---
oa_review_kit: v1
guide_slug: latvia-vat-return
guide_version: latvia-vat-return@2026-04-13T17:54:31.836Z
archetype: vat_gst
---

# Review kit: Latvia VAT Return

Thank you for reviewing this Guide. This kit is one file with three parts: how
to use it, an interview prompt for your AI, and the Guide itself.

## How to use this kit (3 steps, about 15 minutes)

1. Open the AI you already use (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, anything that reads
   markdown) and paste in everything from "INTERVIEW PROMPT" below, including
   the Guide at the end.
2. Your AI interviews you like a colleague, one question at a time. Just talk:
   war stories, walk-throughs, the mistakes you catch. No writing required.
3. Your AI writes your answers up as a single markdown file. Hand it back at
   openaccountants.com/skills/latvia-vat-return/handback (also linked from the Guide
   page: "Hand back your file"). What you added is published under your name
   and credential.

If your AI cannot produce the exact output format, hand back whatever you have:
a revised Guide file, a worksheet, or plain notes. We take those too, and a
person reviews them by hand. The format below is the one we can apply straight
away.

---

# INTERVIEW PROMPT (paste from here down into your AI)

You are interviewing a practising accountant about how they actually do the
work covered by the attached Guide ("Latvia VAT Return", slug `latvia-vat-return`).
Interview them like a colleague doing a handover. Do not lecture. Ask ONE
question at a time and wait for the answer. Chase war stories and specifics:
what kind of client, which portal step, how big the penalty was.

The rates, thresholds, and citations are our job; we refresh those from primary
sources. Capture ONLY what is NOT derivable from law:

- order of operations, and what a wrong order corrupts
- what to ask a client before computing anything
- what to assume when a fact is unknown, and how it gets flagged
- the most-missed traps, with penalty size and who falls in
- how the portal or filing channel actually behaves
- what has to reconcile before anyone signs
- when to refuse the work and hand it to a human specialist

If the accountant corrects a rate, threshold, or deadline in the Guide along
the way, record it in the FACT CORRECTIONS table, but do not steer the
interview toward numbers.

## Questions to work through

Ask these in order, one at a time. Skip any the accountant has already covered;
follow up where a story has specifics worth pinning down. Each question is
tagged with the method slot(s) it feeds.

1. [sequence] Walk me through the last VAT return you prepared, start to finish. What did you open first, and why that order?
2. [intake_questions] [evidence] A new client hands you nothing but a bank statement. What do you do before you'll classify a single line?
3. [pattern_library] Which bank-statement line gets misclassified most often in your experience? What does it look like and where should it actually go?
4. [scope_gate] Tell me about a client you refused or referred out. What about their VAT situation made you stop?
5. [trap] When you review a return someone else drafted, what mistake do you catch most often?
6. [conservative_default] When you can't tell if a sale is domestic or cross-border, what do you assume, and how do you mark it?
7. [cross_check] Before you sign, what has to reconcile with what, and how close is close enough?
8. [filing_mechanics] Walk me through filing on the actual portal. What surprises first-timers: the order of forms, what locks, what you can't undo?
9. [judgment_rule] Ever had a client on a simplified scheme where the "simplification" made things worse? How do you decide who belongs on it?
10. [trap] What's the real penalty story you tell clients, the one that actually happened?
11. [evidence] Which claims will you draft from a bank statement but never file without the underlying paper?
12. [unsettled_law] Anything in VAT right now you deliberately won't finalise because the rules are moving?

## Method slots (for tagging the write-up)

- `scope_gate` (Scope gate and refusals): when to stop and send the client to a human
- `sequence` (Order of operations): what order to do things in, and what a wrong order corrupts
- `intake_questions` (Client intake questions): what to ask a client before computing
- `evidence` (Documents and evidence): which documents to insist on, and what is draft-grade vs file-grade
- `judgment_rule` (Judgment rules): how a practitioner actually picks when the law allows two routes
- `conservative_default` (Conservative defaults): what to assume when a fact is unknowable at draft time
- `trap` (Traps and most-missed items): the mistakes everyone makes, what they cost, and who falls in
- `filing_mechanics` (Portal and filing mechanics): how submission actually works: channel, order, what locks
- `cross_check` (Cross-checks before signing): what has to reconcile with what before delivery, and how close is close enough
- `pattern_library` (Pattern library): how messy real-world data (bank lines, payout platforms) maps to tax categories
- `edge_case` (Edge-case playbook): the client situations that change the method, not just the numbers
- `unsettled_law` (Unsettled-law flags): what not to finalise right now, and why
- `handback_protocol` (Hand-back protocol): what the finished working paper contains and who reviews it

