If you run a VAT-registered company, the same task awaits you every month — preparing the VAT return for the NRA together with the sales ledger and the purchase ledger. Accurate VAT ledgers mean correctly charged tax, recognized input VAT and no penalties. In this guide you will see what the VAT return contains, how to build the ledgers step by step, and how to cut out most of the manual work.
What the VAT return is
The VAT return is the monthly report you file with the National Revenue Agency (NRA) declaring the tax you have charged on your sales and the input VAT you are entitled to deduct on your purchases. The difference between the two determines the result for the period — VAT payable or VAT refundable.
The return must be accompanied by two registers:
- The sales ledger — every invoice, debit and credit note you have issued, plus self-charge protocols.
- The purchase ledger — every document received on which you claim input VAT.
For intra-Community supplies to EU businesses, a VIES declaration is filed as well.
Tax period and deadlines
The VAT tax period is the calendar month. The return and the ledgers are due by the 14th of the month following the period — the March return, for example, is due by 14 April. If you owe tax, it must be paid within the same deadline.
Filing is fully electronic — through the NRA portal with a personal identification code (PIK) or a qualified electronic signature (QES). The ledgers are submitted as structured files in the format approved by the NRA.
Step by step: preparing the VAT return
1. Gather every document for the period
Issued invoices, invoices received from suppliers, credit and debit notes, protocols. Every document must be dated within the tax period. This is where the first typical mistake hides — invoices that arrive late and get recorded in the wrong month.
2. Check the details on every invoice
Every VAT invoice must contain the mandatory details under Article 114 of the VAT Act: number and date, supplier and customer details, VAT number, taxable amount, rate and amount of tax. A missing or incorrect detail on an incoming invoice can cost you the right to deduct input VAT.
3. Build the sales ledger
Enter every issued document with its taxable amount and VAT charged, in columns according to the type of supply — taxable at 20%, reduced rate, intra-Community supply, exempt supply or outside the scope of the Act.
4. Build the purchase ledger
Record the documents received, separating purchases with full input VAT deduction, partial deduction and no deduction. Accurate classification here directly affects the amount of tax you will deduct.
5. Calculate the result for the period
VAT charged on sales minus input VAT on purchases gives the result: an amount payable or refundable. That value goes into the VAT return.
6. File with the NRA and pay the tax
Upload the return and the ledger files through the NRA portal and, if tax is due, pay it by the 14th.
Common VAT return mistakes
- Recording an invoice in the wrong tax period.
- Claiming input VAT on a document missing the mandatory details.
- Missed reverse-charge VAT on services received from abroad.
- Manual errors when transferring amounts from the ledgers to the return.
- A forgotten VIES declaration for intra-Community supplies.
Most of these mistakes come from fragmented data — invoices in one file, expenses in another, calculations in a third. This is exactly where a single system helps.
How Finsense simplifies VAT reporting
When you issue invoices and record expenses in one place, the ledgers fill themselves in. Finsense builds the sales ledger and the purchase ledger from your documents, calculates the result for the period and prepares an export in NRA format that you then file through the NRA portal. Finsense does not file the return for you and does not connect to the NRA automatically — final control stays with you and your accountant.
Because issuing VAT invoices and recording incoming documents happen in the same system, every sale and purchase lands automatically in the right ledger and the right period. That removes the manual retyping of amounts and most of the typical mistakes.
Reverse charge and special cases
Not every transaction follows the standard charge-20%-VAT scheme. In some cases the tax is self-charged by the recipient — the so-called reverse charge. The most common examples for a Bulgarian company are:
- Services received from a supplier established in another EU country or outside the EU.
- Intra-Community acquisition of goods from an EU business.
- Certain domestic supplies of goods and services for which the law prescribes a reverse charge (waste, for example).
In these cases you issue a protocol under Article 117 of the VAT Act to self-charge the tax, and you record it in both the sales ledger and the purchase ledger at the same time. A missed reverse charge is among the most expensive mistakes in a tax audit.
VIES declaration for trade in the EU
If you make intra-Community supplies of goods or services to VAT-registered businesses in the EU, you file a VIES declaration for the same period in addition to the ledgers and the VAT return. It summarizes the supplies by counterparty with their valid VAT numbers. That is why it pays to verify the VAT numbers of your European customers already when issuing the invoice.
Frequently asked questions
When is the VAT return due?
By the 14th of the month following the tax period. Any tax owed must be paid within the same deadline.
Are the sales and purchase ledgers mandatory?
Yes. The VAT return is filed together with both ledgers as structured files in the format approved by the NRA.
Does Finsense file the return with the NRA automatically?
No. Finsense prepares the ledgers and the VAT return and exports them in NRA format. Filing through the NRA portal is done by you or your accountant.
What happens if I miss the deadline?
Late filing and late payment of the tax lead to interest and fines. That is why it is worth watching the deadline every month.
Take control of your VAT reporting
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