RTD Ireland: Return of Trading Details Explained (2026)
· By MyLedgerBook Editorial Team
Updated September 2026 · Based on current Revenue guidance
If you're VAT registered in Ireland, your VAT3 isn't the only VAT return you need to know about. There is also an annual Return of Trading Details, usually called the RTD.
The RTD can cause problems when businesses reach year-end and discover that their sales and purchases haven't been recorded with enough VAT detail throughout the year.
The good news is that an RTD becomes much easier to prepare when your transactions and VAT rates have been recorded correctly as you go.
Quick answer: The Return of Trading Details (RTD) is an annual VAT return for VAT-registered persons in Ireland. It reports total sales and purchases for the accounting year, broken down by the applicable VAT rates. The RTD is filed through Revenue Online Service (ROS) and is separate from your regular VAT3 returns.
What is an RTD in Ireland?
RTD stands for Return of Trading Details.
Revenue requires VAT-registered persons to complete an RTD annually.
Unlike a VAT3, which calculates VAT payable or repayable for a particular VAT period, the RTD provides Revenue with a breakdown of trading activity across the accounting year.
Revenue describes the RTD as detailing your:
- total purchases for the year
- total sales for the year
- figures broken down by the applicable Irish VAT rates
That VAT-rate breakdown is the important part.
If your business has used several VAT rates during the year, the RTD needs more than simply your annual sales total and annual purchases total.
Who needs to file an RTD?
Revenue states that VAT-registered persons are required to complete and submit an annual VAT Return of Trading Details.
That can include VAT-registered:
- sole traders
- partnerships
- limited companies
- other VAT-registered entities
If you're VAT registered, you should therefore expect the RTD to form part of your annual VAT obligations.
The RTD is made available through ROS around the end of your accounting year.
When is the RTD due in Ireland?
The RTD is connected to your accounting year, rather than simply being a return that every Irish business files on the same calendar date.
Revenue's detailed guidance states that the annual RTD period is based on the accounting period used by the company, entity or individual for Corporation Tax or Income Tax purposes.
For ROS filers, the RTD is generally due by the 23rd day of the month following the month in which the accounting period ends.
Example
Suppose a company's accounting year ends on:
31 August
Its RTD is generally due by:
23 September
Revenue uses this example in its RTD filing guidance.
This means you shouldn't assume that your RTD is automatically a December or January return.
Your actual deadline depends on your accounting period.
Where do I find my RTD?
The RTD is available through Revenue Online Service (ROS).
Revenue states that the RTD is made available for filing with the final VAT3 return relating to the relevant accounting year.
The return should appear in the ROS inbox and can be completed online.
If you're approaching your accounting year-end, it is worth checking ROS rather than waiting for the deadline to arrive.
Is an RTD the same as a VAT3?
No.
The VAT3 and RTD are different returns.
A VAT3 is generally concerned with the VAT due or reclaimable for a particular taxable period.
The RTD provides an annual breakdown of trading activity by VAT rate.
A simple way to think about the difference is:
| VAT3 | RTD |
|---|---|
| Periodic VAT return | Annual VAT return |
| Calculates VAT payable or repayable | Reports trading figures by VAT rate |
| Includes T1 and T2 | Breaks annual sales and purchases into relevant categories |
| Filed during the year | Filed after the accounting year ends |
They are related because both depend on the same underlying business transactions.
Good VAT bookkeeping throughout the year helps with both.
What information goes into an RTD?
At its core, the RTD asks you to analyse your annual trading figures according to VAT treatment.
Revenue's RTD form includes information relating to areas such as:
- supplies of goods and services
- intra-EU acquisitions
- stock for resale
- other deductible goods and services
- imports
- Postponed Accounting
- exempt transactions where relevant
The figures are then allocated across the VAT rates and categories applicable to the business.
This is why an RTD isn't simply:
Annual sales = €100,000
The question is closer to:
How much of those sales belonged in each applicable VAT category?
And the same principle applies to relevant purchases.
Why does the RTD ask for figures by VAT rate?
Different goods and services in Ireland can be subject to different VAT rates or treatments.
A business may therefore have transactions falling into more than one category during the year.
For example, depending on the business, records could potentially contain transactions at:
- the standard VAT rate
- reduced VAT rates
- zero rate
- exempt treatment
The RTD allows Revenue to see the annual trading figures broken down across the appropriate VAT categories.
