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VAT and transaction analysis
This page describes Swedish rules. The Swedish version is authoritative. Read in Swedish
We review your paid supplier invoices, value added tax (VAT) reporting and payments, going back several years. We look for missed input VAT deductions, duplicate payments and other errors, and document each discrepancy with its source. Anything that can be recovered is verified before it is reported. It is often relevant for organisations with high invoice volumes.
What is included?
VAT analysis, VAT compensation, missed input VAT deductions and VAT discrepancies, together with the accounts payable ledger, duplicate payments, overpayments and other transaction errors. Refero’s most established area of analysis since 2005.
Common discrepancies in VAT and transaction analysis
- Incorrect application of the VAT compensation scheme in municipalities and regions
- The wrong VAT rate applied to mixed supplies
- The same invoice paid twice, often after a payment reminder
- Credit notes that were never offset against a new invoice
- Payment to the wrong supplier after an organisational change
- Currency conversion errors in international payments
- Fraudulent invoices that passed the normal approval check
When is it relevant?
Particularly relevant where VAT handling is complex, for example with mixed activities (taxable and exempt) or where the VAT compensation scheme has not been applied in full. Also for organisations with high invoice volumes, decentralised invoice approval or a recent system change, where payment flows more easily lose their own controls. In procurements, the VAT part is often requested as VAT recovery.
What data is analysed?
Supplier invoices, the general ledger, VAT returns, payment flows and the accounts payable ledger, matched against invoice documentation and bank statements, often going back several years.
Other names for the same thing
VAT compensation (momsersättning) refers specifically to the compensation that municipalities and regions can receive for VAT that cannot be deducted in the normal way.
It is governed by the VAT Compensation Act (SFS 2005:807). VAT recovery is a broader term. It also covers private companies identifying missed deductions, incorrect tax rates and other VAT discrepancies. Internationally, parts of this work are sometimes described as recovery audit. In Sweden the work also goes by names that translate as VAT recovery or VAT review, and the person who carries it out is sometimes described as a VAT consultant. Refero is not purely a consultancy, however. We carry out the full analysis ourselves.
About duplicate payments
Duplicate payments happen in several different ways.
The same invoice is paid both on the normal due date and after a payment reminder. An invoice is registered and paid twice after a system change. The same cost is invoiced under two different invoice numbers. Or payment is made to both an old and a new bank account number for the same supplier.
Finance systems can flag exact duplicates, for example the same invoice number registered twice. That only covers part of the problem. A variant where the invoice number differs, or the amount is almost but not exactly the same, can pass the automatic checks. That is why we match the whole data set against itself, item by item.
About fraudulent invoices
Fraudulent invoices, for example invoices for services that were never ordered or invoices that imitate an existing supplier, can pass the normal approval check if the amount looks reasonable and the invoice is otherwise correctly laid out.
With high invoice volumes and decentralised invoice approval, the risk increases that such an invoice is approved without a closer review.
Refero reviews the accounts payable ledger against actual supplier details and previous payment patterns to identify invoices that differ. Examples are new or unknown recipients, bank account numbers that do not match the supplier’s previous details, or invoices without a traceable order.
Read more
- ArticleDuplicate payments in the accounts payable ledger: how they happen and how to find them afterwards
- ArticleVAT compensation for municipalities: what is covered and when it is too late
- ArticleRecovery audit in Sweden: what the Swedish terms mean, and how the work differs from internal review functions
Frequently asked questions
How far back can VAT be reclaimed?
A correction of VAT in your own favour must, under chapter 66, section 7 of the Swedish Tax Procedure Act, have been received by the end of the sixth year after the calendar year in which the tax period ended. For municipal VAT compensation, a request for reconsideration must be made by the end of the third year after the calendar year. Read more in our article on the deadlines of 31 December 2026.
Is it enough for the system to flag discrepancies automatically?
It can be enough for simple cases, but not for all. Automatic checks are often set up for exact duplicates or obvious errors, for example the same invoice number paid twice. Variations such as an invoice paid both directly and after a payment reminder, or payment to a new bank account number for the same supplier, can pass. That is why we go through the whole data set and compare it item by item.
How common are duplicate payments?
Duplicate payments can occur in organisations with high invoice volumes, especially with decentralised invoice approval or after system changes. Individually the amounts are often small, but across thousands of invoices and several years they add up to significant amounts.
Can money from a duplicate payment always be recovered?
In many cases the amount can be reclaimed from the supplier once the discrepancy has been identified and documented. This can be affected by how much time has passed and by the supplier’s own financial situation.
Does Refero check for fraudulent invoices?
Yes. We review the accounts payable ledger against actual supplier details and previous payment patterns to identify invoices that differ, for example new or unknown recipients, bank account numbers that do not match the supplier’s previous details, or invoices without a traceable order.
What data is needed for a VAT and transaction analysis?
As a rule, exports from the accounts payable ledger, the general ledger, VAT returns and payment flows, often going back several years. Refero takes responsibility for data extraction and structuring itself, which reduces the risk of errors and keeps the whole chain of analysis together.