Latvia VAT Invoice Requirements: Fields and Deadlines

A full Latvian tax invoice normally needs a unique sequence number, its issue date, the relevant supply or advance-payment date, supplier and customer details and VAT numbers, a description and quantity of the goods or services, unit prices and separate discounts, the VAT rate and amount, and the net transaction total. Extra wording or representative details become mandatory when the transaction uses self-billing, reverse charge, an exemption, zero rating, cash accounting, or a margin scheme.

Those are the core Latvia VAT invoice requirements, but two nearby rules matter immediately. Latvia's Value Added Tax Law allows a simplified invoice for an inland transaction below EUR 150 excluding VAT and generally requires an invoice within 15 days of the transaction or receipt of an advance. The table below maps the full-invoice requirements in Section 125 to the data a finance team should be able to retrieve and validate.

Field or condition	What the full VAT invoice must show	Capture and review note
Issue date	The date the invoice was issued	Preserve it separately from the supply date and payment due date.
Invoice number	A sequence number in one or more series that uniquely identifies the invoice	Retain the complete value, including any series prefix, leading zeros, or suffix.
Supplier identity	Legal-person name and legal address, or the natural person's name and declared residence	Match the identity to the supplier master record rather than relying on a trading name alone.
Supplier VAT number	Registration number in Latvia's State Revenue Service VAT register	Capture it as a tax identifier, not as an ordinary company-registration field.
Customer identity	Legal-person name and legal address, or the natural person's name and declared residence	A full invoice requires both the name and address.
Customer VAT number	Latvian or other EU Member State VAT number, when one has been assigned	Treat this as conditional on the customer's registration status, but verify it carefully for cross-border treatment.
Supply or advance date	The supply date when it differs from the issue date, or the known date an advance was received when that also differs	Do not substitute a payment due date. The tax-point date drives timing and currency checks.
Goods or services	Name or description, quantity, and unit of measurement for the goods or services	Retain line-level text and quantities. A total alone cannot support this requirement.
Unit price	Price per unit excluding VAT	Keep the unit price distinct from the line total.
Discounts	Discounts not already deducted from the unit value	Preserve the undiscounted reduction where it appears separately.
VAT rate	The rate applied to the transaction	Separate different rates and exempt supplies rather than storing one document-level rate.
VAT amount	The calculated VAT	Preserve the stated amount as well as any independently recalculated value used in validation.
Net transaction total	Total amount excluding VAT to which VAT or an exemption applies	This is the taxable or exempt base, not the gross amount payable.
Self-billing	The prescribed self-billing indication when the customer issues the invoice under Section 130	Required only when the agreed self-billing procedure actually applies.
Zero rate or exemption	The relevant Latvian-law section, EU VAT Directive article, or another reference establishing the legal basis	Store the reference alongside the rate or exemption code.
Reverse charge	The prescribed reverse-charge indication when the customer is liable for VAT	A customer VAT number alone does not replace the wording.
New means of transport	An indication that the supply concerns a new means of transport and the information supporting that status	The supporting particulars depend on the vehicle, vessel, or aircraft.
Cash accounting	The prescribed cash-accounting indication when the Section 137 procedure applies	Do not add it as standard payment wording.
Margin schemes	The applicable travel-agent, second-hand-goods, works-of-art, or collectors'-items-and-antiques margin-scheme indication	Preserve the specific scheme, not a generic margin label.
Other special provisions	The applicable Latvian-law section or EU VAT Directive article for the special regimes named in Section 125	Review against the transaction's legal treatment rather than guessing from the supplier sector.
Authorised person	That person's name, address, and Latvian VAT registration number when the authorised person is responsible for VAT	Capture the representative separately from the supplier.
Fiscal representative	The fiscal representative's name, address, and Latvian or other EU VAT number when responsible for VAT	This is conditional but material for represented non-resident suppliers.

The State Revenue Service's current VAT guidance states that Latvia's standard rate is 21%. Reduced rates and the zero rate apply only to qualifying supplies, so the invoice must show the rate actually used. When an invoice combines supplies taxed at different rates or includes an exempt supply, each category's value must be stated separately.

An absent field is a prompt to investigate the transaction, not proof by itself that input VAT must always be denied. Some entries are conditional, and other sections of the law modify the full list for specific invoice types or cross-border arrangements.

There is also a source-language limitation. Likumi.lv warns that its English translation is valid only through 2024 and does not include later amendments. For a live filing position, assessment, or dispute, check the current consolidated Latvian text or obtain current guidance from VID rather than relying on the English translation alone.

