Pegasus Solutions has launched a VAT (value-added tax) self-enrollment site to facilitate the formation of international VAT self-billing agreements between hotels and agents. In the tradition of social networking, the site allows hotels and agents to register with a VAT ID and request “connections” to enter into official 12-month VAT self-billing agreements.
 
Recent European Union (EU) changes to cross-border VAT laws include a requirement for travel agents to list VAT IDs for all EU hotels at which the travel agents placed reservations, and for which such hotels have agreed to pay commissions to travel agents. As a result, more agencies are refusing to book hotels that do not comply with the VAT process by providing the hotel VAT information. Pegasus’ VAT Self-enrollment site offers an enticing and efficient option for hotels needing to comply with both agent needs and EU requirements according to Mike Kistner, chief executive officer of Pegasus Solutions.
 
“VAT compliance can be a clerical nightmare for hotels that are required to pay VAT on agent commissions, as well as for agents, who must also arrange payment of VAT on hotel bookings,” said Kistner. “Just as Facebook has allowed millions to easily form and maintain personal connections with social networking, our VAT Self-enrollment site allows hotels to ‘friend’ multiple agents, and agents to ‘friend’ the hotels they book. Upon ‘acceptance’ both parties enter into a proper VAT self-billing agreement.”
 
Currently, a large amount of VAT goes unpaid or unclaimed, leaving hotels and agents out of compliance. Internationally, tax authorities have the right to audit both hotels and agents to ensure a VAT self-billing agreement exists between hotels and agents participating in VAT self-billing arrangements.
 
In addition to the complimentary self-enrollment site to facilitate the creation of VAT self-billing agreements, Pegasus also offers an add-on VAT self-billing fee based service for the printing and distribution of self-billing invoices.  As the global leader in commission processing services, Pegasus already maintains relationships with more than 60,000 travel agencies worldwide, which rely on Pegasus to process more than $500 million in commissions annually. Its hotel customers include more than 35,000 properties as well as the majority of travel distributors in more than 200 countries.
 
“We hope to bring the same kind of order and efficiency to VAT claims and payment as we have to commission processing,” added Kistner. “As hotel shopping becomes fragmented across channels and complicated across borders, it’s important for hotels and agents to strive for business relationships that are easy to maintain. This groundbreaking site bypasses traditional beleaguered and unreliable VAT processing methods to harness popular technology that allows for effortless payment relationships to be formed.”
 
More information on the VAT Self-enrollment site is available at Pegasus Solutions’ HITEC booth #1123, June 21-24, 2010 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.