Artist VAT: invoicing at the right rate
The reference points for what to put on your invoices: base exemption, reduced rate, thresholds.
Understand your regime in three questions
Three points are enough to know where you stand. For a decision, confirm with your accountant.
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1
Are you below the threshold?
Below the exemption threshold, you do not charge VAT. Your invoices carry the exemption notice and you have no VAT to remit.
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2
Which rate on your works?
If you charge VAT, the sale of an original work by its author falls under the reduced rate of 5.5%. Reproductions stay at the standard rate of 20%.
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3
Have you exceeded the threshold?
A tolerance threshold gives you margin the first time. Beyond that, VAT applies mid-year: a point to watch with your accountant.
Thresholds and rates change over time. For your exact situation, rely on your accountant or tax office rather than a single remembered figure.
What your workspace prepares
You enter your regime once. MycreArt uses it on every document.
Calculated from your profile
Set your regime in your profile. MycreArt uses the chosen rate and calculates the pre-tax amount, VAT and total on each invoice.
Notices in the right place
The exemption notice or the VAT breakdown shows according to the regime in force at the time of sale. An invoice already issued keeps its original regime.
Factur-X data
Sale in France with a SIRET: the rates are embedded in the Factur-X format, readable by accounting software, with no retyping.
A reference, not advice
MycreArt formats your documents. Tax advice stays the job of your accountant or tax office.
The points that deserve your attention
A few situations where the right reflex saves you a visible mistake.
Originals and reproductions on one invoice
MycreArt applies a single rate, the one in your profile. If you sell both originals (5.5%) and reproductions (20%), keep them clearly separate when invoicing.
The month you cross the threshold
Exceeding the tolerance threshold moves you into VAT mid-year. Update your regime in your profile so the following invoices are correct.
A sale to another EU country
Under the VAT exemption, your invoice carries the exemption notice, in France as in the EU — with one threshold on the consumer side: beyond €10,000 per year of goods shipped to EU consumers, the buyer's country VAT applies (OSS scheme). If you charge VAT, a sale to a VAT-registered business in the EU falls under the reverse charge — a regime MycreArt does not generate: prepare that invoice with your accountant.
Keeping your invoices accessible
Your documents stay in your workspace, downloadable at any time. Useful when the tax office or your accountant asks for them.
This guide is for information only. To settle a specific case, contact your accountant or the business tax office.
Your questions about VAT
As long as your turnover stays below the VAT exemption threshold, you do not charge VAT. Your invoices then carry the notice 'VAT not applicable, art. 293 B of the CGI'.
The sale of an original work by its author falls under the reduced rate of 5.5%. This covers paintings, drawings, engravings, sculptures, tapestries and limited-edition art photographs.
A tolerance threshold gives you margin the first time. Beyond that, you lose the exemption mid-year and VAT becomes applicable. Contact your tax office for the next steps.
No. Reproductions (unlimited prints, posters, derivative products) fall under the standard rate of 20%. Only original works sold by their author benefit from the reduced rate of 5.5%.
It depends on your regime. Under the VAT exemption, your MycreArt invoice works as is, with the exemption notice. If you charge VAT, the sale is reverse-charged by the buyer: invoice without VAT, appropriate notice and the buyer's intra-EU VAT number — a regime MycreArt does not generate, to prepare with your accountant.
No. MycreArt applies the rate you set and formats your invoices. For any question about your regime, contact an accountant or the business tax office.
Related guides
VAT fits into your sales flow. Here are the neighboring steps.
Sales invoice
The information to put on an artwork invoice, including the VAT rate.
Electronic invoicing
The Factur-X format and what changes for your invoices.
Sales tracking
Find each sale, its invoice and its status in one place.
Sell directly
Collect payment for a work directly, document included.
Stripe payments
Enable online payment collection for your sales.
Certificate of authenticity
Attach a verifiable certificate to a sold artwork.
Consistent VAT notices, without thinking about it
Set your regime once. MycreArt handles it on every invoice.