## Output format: oa-handback v1

When the interview is done, write the answers up as ONE markdown file in
exactly this shape. Fill in the reviewer's real name, credential, and email
(ask for them at the end if they have not come up). Every method block gets a
`### [method:<slot>]` heading where `<slot>` is one of the 13 slot ids
above. Keep `guide_slug` and `guide_version` exactly as given. Omit any
section the interview produced nothing for, but keep the headings that remain
exactly as shown. The `fact_key` column may be left blank when unknown.

```markdown
---
oa_handback: v1
guide_slug: latvia-vat-return
guide_version: latvia-vat-return@2026-04-13T17:54:31.836Z
reviewer_name: <full name>
reviewer_credential: <credential>        # free text: CPA, EA, ACCA, Steuerberater...
reviewer_email: <email>
verdict: <approve | corrections | unable>
---

## METHOD

### [method:filing_mechanics] <short title for this block>
<prose: the method block, written in second person, imperative>

### [method:intake_questions] <short title for this block>
- <question 1>
- ...

## FACT CORRECTIONS
| fact_key | current | correct | source |
|---|---|---|---|
| <fact key if known, else blank> | <value in the Guide> | <correct value> | <cite> |

## FLAGS
- [unsettled] <what not to finalise, and why>
- [refer] <situations to escalate to a human>

## NOTES
<anything that did not fit a method slot or a fact correction>
```

If for any reason you cannot produce this exact format, output the accountant's
corrections and methods as clear plain notes instead. The hand-back page
accepts plain notes and revised Guide files too; this format is an
optimization, never a gate.

---

# THE GUIDE UNDER REVIEW

<!-- guide: latvia-vat-return · version: latvia-vat-return@2026-04-13T17:54:31.836Z -->

---
name: latvia-vat-return
description: Use this skill whenever asked to prepare, review, or classify transactions for a Latvian VAT return (PVN deklaracija / PVN 1 form) for any client. Trigger on phrases like "prepare VAT return", "Latvian VAT", "PVN return", "PVN1", "pievienotas vertibas nodoklis", or any request involving Latvia VAT filing. This skill covers standard PVN-registered businesses only. MUST be loaded alongside BOTH vat-workflow-base and eu-vat-directive companion skills. ALWAYS read this skill before touching any Latvia VAT work.
jurisdiction: LV
domain: vat-gst
tax_year: 2025
---

# latvia-vat-return

## Latvia PVN Return Skill (PVN 1) v2.0

## Section 1 — Quick reference

Read this whole section before classifying anything. The workflow runbook is in `vat-workflow-base` Section 1. The EU directive content is in `eu-vat-directive`.

**Quick reference table**

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Country | Latvia (Latvija) |
| Standard rate | 21% |
| Reduced rates | 12% (food, pharmaceuticals, hotel accommodation, domestic heating, passenger transport, books/periodicals), 5% (locally produced fruits/vegetables — seasonal) |
| Zero rate | Exports, intra-EU B2B supplies |
| Return form | PVN deklaracija (PVN 1) |
| Filing portal | https://eds.vid.gov.lv (EDS) |
| Authority | Valsts ienemumu dienests (VID) |
| Currency | EUR |
| Filing frequency | Monthly (intra-EU or turnover > EUR 50,000), quarterly (EUR 14,228-50,000), bi-annual (< EUR 14,228) |
| Deadline | 20th of month following period |
| Companion skill (workflow) | vat-workflow-base v0.1+ |
| Companion skill (EU directive) | eu-vat-directive v0.1+ |
| Contributor | Open Accountants Skills Registry |
| Validated by | Pending — requires validation by licensed Latvian accountant |
| Validation date | Pending |

**Conservative defaults**

| Ambiguity | Default |
| --- | --- |
| Unknown rate on a sale | 21% |
| Unknown PVN status of a purchase | Not deductible |
| Unknown counterparty country | Domestic Latvia |
| Unknown B2B vs B2C for EU customer | B2C, charge 21% |
| Unknown business-use proportion | 0% recovery |
| Unknown blocked-input status | Blocked |

**Red flag thresholds**

| Threshold | Value |
| --- | --- |
| HIGH single-transaction size | EUR 3,000 |
| HIGH tax-delta on a single conservative default | EUR 200 |
| MEDIUM counterparty concentration | >40% |
| MEDIUM conservative-default count | >4 |
| LOW absolute net PVN position | EUR 5,000 |

## Section 2 — Required inputs and refusal catalogue

### Required inputs

- **Minimum viable** — bank statement for the period. Acceptable from: Swedbank Latvia, SEB banka, Citadele, Luminor, BlueOrange, or any other.
- **Recommended** — sales/purchase invoices, VAT number (LV + 11 digits).
- **Ideal** — complete invoice register, prior PVN 1.

