Article 21

Persons liable for payment for tax 1. Under the internal system, the following shall be liable to pay value added tax: the taxable person carrying out the taxable supply of goods or of services, except for the cases referred to in (b) and (c). Where the taxable supply of goods or of services is effected by a taxable person who is not established within the territory of the country, Member States may, under conditions determined by them, lay down that the person liable to pay tax is the person for whom the taxable supply of goods or of services is carried out; taxable persons to whom services covered by Article 9(2)(e) are supplied or persons who are identified for value added tax purposes within the territory of the country to whom services covered by Article 28b(C), (D), (E) and (F) are supplied, if the services are carried out by a taxable person not established within the territory of the country; the person to whom the supply of goods is made when the following conditions are met: the taxable operation is a supply of goods made under the conditions laid down in Article 28c(E)(3), the person to whom the supply of goods is made is another taxable person or a non-taxable legal person identified for the purposes of value added tax within the territory of the country, the invoice issued by the taxable person not established within the territory of the country conforms to Article 22(3). However, Member States may provide a derogation from this obligation, where the taxable person who is not established within the territory of the country has appointed a tax representative in that country; any person who mentions the value added tax on an invoice or other document serving as invoice; any person effecting a taxable intra-Community acquisition of goods. 2. By way of derogation from the provisions of paragraph 1: where the person liable to pay tax in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1 is a taxable person who is not established within the territory of the country, Member States may allow him to appoint a tax representative as the person liable to pay tax. This option shall be subject to conditions and procedures laid down by each Member State; where the taxable transaction is effected by a taxable person who is not established within the territory of the country and no legal instrument exists, with the country in which that taxable person is established or has his seat, relating to mutual assistance similar in scope to that laid down by Directives 76/308/EEC(8) and 77/799/EEC(9) and by Council Regulation (EEC) No 218/92 of 27 January 1992 on administrative cooperation in the field of indirect taxation (VAT)(10), Member States may take steps to provide that the person liable for payment of the tax shall be a tax representative appointed by the non-established taxable person. 3. In the situations referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, Member States may provide that someone other than the person liable for payment of the tax shall be held jointly and severally liable for payment of the tax. 4. On importation, value added tax shall be payable by the person or persons designated or accepted as being liable by the Member State into which the goods are imported."

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-10-13 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.