TLDR: You can deduct the VAT incurred on goods and services used for your business when you are liable for VAT and the expense is related to a transaction giving entitlement to deduction. You must be able to substantiate the expenses and their business use. The available extracts do not make it possible to specify a general procedure, frequency or deadline applicable to all self-employed workers established in France.
The principle of deduction
The deduction allows you to recover the VAT charged on the components of the cost price of the products sold or services supplied. This rule is presented by the source in the context of transactions taxable on an optional basis.
You therefore cannot automatically deduct all VAT paid in connection with a self-employed activity. The right to deduction depends in particular on whether you are liable for VAT and on the link between the expense and your taxable activity.
Who can benefit from the deduction
You qualify as a person liable for VAT if you independently carry out transactions falling within an economic activity. This definition is set out by the source in the specific context of owners and breeders of racehorses.
You should not infer from this that every self-employed worker is automatically liable for VAT. The available extracts do not make it possible to determine the regime applicable to each activity or to confirm a right to deduction on this basis alone.
Which expenses can be taken into account
The expense must be incurred for the purposes of your economic activity and be distinct from a personal expense. A personal expense or one unrelated to the activity cannot be treated as deductible VAT solely because it was paid by the business.
The available extracts do not provide a general and comprehensive list of expense categories that are always deductible or always excluded. You must therefore assess each expense in light of its business use, whether you are liable for VAT, and the rules applicable to your activity.
Supporting documents and accounting records
If you are subject to the controlled declaration regime or if you choose this regime, you must keep a journal on a day-to-day basis, detailing your business income and expenses.
You must also retain the registers and supporting documents in accordance with the procedures laid down by Article L. 102 B of the Tax Procedures Code. These documents make it possible to substantiate the reality of the expense and its connection with your activity.
What the extracts do not make it possible to specify
The available extracts do not make it possible to indicate a general procedure, an ordinary form, a frequency or a deadline applicable to all self-employed workers established in France for recovering VAT on their business expenses.
The documents consulted concerning refunds relate to specific situations involving persons liable for VAT established outside France. They are not sufficient to determine the procedure applicable to a self-employed worker established in France.
Informational content, not personalised tax advice.