IVA

IVA is VAT under a different name. The mechanic is identical: each business in the supply chain charges IVA on outputs and reclaims IVA on inputs, and the end consumer carries the tax. What changes is the local rate, the registration threshold, and how the invoice has to be structured to satisfy the country's tax authority.

Spanish IVA runs at 21% standard, 10% reduced, and 4% super-reduced. Italian IVA is 22% standard. Mexican IVA is 16% standard, with a reduced 8% on the border region. Argentine IVA is 21%. Each country has its own invoice format requirements: Spain follows the EU VAT directive structure, Mexico requires the CFDI electronic invoice clearance, Italy requires FatturaPA through the SdI clearance system.

For a non-resident business invoicing into an IVA country, the question of who accounts for the tax is the usual one. For B2B services within the EU, reverse charge typically applies, so a UK or Irish supplier invoicing a Spanish business issues at zero IVA. For B2C, distance-selling rules kick in and the supplier may have to register in the destination country once thresholds are crossed.