Glossary
Output VAT and input VAT
VAT is a tax the consumer pays and the business collects. Output VAT is the 25 % you add on top of your prices. Input VAT is the 25 % your suppliers added on top of theirs. You settle the difference: output VAT minus input VAT. In Danish the two are salgsmoms and købsmoms.
Updated 21 October 2026
What is output VAT and input VAT?
If you sell for 100,000 kr. in a quarter, output VAT is 25,000 kr. If you bought goods and services for 40,000 kr. with VAT, input VAT is 10,000 kr. The VAT return shows 25,000 kr. in output VAT and 10,000 kr. in input VAT, and you pay 15,000 kr. If input VAT exceeds output VAT, you get the difference back.
In the books the two are collected on an account each: Output VAT is a liability, Input VAT a receivable. Once the period has been reported, both balances are moved to a VAT settlement account with a general journal entry, and the payment to the Danish Tax Agency settles it. Some purchases carry limited or no deduction, for example restaurant bills, where only a quarter of the VAT can be deducted.
Output VAT and input VAT in Veneti
In Veneti every entry carries its VAT code, and output and input VAT land on their accounts when you book. The VAT return is calculated for the period you choose, field by field after the Danish Tax Agency's boxes, and behind each figure you see the entries. The settlement is a general journal entry between the VAT accounts and the VAT settlement account, which you book yourself.
How to read the return, check each figure against its entries and file the figures in TastSelv Erhverv: Guide to the VAT return.
Related terms
- VAT code: the code that decides whether an entry is output or input VAT.
- Reverse charge: when the buyer calculates the VAT.
- Acquisition VAT: the VAT on goods bought in the EU.