Aqid ERPWho must register
A resident person, a company or an individual carrying on an economic activity independently, must register when its annual taxable supplies exceed BHD 37,500.
Who may register
A resident whose annual taxable supplies, or taxable expenses, exceed BHD 18,750 may register voluntarily. A voluntary registration binds for at least two years: the business stays registered, and charges and files, for that long.
Non-residents
A non-resident with no place of business or fixed establishment in Bahrain that supplies people not registered for VAT there has no threshold: it registers within 30 days of its first taxable supply in Bahrain, whatever its turnover.
How to register
- Apply on the NBR's portal, with the business's details and the supplies the form asks for, by VAT rate.
- The NBR sets the effective date of the registration and issues the VAT certificate with the VAT account number.
- From that date the business issues VAT invoices, titled "VAT Invoice" (فاتورة القيمة المضافة), charges 10% on its standard-rated supplies and files returns for each period the NBR assigns.
- Related businesses can apply to register as a VAT group, and a registration can later be cancelled; both are separate eServices of the NBR.
After registration
A business with annual supplies above BHD 3 million files monthly, others quarterly, by the last day of the month after the period. Our guide to the Bahrain VAT return covers what goes in it.
How Aqid ERP helps
A Bahraini company in Aqid ERP prints its VAT account number on every VAT invoice, in BHD to three decimals, and the turnover report gives the supplies by rate that the NBR's application asks for. The application itself is made on the NBR's portal.