If your company is registered in the Basque Country, you will have no doubt heard about TicketBAI (TBAI). Despite the fact that this system was scheduled to come into force in 2021, the health crisis has delayed implementation. Businesses now have a couple more years to adapt to the system.
With the aim of shedding light on the new system, one that is here to stay, we have compiled all the information you will need if your business is based in the Basque Country.
What is TicketBAI?
TicketBAI is a system designed by the Basque administration through which all companies will have to communicate all invoices and tickets they issue in real time. In this way, companies have a direct, frictionless connection with the autonomous public administrations. And for its part, the Provincial Treasury controls the billing of all businesses. This new system has one clear objective: to fight and eliminate tax evasion and fraud.
Who has to use the TBAI system?
Absolutely all businesses with a registered address in the Basque Country will be affected by this system, regardless of size or turnover. Self-employed workers, SMEs and large companies will have to adapt their systems.
Technical specifications
With TBAI coming into force, businesses will have to use software that meets the specifications set by the government:
- Approved software.
- Ability to create an electronic invoice for each service/product sold.
- The electronic invoice must include an electronic signature, a TBAI identifier, a QR code and a hash chain relating the new invoice with the previous one.
Calendar: key dates for TBAI
The date the TBAI system comes into force depends on the Provincial Treasury where the company is registered.
Bizkaia (Biscay)
- 1 October 2020: TBAI voluntary adoption stage began.
- 1 January 2022: TBAI becomes mandatory. All companies must be technically fully prepared.
Gipuzkoa
- 1 January 2021 TBAI voluntary adoption stage began.
- 1 January 2022: TBAI will become mandatory, although adoption will be staggered and by sectors through to autumn 2023. Likewise, and to guarantee proper deployment of the system, all companies will have to have adapted their invoice programs to the TicektBAI system by the end of 2022.
Álava
Álava Provincial Treasury has not yet published precise dates. However, there is an indicative calendar:
- As of January 2021: a communication campaign began to inform large companies, SMEs and the self-employed of the changes.
- April 2021: tax advisors will be the first to deploy mandatory TBAI.
- January 2022: TBAI will become mandatory for all sectors.
The Basque government offers tax incentives to those businesses that adopt TicektBAI within the voluntary periods. These incentives consist of a 30% reduction in personal income tax and corporation tax.
TBAI and electronic invoicing: differences and similarities
If your business already uses electronic invoicing regularly, you may be wondering what difference there is with the new TicketBAI system. And the truth is that they are not counter-posed systems.
The TBAI system was created by the Basque Country administration, which uses electronic invoicing technology with certain specifications to create automatic communication between companies and the Provincial Treasuries.
And the electronic invoice is itself already in use in many systems automating administration processes. In fact, any business supplying the Spanish Public Administration also has to use electronic invoicing—with the specifications set by the Government of Spain—to bill its services.
TicketBAI vs. SII
TicketBAI is a unique system in Spain, and shows substantial differences with the Immediate Supply of Information (SII, for the Spanish Suministro Inmediato de Información).
The main difference is that TicketBAI requires all companies to communicate invoices in real time, while with SII you also need to communicate the invoices you issue, but it may be done later.
In Europe, some countries have systems similar to the one the Basque Country intends to implement. The clearest and most similar case is Italy, with its “ricevuta”. The fact is that the worldwide trend is for ever more governments opting to implement technology in order to fight tax evasion and fraud.
The advantages of TBAI
Companies that work with manual billing processes will have to make investments in digitization. Those that already have a digital process must adapt it. What is clear is that this change must be welcomed as an opportunity. The main benefit for companies lies in the simplification of relations with the Provincial Treasury. Consequently, manual tasks will be greatly reduced and efficiency of finance departments will increase.
TicketBAI & baVel
The implementation of the TBAI system means that all companies will have to adapt their accounting systems to meet the requirements and to be able to communicate with the Provincial Treasury instantly. At baVel, we are already adapting our platform in order to connect with TBAI within the established deadlines. So if you have any questions, speak with your contact person at Voxel or write to us at [email protected].
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