IVA with foreign clients: the definitive guide for autónomos invoicing outside Spain

Last updated: 2026-06-12

Three gestors, three different answers. If you've ever asked "do I need to charge IVA to my client in Berlin or San Francisco?", you've probably gotten contradictory responses. The confusion is understandable: the rules change depending on the client's country, whether they're a business or an individual, and whether they have a registered NIF-IVA. This guide addresses exactly that.

Why do so many IT autónomos have questions about IVA with foreign clients?

The IVA system was designed to tax consumption where it happens. When you sell services to clients in Spain, the logic is simple: you charge 21% and pay it to Hacienda. But when the client is in another country, the localization rules of Ley 37/1992 del IVA come into play, and the treatment changes completely depending on who you're invoicing.

The other factor that complicates things: many autónomos receive invoice templates from their gestor designed for one type of client and apply them to everyone. A template valid for a client in Cyprus (EU company with NIF-IVA) has a completely different legal basis from the one you'd use with a client in the US. Using the same template generates mistakes, and Hacienda may come after you.

The decision table: do I charge IVA or not?

Here's the full logic in a single view:

Client type IVA treatment Do you need ROI? Modelo 349?
Company outside the EU (US, UK, Canada, etc.) Service not subject to Spanish IVA. Invoice without IVA. No No
EU company with valid NIF-IVA (verified in VIES) Intra-community transaction. Inversión del sujeto pasivo: no Spanish IVA, the client self-assesses in their own country. Yes Yes
EU company without valid NIF-IVA Risk of being treated as B2C - Spanish IVA 21%. AEAT allows you to presume the recipient is not a business until they provide their NIF-IVA, so always verify before invoicing. - -
Company or professional in Spain IVA 21% + IRPF retención 15% (or 7% if you're a new autónomo) No No
Individual (end consumer) in the EU Special B2C rules for digital services; OSS one-stop shop may apply. This guide focuses on B2B; consult your gestor if you have individual clients in the EU. - -

Do I have to charge IVA to a client in the United States?

No. Services provided to a company based outside the European Union are not subject to Spanish IVA.

The rule is in article 69 of Ley 37/1992: for B2B services (business to business), the transaction is localized at the recipient's registered address. If your client is in the US, UK, Canada, or any other country outside the EU, the transaction is localized there. As a result, the Spanish Hacienda has no authority to tax that transaction with IVA.

This applies to typical IT sector services: software development, consulting, design, SaaS, etc. Both "electronically supplied services" and professional services follow, in B2B transactions, the general rule of art. 69 (taxation at the recipient's place of establishment). There are special rules in art. 70 - including the "effective use" rule of art. 70.Dos - that only recapture certain services for Spanish IVA if their effective use occurs in Spain; for a genuine non-EU business client consuming the service in their own country, these do not apply.

What you include on the invoice:

  • No IVA
  • No IRPF retención (the client is not a Spanish company)
  • You can add a note like "service not subject to Spanish IVA, art. 69 Ley 37/1992 del IVA"

What about clients in other EU countries?

Here the situation is different, and this is the point where most mistakes are made.

If your client has a valid NIF-IVA (verified in VIES)

This is an intra-community service transaction and the inversión del sujeto pasivo mechanism (reverse charge) applies. You invoice without Spanish IVA; the client declares and pays IVA in their own country at their jurisdiction's rate.

For this to be correct:

  1. Verify the NIF-IVA in VIES before issuing the invoice. It's not enough for the client to give you a number; you have to check it in the European Commission's official database.
  2. You are registered in ROI (Registro de Operadores Intracomunitarios). If you regularly invoice EU companies, you need to be registered. The process is done with Modelo 036.
  3. You file Modelo 349 each quarter or monthly (depending on volume) to declare these intra-community transactions.
  4. The invoice must include your NIF-IVA (with the ES prefix), the client's NIF-IVA, and the note "inversión del sujeto pasivo" or its equivalent in the invoice language.

For more detail on ROI and Modelo 349, see the guide on intra-community operators and ROI.

If your EU client does NOT have a valid NIF-IVA

If the client can't prove their business status with a NIF-IVA verified in VIES, Hacienda may treat the transaction as B2C (service to an end consumer). In that case, Spanish IVA of 21% would apply.

Best practice: always verify the NIF-IVA in VIES before issuing the invoice. If the number doesn't show as valid, don't issue the invoice without IVA until you resolve the situation with your gestor.

The most common mistake: "0% IVA for everyone"

This is the most frequent misunderstanding among IT autónomos working with clients in multiple countries.

The confusion arises because in the two main cases - client outside the EU and EU company with NIF-IVA - the invoice doesn't carry Spanish IVA. But the legal basis is completely different:

Situation Legal basis Additional consequences
Client outside the EU (US, UK...) Art. 69 Ley IVA: service not subject to Spanish IVA under the localization rule No ROI, no Modelo 349
EU company with valid NIF-IVA Intra-community transaction, inversión del sujeto pasivo Requires ROI + Modelo 349

The typical mistake: a gestor designs an invoice template for a client in Cyprus (EU company). That template omits IVA due to inversión del sujeto pasivo, which is correct. The autónomo then applies it to all their clients, including those in the US. The result is that invoices to the US are fine (no IVA, though for a different reason), but if the gestor also omitted ROI and Modelo 349 for the Cypriot client, that's where the problem lies.

