VAT on vending machines in Spain (IVA en las máquinas de vending) is not just one rate. Each product has its own: water and snacks, 10%; soft drinks with sugar or sweeteners, 21%. And what you do with that VAT depends on who you are: a self-employed person (autónomo) is usually under the equivalence surcharge scheme (recargo de equivalencia) and does not declare it, while a company pays it over every quarter.
In this guide we explain what rate each product has, how to extract VAT from the machine price, which scheme applies to you, what happens with the location commission, and the most common mistakes. Checked against the BOE, Spain’s official gazette, on 14 October 2026.
The short answer
- What a machine sells is a sale of products, so each item has its own VAT rate, just like in a shop.
- A soft drink with sugar is 21% in a machine, even though in a bar it may be 10%: the bar provides a hospitality service and the machine sells a product.
- If you are self-employed, the usual scheme is the equivalence surcharge: the supplier charges you VAT plus a surcharge, and you do not report the VAT on what you sell.
- If you have a company, standard VAT scheme: you pay over the VAT on sales each quarter and deduct the VAT on your purchases.
What rate each product has
| Product | VAT | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Bottled water | 10% | If it has added sugar or sweetener, it is a different drink |
| Snacks, chocolate bars, biscuits, pastries, sandwiches | 10% | This is the rate for most food items |
| Coffee, tea and other hot drinks | 10% | What the machine prepares can change the scheme (see below) |
| Juices without added sugars or sweeteners | 10% | Check the label: “nectars” usually contain added sugar |
| Soft drinks, juices and fizzy drinks with added sugars or sweeteners | 21% | “Zero” drinks too: they contain sweeteners |
| Milk, fresh fruit, plain bread | 4% | Milkshakes and dairy drinks are not milk: check product by product |
| Alcoholic drinks | 21% | In addition, Spain’s regional governments (comunidades autónomas) limit their sale in machines |
| Non-food items: chargers, masks, toys, tobacco | 21% | Tobacco has its own sales rules |
The full list of foods, including doubtful cases, is in our guide to VAT on food in Spain. In the Canary Islands there is no VAT but IGIC, a local indirect tax, and in Ceuta and Melilla, IPSI.
Why is the same can 10% in a bar and 21% in a machine? The law sets 21% for drinks with added sugars or sweeteners when sold as a product, and 10% for hospitality services. The bar serves you the can; the machine sells it to you.
How to extract VAT from the price
The price shown by the machine includes VAT. To find out how much is yours, divide the price by 1.10 if the product is taxed at 10%, or by 1.21 if it is taxed at 21%. What remains is the net amount, and the difference is VAT.
An example with made-up prices:
| Product | Price in the machine | Net amount | VAT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water (10%) | €1.00 | €0.91 | €0.09 |
| Coffee (10%) | €1.20 | €1.09 | €0.11 |
| Soft drink with sugar (21%) | €1.50 | €1.24 | €0.26 |
If the machine mixes products taxed at 10 and 21%, VAT cannot be extracted from the total cash box amount with a single rate. You need to know what was sold of each product, and for that you have to record what comes out of each slot.
Equivalence surcharge or standard VAT scheme?
If you are self-employed: equivalence surcharge
The equivalence surcharge is mandatory for retail traders who are natural persons (and for joint ownerships, comunidades de bienes, made up of natural persons) when they sell products as purchased, and more than 80% of their sales are to consumers (articles 148 and 149 of the Spanish VAT Act, Ley del IVA). A snacks and drinks machine fits this model.
This is how it works:
- The supplier charges you VAT plus a surcharge: 5.2% on items taxed at 21%, 1.4% on items taxed at 10%, and 0.5% on items taxed at 4%. For tobacco, 1.75%.
- You do not report the VAT on what you sell. What the machine collects is entirely yours.
- You do not deduct anything. VAT on the machine, repairs or the location commission is just another cost.
A made-up example: a box of 24 cans with sugar costs you €12.00 net. The supplier charges you €2.52 VAT and €0.62 surcharge: €15.14, about €0.63 per can. If you sell it for €1.50, you are left with €0.87 per can before the location commission and other expenses.
One nuance: the law does not consider someone a retailer if they transform the product before selling it. If the machine prepares hot drinks from coffee beans or powder, those sales may fall outside the surcharge scheme. Confirm this with your accountant.
