Reimbursement of energy taxes

Energy taxes and their reimbursement

Businesses pay energy taxes and water taxes to individual utility and energy companies when they purchase/consume energy products such as electricity, natural gas, oil and water etc.

VAT registered businesses can reclaim some of the taxes for certain purposes, which are briefly described below.

The charges are stated on the invoice the company receives from the utility and energy companies. If you are registered for VAT, you can get a refund of some of the taxes when you use energy products or water for certain purposes. The reimbursement is done via the VAT return.

If you're not registered for VAT, you can't get a refund on energy taxes.

As a general rule, the conditions for reimbursement of electricity are that;

• the company can deduct VAT on the energy costs
• the company itself consumes the energy
• The consumption of electricity is used for so-called process purposes, which includes lighting, computers, coffee machines, refrigerators and printers, etc.

Only partial reimbursement of electricity for comfort cooling and heating is possible. Comfort cooling refers to cooling from air conditioning systems in shops and offices. In other words, cooling that is done solely to create a temperature that is suitable for employees and customers. Electricity used for both process and comfort purposes must therefore be measured or allocated according to specific methods.

A landlord is not entitled to reimbursement when the electricity and water are consumed by the tenant. Instead, the charges must be re-invoiced to the tenant, after which the tenant may be reimbursed.

As far as water tax refunds are concerned, there are no requirements for the use of the water. Here, VAT-registered businesses have general access to a refund.

Reimbursement of fuels

When the company uses oil, bottled gas, natural gas, city gas or coal in the VAT-registered business, the company is generally not entitled to a tax refund. This includes, for example, heating of premises, hot water or comfort cooling etc. as well as motor fuel.

However, agriculture, horticulture, fishing and similar industries can be reimbursed for part of the energy taxes.

If you use the products for other purposes in your VAT-registered business, for example, gas for cooking in your restaurant, you can usually reclaim part of the energy tax for this. You must calculate the amount yourself based on the energy tax on the invoice. Please ask us for advice if you are in doubt.

inforevision has extensive experience in handling the rules for reimbursement of energy taxes. We can therefore help you clarify the rules on whether your company is entitled to an energy tax refund. We can also assist with calculating and calculating the amounts, and we can also help you apply for reinstatement for the past 3 years if your company has not been reimbursed for energy taxes to a sufficient extent.