### Latvia-specific refusal catalogue (supplements eu-vat-directive R-EU-1 through R-EU-12)

- **R-LV-1 — Micro-enterprise tax regime** — Trigger: client is on micro-enterprise tax. Message: "Micro-enterprise taxpayers may have different PVN obligations. Flag for reviewer."  _(R-LV-1)_
- **R-LV-2 — Partial exemption** — Trigger: mixed taxable/exempt. Message: "Pro-rata required. Flag for reviewer."  _(R-LV-2)_
- **R-LV-3 — Timber/construction domestic reverse charge** — Trigger: timber or construction services. Message: "Domestic reverse charge applies for timber and construction. Specialist analysis required."  _(R-LV-3)_

## Section 3 — Supplier pattern library

### 3.1 Latvian banks (fees exempt — exclude)

**3.1 Latvian banks (fees exempt — exclude)**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| SWEDBANK, SEB, CITADELE, LUMINOR | EXCLUDE for fees | Financial service exempt |
| PROCENTI, INTEREST | EXCLUDE | Interest exempt |

### 3.2 Government (exclude)

**3.2 Government (exclude)**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| VID, VALSTS IENEMUMU DIENESTS | EXCLUDE | Tax payment |
| VSAA | EXCLUDE | Social security |
| UZNEMUMU REGISTRS | EXCLUDE | Company registration |

### 3.3 Utilities

**3.3 Utilities**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| LATVENERGO, SADALES TIKLS | Domestic 21% | Electricity |
| LATVIJAS GAZE, ENERĢIJAS PUBLISKAIS TIRGOTĀJS | Domestic 21% | Gas/heating — check 12% for domestic heating |
| LMT, TELE2, BITE | Domestic 21% | Telecoms |

### 3.4 SaaS — EU (reverse charge)

**3.4 SaaS — EU (reverse charge)**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| GOOGLE IRELAND, MICROSOFT IRELAND, ADOBE IRELAND | EU reverse charge | Intra-EU services |
| SPOTIFY AB (SE), ATLASSIAN (NL) | EU reverse charge | Same |

### 3.5 SaaS — non-EU (reverse charge)

**3.5 SaaS — non-EU (reverse charge)**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| NOTION, ANTHROPIC, OPENAI, FIGMA, CANVA | Non-EU reverse charge |  |
| GITHUB (US) | Non-EU reverse charge | Check if billed by IE entity |

### 3.6 Food and entertainment (blocked)

**3.6 Food and entertainment (blocked)**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| RIMI, MAXIMA, LIDL, TOP, MEGO | Default BLOCK | Personal provisioning |
| RESTORĀNS, KAFEJNĪCA | Default BLOCK | Entertainment — 60% cap on representation |

### 3.7 Insurance (exempt)

**3.7 Insurance (exempt)**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BALTA, BTA, IF APDROŠINĀŠANA | EXCLUDE | Insurance exempt |

### 3.8 Professional services

**3.8 Professional services**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| ZVĒRINĀTAIS REVIDENTS, AUDITORS | Domestic 21% |  |
| ADVOKĀTS, JURISTA BIROJS | Domestic 21% |  |
| NOTĀRS | Domestic 21% |  |

### 3.9 Internal transfers

**3.9 Internal transfers**

| Pattern | Treatment | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| IEKŠĒJAIS PĀRSKAITĪJUMS | EXCLUDE |  |
| ALGA, DARBA SAMAKSA | EXCLUDE | Salary |

## Section 4 — Worked examples

### Example 1 — Non-EU SaaS reverse charge

**Input:** `NOTION LABS INC ; DEBIT ; EUR 14.68`
**Treatment:** Non-EU reverse charge. Output and input PVN at 21%. Net zero.

### Example 2 — EU service reverse charge (Google Ads)

**Input:** `GOOGLE IRELAND LIMITED ; DEBIT ; EUR 850.00`
**Treatment:** EU reverse charge. Intra-EU services. Output and input PVN at 21%.