When a simplified invoice or correction is enough

Section 126 reduces the field set for certain low-value domestic transactions. A registered taxable person may use a simplified tax invoice when an inland transaction is less than EUR 150 excluding VAT. The wording matters: a net value of exactly EUR 150 does not fall below the threshold.

VAT registration does not bar a supplier from using this rule. In fact, the statutory permission is expressly given to a registered taxable person. What changes is the amount and transaction type, not whether the issuer is VAT registered.

Data element	Full invoice	Simplified invoice below EUR 150 excluding VAT
Issue date	Required	Required
Unique invoice sequence number	Required	Not included in Section 126's minimum list
Supplier name, address, and Latvian VAT number	Required	Required
Customer name, address, and Latvian or other EU VAT number	Required when applicable under the full rules	Required under the simplified-invoice list
Separate supply or advance date	Required when known and different from issue date	Not included in the simplified minimum
Goods or service details	Description, quantity, and unit of measurement	Name or type and quantity
Price and transaction total	Unit price excluding VAT, separate discounts, and net transaction total	Price and total, each shown either including or excluding VAT
VAT rate and calculated VAT	Required	Required
Conditional wording and representative details	Required when the relevant condition applies	Not part of Section 126's basic field list, but the underlying VAT treatment still needs case-specific review

A still narrower cashier's-check exception applies below EUR 30 excluding VAT. A check or similar document may serve as a simplified invoice without the customer's name, address, and VAT number. This is not a general exemption from all simplified-invoice fields.

There is a separate supporting-document route. If a cashier's check or similar document lacks the prescribed simplified-invoice information, it may be accompanied by a source document that identifies the check by date and number and supplies the required details. The two records need to remain linked; keeping only one can destroy the evidence that makes the combination work.

Corrections follow the same principle of traceability. Any document that amends an initial invoice and clearly refers to it can be treated as equivalent to an invoice when the statutory requirements are met. Section 126 specifically permits a simplified correcting invoice that records the original invoice's issue date and identification number and identifies the data being changed.

Latvian law therefore does not require every correction to follow one universal credit-note title or template. The material controls are an unambiguous link to the original invoice, a clear statement of the amendment, and retention of both records so the change can be reconstructed.

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Deadlines, numbering, VAT rates, and foreign currency

The general Latvia invoice issue deadline is 15 days from the transaction or receipt of an advance payment. This is an elapsed-time rule tied to the transaction or advance, not a blanket permission to wait until the fifteenth day of the next month.

The following-month deadline applies to specified EU transactions. An invoice must be issued no later than the fifteenth day of the month following the month in which either of these occurs:

• an intra-EU supply of goods; or

• a service covered by Section 19(1) for which the customer is liable for VAT, including an advance received for that service.

Other statutory exceptions cover narrower situations such as auctioned property, transport directly connected with exports, and supplies of new means of transport. A business handling one of those cases should test the specific deadline rather than extending the general rule by analogy.

Invoice numbers can use more than one series

Each full tax invoice needs a sequence number that uniquely identifies it within one or more series. That permits a controlled numbering design with separate series, provided the complete number remains unique and the series logic is documented.

A cancelled invoice must remain in the accounts to explain the break in sequence. Deleting it because no supply ultimately occurred can turn an ordinary cancellation into an unexplained gap during audit. Keep its identifier, cancellation status, and connection to any replacement invoice.

Separate different VAT treatments

Latvia's current standard VAT rate is 21%, while reduced rates, a zero rate, or exemption can apply when the underlying supply qualifies. The invoice should record the treatment actually used, not merely a default rate from the supplier or customer master data.

If one invoice includes transactions taxed at different rates, or combines taxable and exempt transactions, their values must be presented separately. In processing terms, a single gross total and one document-level VAT rate are not enough; the rate, taxable base, and VAT amount need to remain associated with the relevant lines or groups.

VAT on a foreign-currency invoice must be in euros

Latvian invoices may state their sums in any currency. The VAT payable or adjusted, however, must be expressed in euros using the accounting exchange rate in effect at the beginning of the transaction day. When the invoice relates to an advance payment, use the rate in effect at the beginning of the day the advance was received.

For a Latvia foreign currency VAT invoice, preserve the original currency amounts, the euro VAT amount, the exchange rate, and the date that determined that rate. Recalculating later with a month-end rate or the rate on the invoice issue date can produce a different result when the transaction or advance occurred earlier.