You should use the VAT rates and treatment that actually applied to each transaction rather than trying to estimate the split at year-end.
A simple RTD example
Imagine an Irish VAT-registered business has annual net sales of:
€120,000
For illustration, suppose its records show:
- €80,000 of sales in one VAT-rate category
- €30,000 in another VAT-rate category
- €10,000 in another applicable category
The RTD needs the appropriate breakdown.
Simply knowing:
Total sales = €120,000
isn't enough to reconstruct that information accurately if the business no longer knows how those transactions were categorised.
The same issue arises with purchases.
This is why RTD preparation really begins during the year, not on the day the return becomes due.
What purchases need to be considered?
The RTD doesn't only concern sales.
Revenue's return also contains sections dealing with deductible inputs.
These can include categories such as:
Stock for resale
Goods purchased for resale can need to be identified separately within the RTD structure.
Other deductible goods and services
Other qualifying business purchases and expenses can fall into another section.
Intra-EU acquisitions
If your business purchases goods from suppliers in other EU Member States, those acquisitions may also need to be reflected.
Imports and Postponed Accounting
Relevant imported goods and transactions dealt with through Postponed Accounting can also affect the RTD.
The appropriate treatment depends on the transaction, so accurate purchase records are just as important as accurate sales records.
What about goods bought from other EU countries?
Intra-Community acquisitions can affect both your VAT3 and your RTD.
Revenue currently states that details of intra-Community acquisitions must be included in the VAT3 and also in the annual RTD.
For the VAT3, the value of relevant goods acquired is included in the E2 box, while the appropriate VAT is dealt with through T1 and, where deductible, T2.
Those transactions must also be reflected correctly in the annual trading details.
If your business regularly buys stock or equipment from suppliers elsewhere in the EU, don't treat those transactions as though they were ordinary domestic purchases without checking the VAT treatment.
What about services bought from outside Ireland?
Cross-border services can also require particular VAT treatment.
Revenue's RTD guidance specifically deals with services received from outside Ireland where VAT is accounted for on a self-accounting basis.
For businesses buying software, professional services or other services from overseas suppliers, this is another reason to record the VAT treatment correctly when the transaction occurs.
Trying to identify a year's worth of international transactions retrospectively can be unnecessarily difficult.
Does the RTD mean paying more VAT?
The RTD is primarily a return of trading information.
It should not be confused with the VAT3 calculation that determines whether VAT is payable or repayable for a taxable period.
However, the figures reported should be consistent with the underlying VAT records of the business.
Large unexplained differences between your annual trading information and the records behind your VAT returns are something you'd want to identify before filing.
Why can RTD preparation become difficult?
The RTD itself isn't necessarily the difficult part.
Reconstructing the information can be.
Imagine reaching year-end with hundreds or thousands of transactions and knowing your annual sales figure but not having a reliable VAT-rate breakdown.
You may then need to work backwards through:
- sales invoices
- purchase invoices
- receipts
- credit notes
- EU purchases
- imports
- different VAT rates
That's the problem good bookkeeping avoids.
How to make your RTD easier throughout the year
The simplest approach is to treat RTD preparation as a consequence of everyday bookkeeping rather than a separate annual project.
Record every invoice properly
Your sales records should contain enough information to identify the correct VAT treatment.
Record purchases and expenses as they happen
Don't leave a year's worth of receipts and supplier invoices until year-end.
Apply the correct VAT rate
If transactions are categorised correctly when entered, you don't need to guess their VAT treatment months later.
Record credit notes
A credit note changes the underlying transaction and should be reflected correctly in your records.
Keep EU transactions identifiable
Purchases and sales involving other EU Member States may need different treatment from domestic transactions.
Keep imports properly recorded
If your business imports goods, retain the information required to support the VAT treatment, including Postponed Accounting where relevant.
The objective is simple:
When the RTD becomes due, the information should already exist.
Common RTD mistakes to avoid
Assuming the RTD is just your annual sales figure
It isn't.
Revenue requires trading information broken down by VAT rate and relevant category.
Leaving the RTD until the deadline
The return becomes much harder if the underlying transactions haven't been categorised properly throughout the year.
Confusing the RTD with VAT3
VAT3 and RTD are related but different returns.
