Invoicing for developers

Depending on who you invoice

A business or freelancer in Spain

21% VAT and, if your activity is professional, 15% withholding (7% in your first year and the two after)

A private individual in Spain

21% VAT, no withholding

A business in another EU country

No VAT (reverse charge) and no withholding; it also goes on modelo 349

A business outside the EU

No VAT (outside the scope) and no withholding

To invoice an EU business without VAT, check that its VAT number is registered in the EU's VIES database. Nyrut counts it correctly in the 303 and warns you about the 349, but doesn't generate the 349.

If nearly all your clients are abroad

You invoice without VAT and without withholding. Good for cash flow, with a catch: since nobody withholds, you don't meet the 70% rule and modelo 130 almost certainly applies. That 20% of your profit is paid by you, every quarter, so set it aside as you get paid.

And at the end of the year, nobody has withheld anything: whatever you didn't prepay in your 130s shows up in your annual return.

Getting paid in dollars (or another currency)

You can invoice in your client's currency. For the tax office, what counts is the amount in euros: each invoice is converted at the rate on the invoice date (the European Central Bank's is the reference), not on the day the money lands.

VAT on your foreign subscriptions

Hosting, domains, cloud services, paid tools: many of those invoices come from companies abroad, without Spanish VAT. Those purchases go through reverse charge: the VAT is declared and deducted at the same time in your 303. Nothing to pay, but it has to appear.

Retainers and maintenance

If you charge a fixed monthly fee for maintenance or support, have the invoice go out on its own every month, with its number and date. Forgetting one is easy; chasing it two months later is awkward.

Usual expenses

• Hosting, domains, cloud services and licences.
• Your self-employed contribution and coworking.
• Your computer, monitor or camera are capital assets: they're depreciated over several years rather than deducted in one go. Nyrut doesn't calculate depreciation; your gestor does.

How Nyrut helps

Each client keeps their language and currency, and what goes into your returns is converted to euros at the ECB rate of each invoice's date. Reverse-charge purchases from foreign companies count correctly in the 303. Retainers invoice themselves. And if you live in the terminal, there's the CLI: nyrut invoices --json.

This is a guide to understand the system, not tax advice: for your specific case, ask your gestor.