Free EU invoice generator: VAT, reverse charge and cross-border B2B

How to create an invoice for European Union

1. Check the region and currency. The editor opens with European Union defaults: EUR, VAT presets and the right date and number format. Change the currency in the settings if you bill in another one.
2. Add your business details. Enter your name, address and VAT ID and company reg. no.. Upload a logo if you have one. Save it as a business profile so you can reuse it next time.
3. Add the client. Fill in the customer’s name and address and their customer vat id where it applies. Saved clients are stored in your browser for next time.
4. Add line items and tax. Describe each item, enter quantity and rate, and choose a VAT preset or set your own rate. The totals update as you type, and you can switch between tax-exclusive and tax-inclusive prices.
5. Check the checklist and terms. Open the compliance checklist to see which required fields are still empty, then choose payment terms, add bank details and notes.
6. Pick a template and colour, then export. Choose one of the 15 templates and colour themes, then download the PDF, use Print / Save as PDF, or export a PNG. Everything is created in your browser.

The EU rules behind every VAT invoice

EU member states set their own VAT rates and many of their own invoicing details, but they all implement the same framework: the VAT Directive, 2006/112/EC. Article 226 lists what an invoice must contain, and most national lists are derived from it. That is why a German, a Spanish and an Irish invoice look different in layout but ask for much the same facts.

This page is for you if you are an EU-based business that sells across borders, if you have clients in several member states, or if you simply want a neutral euro invoice and plan to check the national detail. For single-country guidance, use the pages for Ireland, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy.

What Article 226 says an invoice must show

In summary, a VAT invoice in the EU generally includes the items below. Your member state’s tax authority may add more or allow simplified invoices for small amounts.

• Date of issue and unique sequential number (Art. 226)
• Supplier name, address and VAT identification number
• Customer name, address – and VAT ID for reverse charge / intra-EU supplies
• Description, quantity, unit price excl. VAT
• VAT rate and amount – or the exemption / reverse charge mention

• Date of issue and a sequential number that uniquely identifies the invoice.
• VAT identification number of the supplier and, for reverse charge and intra-Community supplies, the customer’s too.
• Full names and addresses of both parties.
• Quantity and nature of goods or services, and the date of supply if different from the issue date.
• Taxable amount per rate or exemption, unit price excluding VAT, any discounts not included in the price, VAT rate and VAT amount payable.
• A mention such as “Reverse charge” when the customer accounts for the VAT, or a reference to the exemption.

Cross-border B2B: reverse charge and intra-Community supplies

If you supply services to a business customer in another EU member state, the place of supply is generally where the customer is established. You do not charge your local VAT. Instead the customer accounts for VAT in their own country under the reverse charge, and your invoice must say so. The accepted mention is “Reverse charge”, and many businesses add “Article 196, Directive 2006/112/EC”. Show your VAT ID and the customer’s VAT ID, and check the customer’s ID is valid on the European Commission’s VIES validation service before you invoice.

If you sell goods to a VAT-registered business in another member state, and the goods are moved from your country to theirs, the supply is typically an exempt intra-Community supply (Article 138) taxed at 0% in your country, with the customer accounting for acquisition VAT. You must show both VAT IDs and a reference to the exemption, and you will normally report the sale in a recapitulative (EC sales) statement. Proof of transport matters, so ask your tax adviser what evidence your country requires.

The generator has flags for each case: choose the reverse-charge flag for B2B services and the intra-Community flag for goods. Each sets VAT to 0 and prints the wording. Read the reverse-charge guide for examples.

Standard VAT rates by member state

Standard rates in 2026 as published by the European Commission are listed below. The editor’s preset list holds the same numbers. Most countries also have one or two reduced rates and some have zero rates. VAT rates change, and the Commission’s page is the reference. Please confirm before invoicing.

Use the VAT calculator to add or remove VAT for any of them.

Selling to consumers in other EU countries: OSS

When you sell to consumers in other member states, VAT is generally due in the customer’s country. The One-Stop Shop (OSS) lets you register in your own country and declare and pay that foreign VAT in one return. There is an EU-wide threshold for small cross-border B2C sellers (commonly stated as €10,000 per year) below which you can keep charging your home VAT. The exact conditions are on the European Commission’s OSS pages and have details such as the effect of exceeding the threshold, so check them before relying on the figure.

E-invoicing in the EU: what is changing

The EU is moving towards structured e-invoicing. The “VAT in the Digital Age” (ViDA) package introduces mandatory structured e-invoices for cross-border B2B transactions between member states from 1 July 2030, together with shorter invoicing deadlines. Several countries already have, or are introducing, domestic mandates ahead of that: Belgium requires structured B2B e-invoicing from 2026, Poland has phased in KSeF during 2026 and 2027, Germany and France are phasing in from 2025 to 2028, and Italy has used SDI for years. A PDF made in a browser is a readable invoice but it is not one of these structured formats, so check your country’s rules.

See our e-invoicing timeline and the European Commission’s ViDA page for current dates.

A worked cross-border example

Elena, a freelance copywriter in Lisbon, invoices a Dutch marketing agency €1,800 for a content package. The agency is a VAT-registered business.

Elena checks the agency’s Dutch VAT ID (NL…B01) in VIES, shows both IDs and the words “Reverse charge – VAT to be accounted for by the customer (Article 196, Directive 2006/112/EC)”. The agency reports the VAT in its Dutch return and Elena reports the supply in her statement of EU services. Had the customer been a consumer in the Netherlands, the analysis would be different.

Mistakes to avoid

• Charging local VAT to an EU business customer who should be reverse-charged.
• Not validating the customer’s VAT ID.
• Omitting the reverse-charge wording; the words “Reverse charge” are required.
• Applying B2B logic to consumer sales.
• Assuming one country’s invoice details apply everywhere.
• Assuming a PDF will meet a national e-invoicing mandate.

Glossary

VIES

EU system for validating VAT IDs.

OSS

One-Stop Shop for declaring VAT on cross-border B2C sales.

Intra-Community supply

Movement of goods from one member state to a VAT-registered business in another.

ViDA

VAT in the Digital Age, the EU package on digital reporting and e-invoicing.

EN 16931

The European standard for the core of an electronic invoice.

Related topics

• EU invoice template
• VAT invoice Europe
• reverse charge invoice
• intra-community supply
• VIES check
• OSS one-stop shop
• ViDA e-invoicing
• cross-border B2B invoice
• Article 226 VAT directive