Sweden’s Parliament approved a proposal that will allow the Swedish Tax Agency to conduct online audits of businesses’ cloud accounting and VAT records starting 1 April 2026. The new powers remove the ban on internet access, enabling auditors to log in directly to live systems via read‑only profiles or secure APIs, even when the taxpayer does not cooperate. The change also updates evidence rules to support remote examination of electronic records and is part of a broader move toward structured e‑invoicing and digital compliance.
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Law360 · 1 day ago
A new Swedish bill adopted on May 6 2026 empowers the Swedish Tax Agency to deny input VAT credits for significant excess amounts during audits. The change expands the agency’s authority to challenge VAT recoveries that exceed allowable limits, requiring businesses to review their input VAT claims for compliance.
VatCalc · 2 months ago
The EU Court of Justice clarified that loyalty points in the Lyko case are discounts, not vouchers, because they cannot be redeemed independently of a purchase. This means VAT is charged on the full price of the initial purchase, and redemption of points reduces the VAT base of the subsequent purchase, while unused points require no VAT adjustment. The ruling also indicates that loyalty schemes that allow independent payment are treated as vouchers, triggering VAT at redemption.
Riksdagen · 2 months ago
Sweden’s Riksdag approved a temporary reduction of the VAT rate on food from 12% to 6% effective 1 April 2026, lasting until 31 December 2027. The change aims to support household finances during the period.
VatCalc · 2 months ago
The Swedish Parliament approved a temporary cut of the food VAT rate from 12% to 6% effective 1 April 2026 until 31 December 2027. A food commission will monitor supermarket prices to ensure savings are passed on, and the measure is part of a broader economic package that includes increased housing allowances for low‑income families.
LinkedIn Article by Bruno Gasparotto · 2 months ago
A preliminary ruling before the CJEU (Case T‑96/26, TellusTax Advisory) examines whether a Swedish supplier’s right to deduct input VAT can be limited because the services were provided to a Luxembourg securitisation vehicle that benefits from a fund‑management VAT exemption. The Swedish Tax Authorities denied the deduction, arguing that VAT must have been due in Luxembourg for the deduction to apply. The outcome will have implications for securitisation vehicles and the broader fund industry.
VatCalc · 3 months ago
Sweden has introduced a new bill to strengthen anti‑VAT fraud enforcement, effective 1 July 2026. The legislation expands the Swedish Tax Agency’s powers, including enhanced scrutiny at registration, refusal or deregistration of VAT registrations, invalidation of Swedish VAT numbers in the EU VIES system, and blocking excess input VAT repayments. These measures aim to disrupt missing‑trader, carousel, and repayment fraud across the EU.
On 6 May 2026, when Parliament approved the proposals, the power becomes effective from 1 April 2026.
Skatteverket may use read‑only user profiles, secure APIs from software vendors, or third‑party connectors to query VAT‑relevant entries without full user-level access.
The proposal allows Skatteverket to obtain access directly via a cloud accounting environment where the legal framework permits, enabling audit access even without taxpayer consent.
The rules on securing evidence will be updated to explicitly support remote examination of electronic accounting records, ensuring data integrity and audit trail logging.
From 1 April 2026, auditors can log in remotely to inspect digital bookkeeping and VAT ledgers directly in live systems.
This summary was published on VATfaqs.com on 8 May 2026. It relates to VAT developments in Sweden. The original source is VatCalc.
