Refusing to issue an invoice is a sanctionable tax infraction under Spanish law. You have the right to demand one, and concrete legal steps to enforce it if the supplier refuses. Without an invoice you cannot deduct VAT or the business expense, and you are exposed in any AEAT inspection.
Under Real Decreto 1619/2012, any seller who is a business or professional must issue and deliver an invoice for every transaction. The obligation exists regardless of the amount and regardless of whether the buyer asks. As a business or autónomo, you have the right to a full invoice. As a private consumer, you can demand a simplified invoice and request the full version when you need it.
There is no minimum amount below which B2B invoicing is optional. Thresholds only determine the type of document, not whether the obligation to invoice exists at all.
If a supplier refuses to issue an invoice, follow these steps in order:
On self-invoicing: this only works if there was a prior written agreement between the parties permitting it. Without that agreement, use the TEA route above.
There is no minimum amount for B2B invoicing. The amount only determines the type of invoice permitted:
The exceptions are narrow. The regulations allow invoicing to be omitted for:
The exception collapses as soon as the buyer is a business or legal entity, or needs the invoice for a tax deduction. In those cases the invoice is mandatory regardless of any other exemption.
A simplified invoice is enough for small B2C transactions within the thresholds above. It requires the seller’s name and NIF, the date, a description of the goods or services, the VAT rate, and the total.
Demand the full invoice when:
A simplified invoice without the buyer’s NIF, address, and broken-out VAT amount does not support VAT deduction.
The obligation to invoice includes the obligation to deliver. In B2B transactions the invoice must be issued and sent at the time of the transaction, or at the latest by the 16th of the month following the VAT accrual date. Accrual occurs when the sale is made or the service completed.
The same deadline applies to recapitulative invoices covering multiple transactions within the same calendar month.
For intra-EU dispatches of goods, the deadline is the 16th of the month following the start of the dispatch.
Use this rule in your written requests. If the 16th has passed and no invoice has arrived, the supplier is already in breach of article 11.
Knowing the penalties helps when negotiating. Share them with a supplier who is reluctant:
These are administrative tax infractions, not criminal offences. Refusal to invoice only becomes a criminal matter when the underlying tax fraud exceeds €120,000. A supplier refusing to issue a routine invoice does not approach that threshold.
Example: a supplier who does not invoice €10,000 of services faces a base penalty of €200 (2%). If the breach is classified as serious or has been repeated, the percentage increases.
Reference these articles in every written request, burofax, and AEAT complaint:
For penalties, cite the relevant articles of the General Tax Law (Ley General Tributaria) on invoicing infractions. If the supplier is a public body, note that electronic invoicing through FACe is mandatory.
Keep copies of every message and receipt at each stage.
Phase 1: email request. Subject: Invoice request: [your name or company]: [date of transaction]. Request the invoice citing article 2 and article 11. State a deadline of 5 working days.
Phase 2: burofax or registered letter. Same content and legal references. Keep the delivery receipt.
Phase 3: AEAT complaint. File for uninvoiced or unregistered transactions through the AEAT online portal. Attach the contract or order confirmation, proof of payment, and the burofax receipt.
Phase 4: TEA claim. Open a claim under article 24. Request that the TEA order the supplier to issue the invoice within a specified period. Attach all evidence from phases 1 to 3.
Phase 5: enforcement. If the supplier refuses after a favourable TEA ruling, report the continued breach to the TEA and the AEAT. The TEA ruling may authorise you to issue the invoice in the supplier’s name.