If you have a company: standard VAT scheme
A Spanish limited company (sociedad limitada, SL) cannot be under the equivalence surcharge scheme. It charges VAT on each sale, reports it each quarter on Form 303 (modelo 303, the quarterly VAT return), and deducts the VAT on what it buys: the product, the machine, repairs, the location commission. At year-end, the annual summary goes on Form 390 (modelo 390).
For margin, the calculation is made using the net amount: the price after removing VAT. We work through it with numbers in our article on vending machine profitability.
The location commission and other expenses
The bar, office or gym that lets you place the machine charges you for that space, and normally invoices it with 21% VAT. Under the standard VAT scheme, you deduct that VAT; under the equivalence surcharge scheme, it is a cost.
The same applies to the machine: if you buy it from a company, the invoice includes 21%. A company recovers it in its returns; a self-employed person under the surcharge scheme does not, and that changes the real cost of the machine.
Invoices and receipts
Under the equivalence surcharge scheme, you are not required to issue an invoice for sales to consumers (article 3.1.b of Spain’s invoicing regulation, Reglamento de facturación). If the buyer is a company or a professional, you are. And you must keep the invoices for your purchases, with the surcharge itemized.
If you have a company, how sales from a machine that does not print receipts are documented is something you should clarify with your accountant. And if your software issues invoices, see how VeriFactu, which has been postponed, affects you.
Common mistakes
- Applying 10% to all drinks. Soft drinks with sugar or sweeteners are taxed at 21%, including “zero” drinks.
- Copying the bar’s rate. The 10% hospitality rate does not apply to a machine.
- Extracting VAT from the total cash box amount using a single rate when the machine mixes products.
- Deducting VAT while under the surcharge scheme. Under the surcharge scheme, VAT on purchases is not recovered.
- Calculating margin with VAT included under the standard VAT scheme. The VAT portion is not yours.
- Forgetting the VAT on the location commission in the calculation for each machine.
Sales of each product, at each restock, with Repónlo
Repónlo (our own product) is an app for vending operators without telemetry. You record what is left and what you load into each slot, and sales by slot and by product are generated automatically: the data from which VAT is calculated for each rate. When you collect the cash, it tells you how much should be there based on what was sold, and alerts you to prices that fall below your margin. It works from the mobile browser, with nothing to install. It is free forever for one machine. For more, plans start at €19 per month, plus VAT, for up to five machines. The app is available in English.
Frequently asked questions
What VAT applies to what is sold in a vending machine?
The rate depends on each product: 10% for most food, water and coffee; 21% for soft drinks and juices with added sugars or sweeteners and for non-food items; 4% for milk, fresh fruit and plain bread.
Why is a soft drink taxed at 21% in the machine and 10% in the bar?
Because the bar provides a hospitality service, which is taxed at 10%, and the machine sells a product, and soft drinks with added sugars or sweeteners are taxed at 21%.
Is a self-employed person with vending machines under the equivalence surcharge scheme?
Usually yes, if they are a natural person and sell the products without transforming them. Drinks prepared by the machine may be an exception: confirm with your accountant.
Do I have to file Form 303 if I am under the surcharge scheme?
Not for the sales you make under that scheme. You pay VAT when buying, with the surcharge.
Can I deduct the VAT on the machine?
Under the standard VAT scheme, yes. Under the equivalence surcharge scheme, no: it is part of the machine’s cost.
Does the location commission include VAT?
Normally the location will invoice it to you with 21%. Ask your accountant if your case has any special features.
Do I have to issue an invoice or receipt for each sale?
Under the equivalence surcharge scheme, you are not required to issue an invoice for sales to consumers. If you have a company, agree with your accountant how to document machine sales.
Conclusion
The VAT on a vending machine comes down to two questions. First, what rate each product has: 10% for almost everything, 21% for soft drinks with sugar or sweeteners and for non-food items. Second, which scheme you are in: under the surcharge scheme, VAT is paid on purchase and not reported; under the standard VAT scheme, it is paid each quarter and the VAT on expenses is deducted. Once that is clear, the margin on each product can be calculated properly.
This article is for information only and does not replace advice from your accountant. The examples are made up, and rates and schemes may change: check them before setting prices.
Useful links
- VAT on food in Spain: what rate each product has.
- Vending machine profitability: the calculation, with an example.
- Reconciling the cash from a vending machine: how much should be in the cash box based on what was sold.
- Spanish VAT Act (Ley 37/1992), in the BOE (in Spanish).
