the same technical base for the 2030 cross-border reporting. The investment is not made twice.
Structured invoices, ready for Belgium and for Europe
YouInv generates, validates and sends your invoices in the EN 16931 and Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 compliant format, without you ever touching the XML.
What ViDA changes for your business
In the short term, ViDA asks nothing more of a Belgian business already compliant with the domestic mandate: the technical base is the same. The point is to anticipate the 2030 deadline, when B2B exchanges with partners in other Member States will also have to go through a structured invoice and near real-time reporting.
In practice, the criterion for choosing software does not change: it must produce and receive invoices compliant with EN 16931, validate those files and know how to transmit them. A solution that already meets the Belgian mandate and the Peppol network puts you on the right track for ViDA, without any rush.
Further reading
- Peppol in Belgium: the B2B mandate on 1 January 2026: who is in scope and from when.
- Directive 2014/55/EU: e-invoicing in public procurement: the first European building block based on EN 16931.
- Peppol BIS Billing 3.0: what the format contains: the structured invoice profile used in practice.
The reference sources are authoritative: the European Commission ViDA page and Directive (EU) 2025/516 on EUR-Lex.
What is ViDA?
ViDA (VAT in the Digital Age) is a European Union legislative package that modernises VAT rules. Adopted on 11 March 2025, it rests on three pillars: digital reporting based on e-invoicing, VAT rules for the platform economy, and an expanded single VAT registration.
When does ViDA take effect?
ViDA entered into force on 14 April 2025, but its measures are phased. The expanded single VAT registration and platform rules apply from 1 July 2028, digital reporting and e-invoicing for intra-EU B2B transactions from 1 July 2030, and the convergence of national systems on 1 January 2035.
Does ViDA make e-invoicing mandatory everywhere in Europe?
Not immediately, and not uniformly. ViDA makes structured e-invoicing mandatory for cross-border B2B transactions in the EU from 1 July 2030. Since entry into force, Member States can also impose e-invoicing on their own territory without requesting a derogation from the Commission.
What is the difference between ViDA and the Belgian 2026 mandate?
The Belgian mandate covers domestic B2B invoices between taxable persons established in Belgium, in force since 1 January 2026. ViDA is a European reform covering, from 2030, the digital reporting and e-invoicing of cross-border transactions between EU businesses. The two schemes are complementary.
Does ViDA use the EN 16931 standard?
Yes. ViDA's digital reporting builds on structured e-invoicing compliant with the European standard EN 16931, already used for public procurement and the Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 profile. That shared base is what makes invoices interoperable from one country to another.
