Invoicing foreign clients from Slovakia: EU, Ukraine, the US, and invoices in a foreign currency

A developer with a client in Germany, a translator working for a Ukrainian company, a designer for a US start-up: invoicing abroad is routine for many Slovak sole traders, and especially for foreigners doing business here. The rules differ depending on whether the client is in the EU or outside it, and whether you are a VAT payer.

We focus on the most common case, services to a foreign business, and also cover invoices in a foreign currency, in a foreign language, and what e-invoicing from 2027 means for foreign clients.

First: where the service is supplied

The place of supply decides whether and where a service is taxed. For a service to another business, the place of supply is generally the country where the customer has its seat or place of business. For a service to a consumer, it is the supplier's country.^⁠[1]

§ 16 of the VAT Act sets out exceptions: services connected with real estate, for instance, are taxed where the property is. The Financial Administration gives the example of construction work on real estate in Czechia: its place of supply is not determined by the customer's seat, so a non-VAT payer does not have to issue an invoice under the VAT Act for it (an accounting document, yes).^⁠[1]⁠[2]

How a foreigner sets up a trade is covered in Becoming a sole trader in Slovakia as a foreigner.

An EU client: the reverse charge

For a service to a business in another EU country, the customer pays the VAT in its own country. You put no Slovak VAT on the invoice and add the words "prenesenie daňovej povinnosti" (reverse charge).^⁠[1]⁠[3]

The Financial Administration's example: a non-VAT payer received an advance from an Italian company with a VAT ID on 23 July and supplied translation services on 1 August. She must issue the invoice for the advance by 15 August and for the service by 15 September, both with the words "prenesenie daňovej povinnosti", and include them in the EC sales list.^⁠[2]

Why the customer's VAT ID matters: it shows that the service is bought by a business. Registration under § 7a is covered in VAT registration in Slovakia.

The domestic reverse charge, for example for construction work for another VAT payer, is a different rule, explained in Domestic reverse charge in Slovakia.

A client outside the EU: Ukraine, the US, the UK

For a service to a business established outside the EU, the place of supply is outside Slovakia, so you put no Slovak VAT on the invoice.^⁠[1] You must still issue an invoice:

• a VAT payer within 15 days of supplying the service, or of receiving an advance,^⁠[1]⁠[3]
• a non-VAT payer within 15 days of supplying the service or of receiving an advance.^⁠[2]

The Financial Administration's example: a non-VAT payer received an advance from a Ukrainian company on 30 July and transported goods for it on 10 August. The invoice for the advance is due by 14 August and the invoice for the service by 25 August.^⁠[2]

Neither § 7a registration nor the EC sales list applies to clients outside the EU, because both relate to other Member States.^⁠[1] Whether and what tax the customer pays on the service in its own country is a matter of that country's rules. Exports of goods follow special rules and need customs documents; there it pays to consult a tax adviser.

Invoices in a foreign currency

You can invoice in euros or in another currency. Where payment is requested in a foreign currency, for VAT purposes the tax base is converted into euros at the ECB or National Bank of Slovakia reference rate of the day before the tax point. Alternatively you can use the customs exchange rate if you notify the tax office in writing in advance; the choice then applies for the whole calendar year.^⁠[1]

• VAT is calculated from the tax base converted into euros and rounded to the cent; a VAT payer's invoice states the VAT amount in euros.^⁠[4]⁠[1]
• When the tax base is corrected (with a credit note, for example), the rate used for the original transaction applies.^⁠[1]
• If you keep accounts, you convert a receivable in a foreign currency into euros at the ECB or NBS reference rate of the day before the accounting event.^⁠[5]

Invoices in a foreign language

An invoice may be in English or another language. You only need to provide a Slovak translation when the tax office asks for one for an audit; there is no need to attach it to your invoices.^⁠[1]⁠[6]

E-invoicing and foreign clients

Mandatory e-invoicing from 1 January 2027 covers domestic transactions. When you invoice a foreign person, there is no obligation to issue an e-invoice, because the customer is not a domestic person.^⁠[7] The extension to cross-border trade is expected from 1 July 2030.^⁠[4] More in E-invoicing in Slovakia from 1 January 2027.

Checklist

• Work out the place of supply: a service to a business, to a consumer, or a § 16 exception?
• EU client: verify its VAT ID and add the words "prenesenie daňovej povinnosti".
• Non-VAT payer with an EU client: register under § 7a before supplying the service.
• Meet the deadline: EU within 15 days of the end of the month, outside the EU within 15 days of the supply.
• For a foreign currency, use the ECB or NBS rate of the previous day.
• Be ready to translate a foreign-language invoice into Slovak on request.
• Include services to the EU in the EC sales list.

How vporiadku helps

• The mandatory sentence for each client. Based on the customer's country and VAT ID, and on whether you are a non-VAT payer, a VAT payer or registered under § 7a, vporiadku adds the right wording to the invoice, for example the reverse charge for a service to an EU business. You can edit the text; for a VAT payer's client outside the EU it adds a § 47 exemption sentence, which concerns exports of goods, so adapt it to your supply when you invoice a service.
• VAT ID check. You verify the client's VAT ID in the EU VIES system right in the client's detail.
• Foreign currency. On the Profi plan you invoice in another currency; for currencies the ECB publishes a rate for (USD, GBP, CZK or PLN, for example), vporiadku fills in the ECB rate of the day before the supply, for the others, the Ukrainian hryvnia for example, you enter the rate by hand. If you are a VAT payer invoicing a domestic customer with VAT in a foreign currency, add the VAT amount in euros to the note, because the PDF has no separate line for it yet.
• Invoice language. You can print the invoice in Slovak, Ukrainian, English, Czech, German or Russian, and set a default language for each customer.

You can try invoicing for free and compare the plans in our pricing. What every invoice must contain is summed up in Invoice requirements in Slovakia 2026.