Your VAT rate: where it comes from and how to correct it
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Your VAT rate determines whether VAT is added to the commission invoices you generate on Affilae. You never type this rate yourself: Affilae calculates it from your Country and from your answer to the question Is your company subject to VAT?.
Where to declare your VAT situation
- At the bottom of the sidebar, click your avatar to open the My account panel.
- Open Business Details.
- Check your Business entity and your Country first: both determine the rate that will be applied.
- Answer the question Is your company subject to VAT? with Yes or No.
- If you answer Yes, fill in your VAT number: it becomes mandatory. If you answer No, the field is cleared and disabled.
- Click Save edits, then confirm in the Before saving window.
The calculated rate appears as a purple badge next to the VAT number label, for example 20%. This is the only place in the interface where your rate is visible: there is no field to enter it manually.
The same declaration is also part of the DAC7 tax form, in the tax information step, through the checkbox I don’t have a VAT number and/or I am not subject to VAT. Both places update the same information: tick that box and your rate goes back to 0%.
Which rate Affilae applies
The rate is not a free choice. Affilae derives it from your declaration, your country and the country of the advertiser you are invoicing.
Two points to watch on specific cases:
- For a French account, only 0% and 20% are accepted when a payment request is created. For Martinique, Guadeloupe and Reunion, only 0% and 8.5% are.
- In France, the Individual business entity does not allow you to request payment of your commissions. A message reminds you of this: In accordance with French Law, your individual status does not allow you to request payment of your commissions. Invoice creation and payment of your commissions requires a business status.
When a rate change takes effect
In practice, here is the rule to remember, in chronological order:
- Commissions that are validated but not yet invoiced carry no rate at all. They will take the rate in force on the day you request their payment.
- When the payment request is created, Affilae reads your situation and stores the rate on the request. That rate, and only that one, is printed on the invoice.
- After the request is created, the rate no longer changes. Even if you download the invoice again later, it will show the rate stored at creation time.
So what matters is not the date of the sale but the date of your payment request. If your tax situation changes on the 1st of the month, update your details before requesting payment for the previous month’s commissions.
If the rate is missing or incorrect
Affilae checks your rate when the payment request is created. If the check fails, the request is refused and you see one of these reasons:
- VAT rate not set: your VAT situation has never been saved. Open Business Details, answer the VAT question and save.
- VAT rate not valid: the stored rate is not an allowed rate for your country. Check your Country, then save the form again so the rate is recalculated.
If you declare yourself not subject to VAT, Affilae asks you to confirm before generating the invoice, in a Tax status verification window. It states: You are about to generate an invoice of [amount]. Currently, you are configured as not subject to VAT. You then choose between No, my situation has changed, which takes you back to the form, and I confirm generating the invoice without VAT.
Finally, if your Affilae earnings for the year become significant while you are declared as not subject to VAT, a banner warns you: Warning: Your earnings on Affilae are high this year. You are probably approaching the VAT thresholds. Please check your tax status before your next invoice to avoid any issues. An Update my tax information link takes you straight to the right place.
Best practices
- Update Affilae on the same day your tax situation changes, just as you do for your other invoicing tools.
- Always check all three items: Business entity, Country and the VAT question. The rate comes from all three, not from the VAT question alone.
- Do not request payment before updating your situation, because an issued invoice is very hard to correct afterwards, both for your accounting and for ours.
- If you are unsure about your VAT liability or about the thresholds, ask your accountant. Affilae support cannot decide your tax situation for you.
Two common situations
- A self-employed creator exceeds the small business exemption threshold. She becomes liable for VAT during the year. She opens Business Details, answers Yes to the VAT question, enters her VAT number, saves, then requests payment. Her next invoices carry 20%. Those already issued stay without VAT.
- A publisher moves from self-employed to a company. He changes his Business entity to Company, updates the Company name, the SIREN and the VAT number, then saves before his next payment request, so the first invoice of the new company is correct from the start.
Related articles
- Tax Form, Frequently Asked Questions
- Tax Form, Businesses
- Completing your DAC7 tax form as an individual
- Tracking and requesting your commission payments
Frequently asked questions
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Nowhere, and that is normal. There is no field to type a rate. You declare your Country and answer the question Is your company subject to VAT? in My account > Business Details, then Affilae calculates the rate. It is then shown as a badge next to the VAT number label.
No. The rate is stored on the payment request when it is created and is never changed afterwards. Requests already created and invoices already issued keep their original rate, even if you download them again. Your new rate applies from your next payment request onwards.
They carry no rate as long as no payment request has been created. They will therefore take the rate in force on the day you request their payment. What counts is the date of your request, not the date of the sales.
The most common reason is that the advertiser you are invoicing is not in the same country as you. In that case the invoice is issued without VAT and carries a reverse charge or exemption mention. A 0% rate also appears if you declared yourself as not subject to VAT, or if your Business entity is Individual.
The stored rate is not one of the rates allowed for your country. Open My account > Business Details, check your Country and your answer to the VAT question, then click Save edits so the rate is recalculated. If the message persists, contact support.
French law does not allow you to issue a service invoice as a private individual. To be paid for your commissions you need a business status, for example self-employed, and you must set it in the Business entity field.
Both places drive the same information about your VAT liability. If your status, your country or your VAT number change, check both to avoid any inconsistency, and read the dedicated tax form documentation.