Register for VAT in Ireland

Find out if your business must register for VAT (Value-Added Tax), how to apply online through ROS, and what Revenue may ask you to show.

The numbers

€42,500yearly turnover threshold for services

€85,000yearly turnover threshold for goods

Onlineregister through ROS (Revenue Online Service)

23%standard VAT rate in 2026

You must register for VAT when your yearly turnover goes over €42,500 for services or €85,000 for goods. Register online through ROS (Revenue Online Service), or ask a tax agent to do it for you.

Do you need to register?

VAT registration thresholds (since 1 January 2025)

What you sell	Register when yearly turnover exceeds
Services only	€42,500
Goods made from zero-rated materials and sold at a reduced or standard rate	€42,500
Goods, or goods and services where goods are 90% or more of turnover	€85,000
Distance sales of goods into Ireland from another EU country	€10,000
Goods bought from other EU countries	€41,000

Source: Revenue, What are the VAT thresholds?

Below the threshold, you can choose to register, but only from the current date, not backdated. Businesses not established in Ireland that supply taxable customers here must register whatever their turnover, unless they use the VAT SME Scheme.

What you need

Your PPS (Personal Public Service) number, or your company's tax registration number
ROS access. If you already use myAccount, use the Register for ROS option on the Manage My Record card.
Your turnover from 1 January this year to today, and for last year
Your bank details if you expect VAT refunds
Supporting documents, such as a lease or proof of a business address, contracts, sample invoices, customer and supplier lists, business projections and any licence you need to trade

Step by step: register through ROS

Check the VAT thresholds to confirm you must register, or decide to register voluntarily.
If you are a new sole trader, register for Income Tax first in myAccount: Manage My Record, then Tax registrations, then Income Tax.
Sign in to ROS and go to My Services.
Scroll to Manage Tax Registrations and find VAT in the list. Click Register.
Choose a domestic-only or intra-EU registration, and fill in your business details and the date you want VAT to start.
Upload your supporting documents. This can cut your waiting time.
Review the summary, click Sign and Submit, enter your ROS password and click Sign and Submit again.
Watch your ROS Inbox for confirmation, and reply to any query from Revenue.

Limited companies use Form TR2 and sole traders, partnerships and trusts use Form TR1, completed online. Paper forms are only for exceptional cases. Non-resident businesses post Form TR1(FT) or TR2(FT) to Business Taxes Registrations, Office of the Revenue Commissioners, P.O. Box 1, Wexford.

How much it costs and how long it takes

Revenue does not publish a set processing time. Your registration usually starts from the date on your application. Once registered, you file and pay VAT online.

2 months

each standard VAT period. File and pay by the 19th of the next month, or the 23rd if you use ROS.Source: revenue.ie

VAT rates from 1 January 2026

Rate	Name
23%	Standard rate
13.5%	Reduced rate
9%	Second reduced rate. Since 1 July 2026 this includes restaurant and catering, hot takeaway food and hairdressing.
4.8%	Livestock rate

Source: Revenue, Current VAT rates

30 days

to tell Revenue if your registration details changeSource: revenue.ie

Common mistakes

Using the wrong threshold. If goods make up less than 90% of your turnover, the €42,500 limit may apply.
Sending a paper form when you could apply online. Revenue sends it back.
Applying with no evidence of trade. Revenue may query it, visit your business or refuse it if you do not reply.
Waiting to register after spending on start-up costs. A new business can only reclaim start-up VAT once it is registered.
Forgetting a return. VAT returns are normally due every two months.

If something goes wrong

If Revenue sends a query, answer it with the documents it asks for. No reply can lead to your application being refused.
If your VAT registration was cancelled and you want it back, use Re-register in ROS.
Citizens Information Phone Service: 0818 07 4000, Monday to Friday, 9am to 8pm.

Related guides

How to register as self-employed
How to register a business name
How to set up a limited company
How to get a tax clearance certificate
How to file a Form 11 tax return

Recent changes and what to check

2027

Budget 2027 left the VAT registration thresholds unchanged. It cuts VAT on livestock respiratory vaccines from 23% to 9% and raises the farmers' flat-rate addition from 4.5% to 4.8%.

To check

Revenue's VAT rates page once the Budget 2027 Finance Bill becomes law

Sources