Why your foreign invoice now concerns the Moroccan tax authority
A Moroccan accountant receives an invoice from a French hosting provider with no Moroccan VAT line. An American SaaS vendor suddenly asks for a tax identifier (IF). A European domain registrar adds 'VAT Morocco 20%' to its invoice. All three situations share the same cause: Morocco's 2024 Finance Law introduced Article 115 bis into the General Tax Code, which subjects to VAT any dematerialized remote service provided by a foreign provider without an establishment in Morocco to clients whose registered office, establishment or tax domicile is in Morocco. The logic mirrors the approach adopted by the European Union since 2015: the country of consumption taxes, not the country of the provider. The most common objection — 'my invoice comes from a French provider, this has nothing to do with Morocco' — is precisely what the law is designed to correct. It is the foreign provider who owes the VAT, and it is the provider's responsibility to collect it from the Moroccan client and remit it to the DGI.
What the measure covers in practice
- Web hosting and VPS — provision and hosting of websites, virtual private servers, cloud infrastructure rented remotely by a provider with no office in Morocco.
- Domain names — registration, renewal and transfer of domain names invoiced by a foreign registrar to a client whose tax domicile is in Morocco.
- SaaS software — subscriptions to business applications, collaboration tools, control panels and development platforms delivered online.
- Digital content — video and audio streaming, media libraries, online training, databases and any content delivered in dematerialized form.
- Remote maintenance — technical interventions, updates and support included in a service contract executed without physical presence.
- Platform subscriptions — marketplaces, monitoring tools, data aggregators and any platform accessible by recurring subscription.
- Targeted online advertising — display of ads on third-party networks targeting users whose IP address or tax profile is in Morocco.
Legal basis: 2024 Finance Law and December 2025 decree
Article 115 bis of the General Tax Code, introduced by the 2024 Finance Law, defines the obligations of non-resident remote service providers: register with the DGI, submit quarterly declarations of turnover realized in Morocco and remit the corresponding VAT without any right of deduction. Decree no. 2-25-862 amending Decree no. 2-06-574 on VAT application was published in the Official Bulletin of Morocco: Arabic version on December 11, 2025, French version on December 18, 2025. This decree set out the practical modalities — notably the opening of the SIMPL teleservice — and fixed June 11, 2026 as the date when online formalities came into effect. The applicable rate is the standard Moroccan VAT rate: 20%. No reduced rate covers digital services as defined by the text.
Who owes the tax: foreign provider or Moroccan client
The measure targets foreign providers without a permanent establishment in Morocco who provide remote services to non-VAT-registered Moroccan clients — individuals and businesses that do not hold an active VAT number. If the Moroccan client is itself VAT-registered (a company with an active IF number, an accounting firm, an agency), the reverse-charge mechanism applies: the client declares and remits the tax in its own VAT return, and the foreign provider does not need to register for that flow. In practice, a foreign hosting provider or SaaS publisher with a mixed Moroccan client base — VAT-registered professionals and non-registered individuals or micro-businesses — must distinguish these two flows in its invoicing. For the non-registered flow, it collects and remits. For the registered flow, it invoices exclusive of VAT and leaves the client to self-assess.
Registering on tax.gov.ma: the steps documented by the DGI
Access the DGI portal
Go to www.tax.gov.ma, SIMPL Teleservices section. The 'Taxation on digital services' section is accessible without a prior account for first-time registration.
Create a foreign provider account
Enter the company name, country of establishment, registered address and contact details for a tax representative. No local representative in Morocco is required for providers established in a country with which Morocco maintains tax information exchange.
Obtain a Moroccan tax identifier (IF)
Upon completion of registration, the DGI assigns an IF specific to this foreign account. This number must appear on invoices issued to non-VAT-registered Moroccan clients from the date of registration.
Maintain a register of Moroccan transactions
The decree requires a detailed register of transactions with clients whose tax domicile is in Morocco: date, nature of service, net amount, VAT collected, client identity. This register must be retained and may be requested by the DGI in a tax audit.
