Proforma, final and corrective invoices: when to use each in Slovakia and the Czech Republic

A proforma invoice is only a request to pay a deposit and is not a tax document — the customer cannot deduct VAT from it. The final (settlement) invoice is the actual tax document, issued after delivery, and it settles the deposit already taxed. A corrective document (credit or debit note) then fixes the tax base or the tax amount if the terms change. Slovakia and the Czech Republic follow the same logic but differ in when an advance is taxed and under which sections it is corrected.

What is the difference between a proforma, final and corrective invoice?

The three documents serve entirely different purposes even though they are often confused. A proforma (deposit) invoice is merely a request to pay in advance. Neither the Slovak nor the Czech VAT Act treats it as a tax document: it shows no VAT and gives the customer no right to deduct. Its only role is to secure payment before delivery.

The final invoice — the settlement or closing invoice — is issued after the goods or service are delivered and is a full tax document from which VAT is remitted and deducted. A corrective document arises later still: it amends an already issued tax document when the price, scope or fate of the supply changes. If you would rather hand the whole VAT setup to specialists, our Slovak tax advisory can configure your invoicing so deposits and corrections are handled correctly.

When is the tax point on an advance payment?

This is where the two countries diverge most. In Slovakia, Section 19(4) of Act No. 222/2004 is unconditional: if the supplier receives a payment before delivery, the tax point arises on the day the payment is received, to the extent of the amount received. A tax document for the received payment must then be issued within 15 days.

In the Czech Republic, Section 20a of Act No. 235/2004 adds a condition. The duty to declare tax on an advance arises on receipt only if the supply is known with sufficient certainty — meaning the goods or service, the tax rate and the place of supply are all known. If, for example, the rate is unclear, no VAT is declared on the deposit and the supply is taxed only when it is actually performed. Slovakia has three rates (23 %, 19 % and 5 %), the Czech Republic two (21 % and 12 %), which also shapes how often that uncertainty arises.

How is the deposit settled in the final invoice?

The final invoice is issued after delivery and must reflect the deposit already taxed. If the customer paid, and you taxed, the full amount in advance, no new tax liability arises on the final invoice — you simply recap the supply and deduct the previously taxed deposit, leaving nothing to pay.

If only part was paid up front, you tax the remainder on delivery. The essential point in both countries is that the final invoice must clearly reference the earlier document issued for the received payment, so the same VAT is never taxed twice.

When do you issue a corrective invoice?

A corrective document is issued when, after delivery, something changes the tax base — cancellation, a return of goods, or a price reduction or increase. In Slovakia this follows Section 25 of the VAT Act, and the supplier must issue the corrective document within 15 days of the end of the month in which the deciding fact arose.

The Czech Republic splits this in two. Section 42 covers a correction of the tax base for commercial reasons (discounts, returns, cancellations, a returned deposit) and is treated as a separate supply in the ordinary return. Section 43 covers a correction of the tax amount — a wrongly applied rate — usually through a supplementary return. A price cut is colloquially a credit note, an increase a debit note.

What must a corrective document contain?

In both countries the corrective document must clearly link to the original invoice, or the tax authority may reject the correction. It typically states:

• the reference number of the original invoice being corrected,
• the original tax base and original tax amount,
• the difference in the tax base and in the tax after correction,
• the date the corrective document was issued.

Where several supplies are corrected at once, shared data may be stated once, but the affected original supplies must remain clearly identifiable.

How does the correction appear in the returns?

In Slovakia the difference is reported in the VAT return for the period in which the corrective document was issued, and the customer adjusts the deduction when the document is received (or, failing receipt within 30 days, once that period expires). In the Czech Republic a Section 42 base correction goes into the ordinary return, while a Section 43 rate correction goes into a supplementary return for the original period.

In both systems the corrective document also appears in the control statement — the Slovak kontrolný výkaz or the Czech kontrolní hlášení — so the supplier’s and customer’s figures must match, as a mismatch is a common trigger for a tax authority query.

Deposits, settlements and credit notes follow precise rules, and a slip means either VAT paid needlessly or an underpayment with penalties. We are happy to set up your invoicing so advances and corrections are right the first time.

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