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Automating the VAT reverse-charge in construction with AI

20 May 2026 · 6 min read · Bouw Botje

If you work as a contractor or subcontractor, you know the pain: the VAT reverse-charge scheme. For work on immovable property that you carry out as a subcontractor for a main contractor, VAT is reverse-charged to the customer. You invoice without VAT, with the note “VAT reverse-charged”, and the main contractor declares the VAT. Sounds simple, but in practice this is exactly where things often go wrong.

Why it is so error-prone

The scheme does not always apply. Whether you have to reverse-charge depends on who your customer is, whether it concerns a construction project, and whether there is subcontracting or hiring out of staff. One invoice with VAT where it should have been reverse-charged — or the other way around — and your correction goes through a supplementary return. With hundreds of project invoices a year, that is rarely a one-off.

What an AI assistant adds here

With Bouw Botje you connect your AI assistant (ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot) directly to Exact Online Construction. Instead of clicking through screens yourself, you simply ask:

“Which sales invoices this quarter have reverse-charged VAT, and do they match the projects where subcontracting applies?”

The assistant retrieves the invoices and project data, lines them up and flags the exceptions. You stay in control — the AI does the lookup work that normally takes half an afternoon.

Safe: reading is on by default, writing is not

Bouw Botje is read-only by default. The assistant can therefore report and check, but only once you enable read-write per user can it actually prepare an invoice or correct a posting. That way you stay in control of what changes in your administration.

Getting started

Connecting takes a few minutes: you paste your Exact Online Construction API key into the connect screen and choose your AI tool. Check the setup guide or the example prompts to see what is possible.

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