Your VAT3 determines periodic VAT payable or repayable. Your RTD reports annual trading details.
Forgetting purchases
The RTD includes relevant purchase information as well as sales.
Ignoring EU transactions
Intra-EU acquisitions and certain other cross-border transactions can need to be reflected in the return.
Guessing the VAT-rate split
Your RTD should come from your business records rather than an approximate year-end estimate.
What happens if I don't file an RTD?
The RTD is a required Revenue return for VAT-registered persons.
Revenue's detailed RTD guidance also explains that compliance measures can apply where an RTD remains outstanding.
An important practical consequence is that Revenue may withhold certain tax repayments where required returns have not been submitted.
The safest approach is therefore to treat the RTD as a normal annual compliance obligation rather than an optional statistical form.
RTD checklist for Irish small businesses
Before preparing your RTD, check that you have:
- complete sales records for the accounting year
- complete purchase and expense records
- transactions categorised using the appropriate VAT treatment
- credit notes correctly recorded
- relevant EU acquisitions identified
- relevant cross-border services identified
- imports and Postponed Accounting transactions recorded where applicable
- figures reconciled with your underlying VAT records
- checked the RTD available in ROS
- confirmed your filing deadline
If several of those items require searching through old paperwork, improving the way transactions are recorded during the next accounting year can save considerable time.
How MyLedgerBook helps with RTD preparation
MyLedgerBook is accounting software built specifically for Irish businesses.
The principle behind RTD preparation in MyLedgerBook is straightforward:
record the transaction correctly when it happens, and let the annual figures build from those records.
Invoices and expenses entered throughout the year contain the information needed to organise your Irish VAT figures.
That makes it possible to prepare the figures required for your RTD without starting from a blank spreadsheet at year-end.
MyLedgerBook doesn't file your Revenue return for you.
Instead, it helps prepare the figures from your accounting records so that you can review them and file your return through ROS with greater confidence.
Start using MyLedgerBook
Create invoices, record expenses and keep the information behind your Irish VAT and RTD figures organised throughout the year.
Free during Early Access · No credit card required
RTD Ireland: Frequently Asked Questions
What does RTD stand for in Irish VAT?
RTD stands for Return of Trading Details. It is an annual VAT return that provides Revenue with details of purchases and sales broken down by VAT rate.
Who has to file an RTD in Ireland?
Revenue requires VAT-registered persons to complete and submit an annual RTD.
If you're not yet VAT registered, our VAT Registration Threshold Ireland guide explains the current thresholds and when VAT registration may become compulsory.
How often is an RTD filed?
The RTD is an annual return.
When is the RTD due?
For ROS filers, Revenue's RTD guidance states that it is generally due by the 23rd day of the month following the month in which the accounting period ends.
Where do I file an RTD?
The RTD is filed through Revenue Online Service (ROS). Revenue makes the return available around the end of the relevant accounting year.
Is RTD the same as VAT3?
No.
The VAT3 and RTD are different returns. If you're not familiar with the periodic VAT return, see our VAT3 Ireland guide for a full explanation of T1, T2, T3 and T4.
A VAT3 is generally concerned with the VAT due or reclaimable for a particular taxable period.
Does the RTD include purchases?
Yes. The RTD includes relevant purchase information as well as sales information.
Does the RTD include EU purchases?
Relevant intra-Community acquisitions need to be reflected in the annual RTD as well as being dealt with appropriately in the VAT3.
Can accounting software help prepare an RTD?
Accounting software can make RTD preparation considerably easier when sales, purchases and VAT rates are recorded correctly throughout the year. The annual figures can then be prepared from existing records rather than reconstructed retrospectively.
Official sources and further reading
This guide has been checked against current guidance from the Irish Revenue Commissioners.
- Revenue — When VAT becomes payable and Return of Trading Details
- Revenue — VAT Return of Trading Details guidance
- Revenue — Intra-Community acquisitions and VAT reporting
- Revenue — Tax calendar
Last reviewed: 7 September 2026
This guide provides general information for Irish businesses and is not tax, legal or professional accounting advice. VAT and RTD treatment depends on the circumstances of your business and individual transactions. Always check current Revenue guidance or seek professional advice where appropriate.
If you're getting your VAT records organised, it's also worth understanding how VAT3 returns work in Ireland and when you need to register for VAT.