Background & Purpose

Cross-border VAT fraud within e-commerce causes massive tax losses for society. To tackle this, new tools are needed to track suspicious transactions across European borders.

Proposals & Debate

The government proposed introducing a legal duty for payment service providers to document and report cross-border payment data. This data will be collected in a centralized European database to help tax authorities detect fraudulent web shops.

The Decision

The Swedish parliament approved the government's proposal, meaning payment service providers are now required by law to report specific payment transactions.

Does this affect you?

  • Payment service providers: Must set up new routines to register, store, and report cross-border payment data to Skatteverket.
  • E-commerce companies: Subject to increased oversight through automated monitoring of cross-border payment flows within the EU.

In Practice

  • Payment service providers must collect and document data on cross-border payments.
  • Information on specific transaction volumes is sent regularly to Skatteverket.
  • Skatteverket forwards the collected data to a centralized European database.
  • Tax authorities across EU member states can access the database to investigate VAT fraud.