### Example 3 — Entertainment (representation — 60% cap)

**Input:** `RESTORĀNS VINCENTS ; DEBIT ; EUR 220`
**Treatment:** Representation expenses have 60% PVN recovery cap in Latvia. Flag for reviewer. Conservative default: 0%.

### Example 4 — Capital goods

**Input:** `DELL TECHNOLOGIES ; DEBIT ; EUR 1,595`
**Treatment:** Capital goods. Input PVN at 21%.

### Example 5 — EU B2B service sale

**Input:** `STUDIO KREBS GMBH (DE) ; CREDIT ; EUR 3,500`
**Treatment:** B2B service to EU customer. Zero-rated. Verify DE USt-IdNr via VIES.

### Example 6 — Motor vehicle, partial block

**Input:** `SIA AUTOCENTRS ; DEBIT ; car lease ; EUR 650`
**Treatment:** Latvia limits PVN recovery on passenger vehicles. Conservative default: 0%. Flag for reviewer.

## Section 5 — Tier 1 classification rules (compressed)

### 5.1 Standard rate 21%

- **Unknown rate on a sale** — 21%

### 5.2 Reduced rate 12%

- **Reduced rate 12%** — 12% (Food products, pharmaceuticals, hotel accommodation, domestic heating, passenger transport, books/periodicals.)

### 5.3 Reduced rate 5%

- **Reduced rate 5%** — 5% (Locally produced seasonal fruits and vegetables.)

### 5.4 Zero rate

- **Zero rate** — 0% (Exports, intra-EU B2B supplies (goods and services).)

### 5.5 Exempt without credit

- **Exempt without credit** — Financial services, insurance, medical, education, residential rental, postal universal service.

### 5.6 Reverse charge — EU services

- **Reverse charge — EU services** — Standard EU reverse charge per eu-vat-directive.

### 5.7 Reverse charge — non-EU services

- **Reverse charge — non-EU services** — Self-assess at 21%.

### 5.8 Domestic reverse charge

- **Domestic reverse charge** — Timber, scrap metal, construction services — domestic reverse charge.

### 5.9 Blocked input PVN

- **Blocked input PVN** — Entertainment (above 60% representation cap), passenger vehicles (limited recovery), personal use.

## Section 6 — Tier 2 catalogue (compressed)

### 6.1 Vehicle costs

- **Vehicle costs** — Default: 0%. Question: "Confirm vehicle type and business-use proportion."

### 6.2 Representation expenses

- **Representation expenses** — Default: 0%. Question: "60% cap applies for documented business representation. Confirm."

### 6.3 Timber/construction reverse charge

- **Timber/construction reverse charge** — Default: flag. Question: "Confirm if domestic reverse charge applies."

### 6.4 Mixed-use expenses

- **Mixed-use expenses** — Default: 0%. Question: "Business proportion?"

## Section 7 — Excel working paper template

Standard layout. Column H accepts PVN 1 row codes.

## Section 8 — Bank statement reading guide

**Format:** Swedbank/SEB CSV, DD.MM.YYYY, EUR. **Language:** Latvian or English.
**Internal transfers:** "Iekšējais pārskaitījums". Exclude.

## Section 9 — Onboarding fallback

### 9.1 PVN number

- **PVN number** — Fallback: "What is your PVN number? (LV + 11 digits)"

### 9.2 Filing frequency

- **Filing frequency** — Inference: from turnover. Fallback: "Monthly, quarterly, or bi-annual?"

### 9.3 Credit brought forward

- **Credit brought forward** — Always ask.

## Section 10 — Reference material

### Sources

1. Pievienotas vertibas nodokla likums (PVN likums) — Latvian VAT Act
2. EU VAT Directive 2006/112/EC
3. VID EDS portal — https://eds.vid.gov.lv

### Change log

- **v2.0 (April 2026):** Full rewrite to 10-section architecture with companion skill references.
- **v1.0-draft:** Initial skill.

## Disclaimer

This skill and its outputs are provided for informational and computational purposes only and do not constitute tax, legal, or financial advice. Open Accountants and its contributors accept no liability for any errors, omissions, or outcomes arising from the use of this skill. All outputs must be reviewed and signed off by a qualified professional (such as a CPA, EA, tax attorney, or equivalent licensed practitioner in your jurisdiction) before filing or acting upon.

The most up-to-date, verified version of this skill is maintained at [openaccountants.com](https://openaccountants.com). Log in to access the latest version, request a professional review from a licensed accountant, and track updates as tax law changes.