When you switch from an EU client to one outside the EU (or add new clients from different jurisdictions), review with your gestor that the treatment for each relationship is correct independently.

The surprising part: you still file Modelo 303 even if you don't charge IVA

This point confuses many autónomos who invoice exclusively to foreign clients.

If you don't charge IVA, what's Modelo 303 for?

To recover the IVA soportado on your expenses in Spain. As an autónomo, you pay IVA on a large number of purchases related to your activity:

  • Computer, peripherals, technical equipment
  • Software and cloud service subscriptions
  • Gestoría or tax advisory fees
  • Coworking space or office rental
  • Courses and professional training

All that IVA you pay is deductible. And if your income has zero IVA charged (foreign clients) but you do have IVA soportado on your expenses, the result of Modelo 303 may be negative: Hacienda owes you a refund.

For this deduction to work:

  • You must be registered in the IVA census (activity subject to IVA, even with non-subject transactions under the localization rule)
  • Expense invoices must be in your name as an activity, with your NIF
  • You must keep them for 4 years (the tax statute of limitations)

If you don't file Modelo 303 because you think "you have no IVA", you're giving up these refunds. See the complete IVA guide for autónomos and the Modelo 303 guide to see how to correctly record these transactions.

What about IRPF retención on invoices to foreign clients?

None. The IRPF retención on an invoice (the standard 15%, or 7% for new autónomos during the first years) only applies when the client is a company or professional with a fiscal address in Spain.

The reason is simple: the retención is a mechanism for advance collection of IRPF that works because the Spanish client pays it to Hacienda on your behalf. A foreign client has no such obligation to AEAT.

Therefore, on your invoices to clients in the US, Germany, the Netherlands, or any other country outside Spain: no IRPF retención. You make your tax advance payments directly through the fractional payments of Modelo 130 (or Modelo 131 if you're on módulos).

Platforms like Upwork, Deel, or Stripe: does anything change?

If you collect payment through intermediary payment platforms, the nature of your end client doesn't change. What matters for IVA is where the recipient of the service you provide is established. If you work for a US company through Upwork, the recipient is still the US company, not Upwork. The guide on how to invoice through Upwork, Deel, and Stripe covers the specifics of these platforms.

Do I need to change anything in my Modelo 303 if I have foreign clients?

Yes. Invoices to foreign clients are recorded differently depending on the type:

  • Clients outside the EU: included as non-subject transactions under the localization rule in the corresponding box of Modelo 303 (the "services provided taxed at destination" box).
  • EU clients with NIF-IVA: recorded as intra-community service provisions, and also declared in Modelo 349.

Your invoicing software or your gestor must correctly configure each type of transaction. A small error in classification can generate discrepancies between Modelo 303 and 349 that Hacienda detects in its data cross-checks.

You can also use Radar Fiscal to track the filing deadlines for all these modelos and receive reminders before each due date.

Official sources

FAQ

Do I have to charge IVA to a client in the United States?

No. Services provided to a business in the US are not subject to Spanish IVA: under article 69 of Ley 37/1992, B2B services are localized at the recipient's registered address, which in this case is outside the EU. Invoice without IVA, you don't need ROI, and you don't file Modelo 349. But you still file Modelo 303 and can deduct the IVA soportado from your expenses in Spain.

What is inversión del sujeto pasivo on invoices to EU clients?

When you invoice a company in another EU country that has a valid NIF-IVA in VIES, you don't apply Spanish IVA: the client declares and pays IVA in their own country (inversión del sujeto pasivo or reverse charge). You must be registered in ROI and declare the transaction in Modelo 349. The invoice must mention 'inversión del sujeto pasivo'.

Does the IRPF retención apply to invoices for foreign clients?

No. The IRPF retención ({{tax-rates.irpf.retencion_profesional}}% standard, or {{tax-rates.irpf.retencion_nuevos_autonomos}}% for new autónomos) only applies when the client is a company or professional with a fiscal address in Spain. With foreign clients - EU or outside the EU - you never include an IRPF retención on the invoice.

Do I have to file Modelo 303 if all my clients are foreign and I don't charge IVA?

Yes. Modelo 303 must be filed even if the result is zero or negative. The upside: you can deduct the IVA you pay on your expenses in Spain (equipment, gestoría, coworking), which can generate a refund from Hacienda. Don't confuse 'I don't charge IVA' with 'I'm not a VAT taxable person'.

What happens if I invoice an EU company that doesn't have a valid NIF-IVA in VIES?

If the EU client can't prove their business status with a valid NIF-IVA in VIES, Hacienda may treat the transaction as B2C (end consumer) and require you to apply Spanish IVA at {{tax-rates.iva.general}}%. Always verify the NIF-IVA in VIES before issuing an invoice without IVA.