What is Intrastat?

  • Last update: 27.03.2024
  • Published: 22.10.2020
  • Read in: 3 min

Regular trade within the European Union does not differ a lot from normal national transactions because there are no customs duties or additional obligations.

However, it may happen that if you exceed certain thresholds for sales or purchases with contractors from other Community countries, you will be required to submit Intrastat declarations.

what is Intrastat?

What is Intrastat?

Intrastat is the European statistical system through which the European Union collects information on intra-Community trade in goods.

The system has been operating since 1993 and was introduced in Poland with our accession to the EU on May 1, 2004. After the customs union was established, the European Union statistics have been deprived of valuable data on trade exchange between European countries. That is why Intrastat was created.

An analogous system, operating in parallel, is Extrastat, which collects information on trade exchange between European Union countries and the so-called third countries.

Who has to make Intrastat declarations?

Not every entrepreneur who trades with other European Union countries has to submit Intrastat declarations. Such an obligation rests on active VAT payers when the established thresholds are exceeded.

In each EU country, the thresholds are set individually and updated every year. It means that if you are registered as a VAT payer in different countries, you have to watch these thresholds in each of them.

In Poland the thresholds are set by the Central Statistical Office and currently amount to:

  1. Basic threshold:
    • For exports – PLN 2,000,000
    • For imports – PLN 4,000,000
  2. Detailed threshold:
    • For exports – PLN 108,000,000
    • For imports – PLN 65,000,000

How does the basic threshold differ from the detailed one? After exceeding the detailed threshold, the trader must provide more detailed transaction data in the Intrastat declaration. You can always check the current thresholds for Poland on the GUS website. Intrastat thresholds for all EU countries for 2020 are as follows:

Country Basic export threshold Basic import treshold
Austria 750 000 EUR 750 000 EUR
Belgium 1 000 000 EUR 1 500 000 EUR
Bulgaria 290 000 BGN 470 000 BGN
Croatia
Cyprus 55 000 EUR 180 000 EUR
Czech Republic 12 000 000 CZK 12 000 000 CZK
Denmark 5 200 000 DKK 6 900 000 DKK
Estonia 130 000 EUR 230 000 EUR
Finland 600 000 EUR 600 000 EUR
France 460 000 EUR
Greece 90 000 EUR 150 000 EUR
Spain
The Netherlands 800 000 EUR 1 000 000 EUR
Ireland 635 000 EUR 500 000 EUR
Lithuania 120 000 EUR 250 000 EUR
Latvia 120 000 EUR 220 000 EUR
Malta
Germany 500 000 EUR 800 000 EUR
Poland 2 000 000 PLN 4 000 000 PLN
Portugal 250 000 EUR 350 000 EUR
Romania 900 000 RON 900 000 RON
Slovakia
Slovenia 220 000 EUR 140 000 EUR
Sweden 4 500 000 SEK 9 000 000 000 SEK
Hungary 100 000 000 000 HUF 170 000 000 000 HUF
Great Britain 250 000 GBP 1 500 000 GBP
Italy

How does the Intrastat declaration look like?

The Intrastat declaration consists of a total of 22 fields, but only 18 of them are required for the basic threshold. All information that is given in the declaration:

  1. Reporting period
  2. Type of declaration
  3. Customs Chamber Code
  4. Consignee (for import) or consignor (for export)
  5. Representative
  6. Total invoice value
  7. Total statistical value (only at detailed threshold)
  8. Total number of items
  9. Item number
  10. Item description
  11. Country of dispatch or destination code
  12. Code of delivery conditions (only at the detailed threshold)
  13. Transaction type code
  14. Item code
  15. Type of transport code (only at detailed threshold)
  16. Country of origin code
  17. Net weight
  18. Quantity in the supplementary measurement unit
  19. Invoice value
  20. Statistical value (only at detailed threshold)
  21. Person filling in
  22. Counterparty’s VAT identification number

When and how to make Intrastat declarations?

In Poland, the Customs Chamber in Szczecin collects Intrastat declarations. Declarations are made in electronic form, in the form of XML files. To do so, you need a PUESC account and an electronic signature.

The reporting period for Intrastat is a calendar month, during which the trader traded with other European Union countries. Declarations should always be submitted by the 10th day of the month following the month to which the declaration relates.

You do not know how to prepare and submit an Intrastat declaration or do not want to waste time on it? >> Contact us

Make also sure to check what is EORI number and how to get it.

Tomasz Połeć Tomasz is a co-founder of Taxology and a tax advisor (license No. 12104), with 15+ years of experience in Polish and international consulting firms. Leveraging his expertise from numerous tax reviews and audits, he offers proficient tax advisory services to e-commerce companies. He specializes in advising on VAT and CIT settlements in e-commerce and logistics.