In 2026, the VAT registration threshold in Ireland is €42,500 for businesses supplying services and €85,000 for businesses supplying goods, including mixed businesses where 90% or more of turnover comes from goods. Turnover is measured per calendar year, and you must register from the moment a sale takes you over the threshold. These figures have applied since 1 January 2025 and could change in Budget 2027 on 6 October 2026.
Revenue sets out the thresholds on its "What are the VAT thresholds?" page. They were last raised by Finance Act 2024, with effect from 1 January 2025: services went from €40,000 to €42,500 and goods from €80,000 to €85,000.
Finance Act 2025 did not change them.
| Who it applies to | Threshold | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Businesses supplying services only | €42,500 | Calendar year |
| Businesses supplying goods they make from zero-rated materials (goods taxable at the standard or reduced rates) | €42,500 | Calendar year |
| Businesses supplying goods only | €85,000 | Calendar year |
| Businesses supplying goods and services, where 90% or more of turnover is from goods | €85,000 | Calendar year |
| Acquisitions of goods from other EU Member States | €41,000 | Any continuous 12 months |
| Distance sales of goods and TBE services to EU consumers (all Member States combined) | €10,000 | Current and previous calendar year |
| Businesses not established in Ireland supplying taxable goods or services here | No threshold | Register from the first taxable supply, unless using the EU VAT SME scheme |
Since 1 January 2025, the test runs on calendar years, not a rolling 12 months. Under Revenue's manual on the EU VAT SME scheme, an Irish business stays exempt only while its turnover is within the threshold in both the current calendar year and the previous one.
Revenue's manual says a trader becomes an accountable person immediately on completing the transaction that takes turnover over the threshold, and must apply to register.
Turnover is the total value, excluding VAT, of taxable goods and services, supplies of immovable goods (property), certain financial transactions, and insurance and reinsurance services. The property, financial and insurance items are left out where they are only incidental to the business.
Occasional disposals of business assets, such as a van, a machine or a building, are ignored. So are transfers of goods to a non-EU country where there is no sale.
If you went over the threshold last year, you cannot rely on the exemption this year, even if this year's sales are lower. Revenue's manual gives the example of a goods trader with €86,000 last year and €80,000 this year: that trader is not eligible for the exemption.
If 90% or more of your turnover comes from goods, the higher €85,000 threshold applies. If goods are less than 90% of turnover, the €42,500 services threshold applies to the whole business. A mixed business close to the line should check the split every year.
There is a separate €41,000 threshold for acquisitions of goods from other EU Member States. This matters most for organisations whose own sales are exempt from VAT, so they would never reach the sales thresholds. Unlike the sales thresholds, it is still measured over any continuous 12 months (section 9(2), VAT Consolidation Act 2010).
Revenue also notes that people with exempt activities may need to register because of services they receive from abroad. The EU VAT SME scheme covers sales only, not purchases, so these rules apply whatever your turnover.
Since 1 July 2021, distance sales of goods and TBE services to private customers across the EU share one €10,000 threshold. Revenue's distance sales manual says you stay under it only if those sales do not exceed €10,000 in the current and the previous calendar year.
Below €10,000, an Irish supplier charges Irish VAT on those sales. Above it, VAT is due in each customer's country. Instead of registering in each country, you can register for the Union One Stop Shop (OSS) in Ireland and file one return.
Yes, generally from the first sale. Revenue says a business not established in Ireland must register "irrespective of the level of turnover" when it supplies taxable goods or services to customers here, unless it uses the EU VAT SME scheme.
Northern Ireland and other UK traders count as non-EU businesses for this purpose. Revenue's manual confirms the SME scheme is not open to them.
The EU VAT SME scheme started on 1 January 2025 in every Member State except Spain. It has two layers.
The domestic layer is the familiar Irish exemption below the thresholds above. Qualifying Irish businesses do not need to do anything to use it.
The cross-border layer lets a small EU business use the thresholds of other Member States, as long as its total EU turnover is no more than €100,000 in the current and previous calendar year. A business that wants to use it has to register for that layer.
Aoife is a self-employed graphic designer in Co. Louth. She supplies services only, so her threshold is €42,500. Her 2025 turnover was €38,000, so she starts 2026 below the threshold and is not registered.