Submit the quarterly declaration
Before the end of the first month following each calendar quarter (before January 31, April 30, July 31, October 31), submit via SIMPL the declaration of turnover realized in Morocco during the preceding quarter.
Remit VAT simultaneously
Payment is made online at the time of the declaration, in Moroccan dirhams (MAD) via the payment methods accepted by the DGI portal. No input VAT deduction right is available: the VAT collected is remitted in full.
Update invoice templates
Once the IF is obtained, invoices issued to non-VAT-registered Moroccan clients must show the Moroccan IF, the net base, the 20% rate and the VAT amount collected. An invoice without these details carries a reclassification risk during a client-side tax audit.
What this means for Moroccan buyers of cloud services
If you are a Moroccan SME, agency or IT manager purchasing digital services from foreign providers, your situation depends on your VAT status. You are VAT-registered with an active IF: your foreign provider should in principle invoice you exclusive of Moroccan VAT and you self-assess in your quarterly return. You are not VAT-registered (individual, micro-business, association): your foreign provider must now add 20% Moroccan VAT to your invoice and remit it to the DGI. In practice, some foreign providers have not yet registered: they invoice without Moroccan VAT, which does not protect you in a tax audit — primary liability remains with them, but the absence of tax on a taxable service may attract scrutiny of your deductible expenses. Asking your provider for its Moroccan IF is a sound management practice.
Choosing a provider established in Morocco radically simplifies your tax situation. A Morocco-based provider — an ANRT-accredited registrar, a local hosting company — invoices under its own Moroccan VAT number, applies the current rate and issues a compliant invoice without you needing to track its foreign registration status. For your accounts: a single contractual relationship under Moroccan law, with no foreign VAT to self-assess or justify.
Troubleshooting: common situations and answers
Several recurring scenarios have emerged in exchanges between Moroccan companies and their foreign providers since June 11, 2026.
Frequent errors and questions
- 'My provider is asking for my IF number but I do not have one' — if you are non-VAT-registered (individual or entity without active VAT status), you have no IF to provide. Your provider must invoice you with 20% Moroccan VAT and manage the remittance itself.
- 'My foreign invoice shows Morocco VAT 20% but no Moroccan IF' — ask your provider to supply its Moroccan IF. VAT collected by an unregistered provider is irregular with the DGI and may not be deductible if you are VAT-registered.
- 'I am VAT-registered in Morocco and my foreign provider still adds 20%' — inform your provider of your Moroccan IF number and your VAT-registered status. It must invoice you exclusive of Moroccan VAT and note 'reverse charge by VAT-registered customer'. You then declare the tax yourself in your VAT return.
- 'My foreign provider says it is not aware of this obligation' — the measure entered into force on June 11, 2026; providers with non-VAT-registered Moroccan clients are required to register. The DGI makes a downloadable guide available on
www.tax.gov.maunder SIMPL / Taxation on digital services. - 'I am a French provider and my Moroccan client sent me their IF, but I do not know if it is valid' — the DGI does not yet have a public online IF verification directory as of 2026-08-10; ask your client for an official document (DGI certificate) confirming their registered VAT status and retain it in your client file.
Anticipating upcoming deadlines
The June 2026 measure marks the start of online formalities, not the end of the regulatory calendar. The DGI has indicated that compliance checks will follow the opening of the teleservice: foreign providers active in the Moroccan market before June 11, 2026 may be invited to regularize their tax position for prior periods, within the limitation periods provided by the General Tax Code. For Moroccan businesses, the priority is to maintain an up-to-date list of foreign digital service providers, distinguish VAT-registered from non-registered clients, and document the VAT treatment applied to each contractual relationship. This documentation is what a tax audit will examine first. An annual review of active contracts, cross-referenced with the provider register and their DGI registration status, is a proportionate risk management measure.