Wording and details required in special VAT cases

Conditional invoice text should follow the legal treatment of the supply. It is not boilerplate to add to every Latvian invoice, and a VAT number or tax code elsewhere on the document does not necessarily replace the prescribed indication.

Transaction condition	Additional invoice entry
Customer issues the invoice under an agreed self-billing arrangement	self-billing
Customer is responsible for paying the VAT	reverse charge
Supply is zero-rated or exempt	The applicable Latvian VAT Law section, corresponding article of Council Directive 2006/112/EC, or another reference establishing the legal basis
Section 137 payment and input-tax deduction procedure applies	cash accounting
Travel-agent margin scheme applies	Margin scheme - Travel agents
Margin scheme applies to second-hand goods	Margin scheme - Second-hand goods
Margin scheme applies to works of art	Margin scheme - Works of art
Margin scheme applies to collectors' items or antiques	Margin scheme - Collector's items and antiques
New means of transport is supplied	An indication that the vehicle, vessel, or aircraft is new, plus the facts supporting its status under Section 1(9)
Another special provision listed in Section 125 applies	A reference to the applicable Latvian VAT Law section or corresponding VAT Directive article
An authorised person is responsible for VAT	The person's Latvian VAT number, name, and legal address or declared residence
A fiscal representative is responsible for VAT	The representative's Latvian or other EU VAT number, name, and legal address or declared residence

Self-billing also depends on more than those two words. The customer may issue the invoice on the supplier's behalf only where the parties have a prior agreement and the supplier applies an invoice-acceptance procedure. The wording identifies the arrangement; it does not create one.

For Latvia reverse charge invoice wording, use reverse charge when the recipient is liable for the tax. Do not infer that treatment from the fact that both parties have VAT numbers. The place-of-supply rule, type of transaction, and the applicable domestic or EU reverse-charge provision determine who accounts for VAT.

Zero rating and exemption also need careful separation. Both require a legal reference on the invoice, but they are not the same tax result. Record the cited basis with the relevant line or transaction so a reviewer can see why VAT was not charged.

The other special-provision reference covers only a defined set of statutory regimes, including those addressed in Sections 135, 139, 140.2, 140.4, 144, and 145. A generic note such as "special VAT applies" is weaker than the section or EU-law reference the invoice rule asks for.

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Storage, electronic form, and audit-ready records

Latvian VAT controls continue after an invoice is issued. The taxable person must preserve authenticity of origin, integrity of content, and legibility throughout the storage period. The law leaves the method to the business, provided it can establish a reliable audit trail between the invoice and the underlying transaction.

That flexibility matters for electronic records. An invoice issued and received electronically is an electronic invoice, and its controls may use a secure electronic signature, electronic data interchange, or another method that meets the audit-trail requirement. A paper invoice may also be converted and retained electronically under the applicable accounting rules. None of those provisions makes one transmission technology universally mandatory for every VAT invoice.

The general Latvia invoice retention period is five years from the invoice issue date for both issued and received invoices. Where an input-tax adjustment under Section 102 continues beyond that period, keep the invoice until the adjustment period ends. Electronic storage outside Latvia is permitted when the relevant data remains fully accessible online.

An audit-ready record should preserve more than a rendered PDF:

• the original supplier, customer, date, number, line, net, rate, and VAT values;

• links between the original invoice and every correction or replacement;

• the number-series history, including cancelled invoices retained to explain gaps;

• the legal wording, VAT treatment, and representative details applicable to the transaction;

• the original currency values, euro VAT amount, exchange rate, and rate date for a foreign-currency invoice; and

• evidence connecting the invoice to the supply, advance, contract, receipt, or other underlying business event.

Structured e-invoicing is a separate question from whether an invoice contains the mandatory VAT fields. Latvia's broader domestic B2B structured-invoice requirement is scheduled to start on 1 January 2028; the phased public-sector and reporting rules are covered in the guide to Latvia's structured e-invoicing mandate. Until and after that date, the content, timing, and retention rules above remain distinct compliance controls.

Invoice-register and audit-data reporting are another separate layer. A neighbouring system such as Lithuania's i.SAF invoice-register requirements illustrates the distinction: a document can contain the right invoice fields while its data still needs to be represented correctly in a tax-authority register. Keeping the original fields structured and traceable supports both invoice review and any downstream reporting obligation without treating the two rules as interchangeable.