There are situations in which the client receives an invoice and the professional may refuse. The legislation determines that the issuance of an invoice is mandatory in most transactions, even if the consumer does not request it and regardless of the value. However, there is a set of exceptions that remove this obligation and allow the provider to only issue a receipt without the customer’s tax number.
According to the specialized invoicing portal Cegid Vendus, article 9 of the VAT Code defines that taxpayers who exclusively carry out tax-exempt transactions do not have to issue an invoice.
In these cases, simply providing a receipt as proof of payment is sufficient, which means that the customer may not be able to associate their NIF with the expense, even if they request it when the service is provided.
Exemptions that allow you to refuse to issue an invoice
The professionals covered include doctors, nurses, psychologists, dentists and tutors. According to the same source, hospitals, clinics and patient transport services are also exempt from billing, being legally authorized to operate only with receipts. The same regime applies to dental prosthetics in the transmission of prostheses, as well as to social security systems and social solidarity institutions.
The website writes that daycare centers, kindergartens and vocational education and training institutions are also on the list of exempt entities. Libraries, museums and cultural or recreational organizations are included in this legal framework, as well as entities that organize congresses or scientific and cultural events. In these sectors, the refusal to issue an invoice is the result of a tax rule and not an arbitrary choice.
When the receipt is no longer sufficient
According to the same source, if the customer is subject to VAT, the exemption from invoicing no longer applies and the issuance of an invoice becomes mandatory, with the possibility of including NIF. This is the point that changes the functioning of the regime and places the provider once again within the general rules of tax communication.
Exempt professionals can issue invoices if they wish
Even so, it states that exempt professionals can, if they wish, issue invoices. In these cases, there is an obligation to notify the Tax Authority by the 25th of the following month. The same source explains that the Minister of Finance can, exceptionally, extend this exemption regime to other sectors or recognize documents equivalent to invoices, which keeps the framework adjustable depending on government decision.
For those looking for tax deductions, this distinction can make a difference to the IRS. The law allows certain providers to refuse the NIF because they are exempt from invoicing, but when there is an invoice and the customer is a taxable person, the tax number must be issued whenever requested.
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