Her invoices in 2026, excluding VAT, are:
| Month (2026) | Invoiced in month | Running total for 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| January | €3,800 | €3,800 |
| February | €4,100 | €7,900 |
| March | €4,600 | €12,500 |
| April | €4,900 | €17,400 |
| May | €5,200 | €22,600 |
| June | €5,400 | €28,000 |
| July | €4,700 | €32,700 |
| August | €4,300 | €37,000 |
| September (invoice on 8 September) | €2,500 | €39,500 |
| September (invoice on 22 September) | €3,400 | €42,900 |
After the 8 September invoice she is still €3,000 under the threshold (€42,500 minus €39,500). The 22 September invoice takes her to €42,900, which is €400 over.
Under Revenue's rules she becomes an accountable person from that 22 September 2026 transaction and must apply to register. From then on she charges VAT on her fees and files VAT returns.
She also cannot use the exemption in 2027. Her 2026 turnover is over €42,500, and the test looks at both the current and previous calendar year.
Revenue's manual (Example 8) requires registration "from the date of" the crossing sale, but does not say in so many words whether VAT is charged on that sale itself. Check with an accountant before issuing an invoice that will take you over the threshold.
You can elect to register even if your turnover is below the threshold. Revenue says farmers, fishers and businesses under the thresholds may elect, and the obligations are then the same as for anyone who has to register.
Which VAT rate you then charge is a separate question. For food and catering, see our post on the hospitality VAT cut.
Businesses established in Ireland register online through eRegistration on the Revenue Online Service (ROS), either directly or through a tax agent. Sole traders, partnerships and trusts use form TR1; limited companies use form TR2.
Non-resident businesses use paper forms TR1(FT) or TR2(FT), posted to Business Taxes Registrations, P.O. Box 1, Wexford.
Revenue's registration manual says applicants must give their actual turnover from 1 January of the current year to the date of application, and their turnover for the whole previous calendar year. You also state the date you want registration to start and why you are registering.
If any details change after registration, you must tell Revenue within 30 days.
Revenue can backdate a registration where turnover has gone over the threshold. In practice, that means VAT can be due on sales from the date you should have registered, even if you did not charge it to your customers.
Late VAT carries interest of 0.0274% per day, or part of a day, from the date it was due. Revenue's list of fixed penalties includes €4,000 for failing to register as an accountable person, and tax-geared penalties can apply on top.
A monthly running total of sales is the simplest safeguard.
Budget 2027 will be announced on 6 October 2026. The thresholds were last raised from 1 January 2025, so check the Budget before relying on these figures for 2027.
We can look at your turnover, tell you which threshold applies and whether registering now, or voluntarily, makes sense for your business. Book a quick chat or see our tax services. Our free compliance calendar (launching soon) helps you keep VAT return dates in view once you are registered.
The threshold for businesses supplying services only is €42,500 in a calendar year. It has applied since 1 January 2025 and could change in Budget 2027 on 6 October 2026.
The threshold for businesses supplying goods is €85,000 in a calendar year. It also applies to mixed businesses where 90% or more of turnover comes from goods.
You become an accountable person from the transaction that takes your turnover over the threshold, and you must apply to register. Revenue can backdate registration to that point.
Since 1 January 2025, Revenue measures turnover by calendar year. You must stay under the threshold in both the current and the previous calendar year to remain exempt.
Yes. Businesses under the thresholds can elect to register, but the election cannot be backdated and takes effect from the start of the VAT period in which you apply.
Revenue lists a fixed penalty of €4,000 for failing to register as an accountable person. Interest of 0.0274% per day also applies to VAT paid late.
Last checked: 3 October 2026. Written by the M.A. Whately team. This guide is general information, not advice for your situation; talk to us before acting on it.
We use cookies the site needs to work. With your permission we would also use Google Analytics to see how the site is used, and Google Ads cookies to measure our adverts. Nothing optional is set until you choose, and you can change your mind any time with "Cookie settings" at the foot of every page. Privacy policy
Newsletter
Budget changes, Revenue deadlines, new free tools and what AI means for your business, from M.A. Whately.
