What is data-based reporting?
At the end of this year, changes will be introduced in the Estonian Tax and Customs Board’s systems for submitting declarations and reports. The first changes will mainly affect Annexes 1 and 2 of the TSD, which is used for reporting payroll-related tax data. Next year, the VAT return and the employment register (TÖR) will also be added to the list.
The main purpose of the change is to reduce the administrative burden for businesses. In the future, companies should be able to complete most reporting-related activities directly in their accounting software, without needing to log in to the e-MTA environment.
What exactly will change?
TSD
The first stage concerns the TSD , more specifically Annexes 1 and 2. The file format used for submitting data will change, and the data submission form in the user interface will also be updated. The current view for TSD Annexes 1 and 2 will be replaced with a single payroll payments view.
The new format must be used for the first time when submitting TSD Annexes 1 and 2 for October transactions, by 10 November 2026. There will be no changes to the submission of the other annexes at this stage.
Starting from the October TSD, the data for Annexes 1 and 2 can be submitted using a new XBRL GL file. This is an XML-based file format designed for exchanging information about business transactions.
According to the initial information, support for CSV files was expected to be discontinued already for the submission of October transactions. However, based on the latest information, data submission from CSV files will continue to be supported during a transition period until the end of 2027.
It is important to note, however, that from October onwards it will no longer be possible to upload data using the current XML-format file. For Annexes 1 and 2, an XBRL GL file must be used instead. In addition to submitting data through the integration, it will still be possible to submit data from files and enter data manually.
VAT return and employment register
According to the current plan, the VAT return and the employment register (TÖR) will be moved to the new systems from 1 April 2027. This means that the first VAT return in the new system will need to be submitted for April 2027 transactions by 20 May 2027.
The file format used for submitting the VAT return will change, as will the form in the user interface.
Summary of the data-based reporting deadlines
- TSD Annexes 1 and 2 must be submitted according to the new system starting with October 2026 transactions, by 10 November 2026.
- The VAT return must be submitted according to the new system starting with April 2027 transactions, by 20 May 2027.
- Employee data in the employment register (TÖR) must be submitted according to the new system from 1 April 2027.
What will change for SmartAccounts users?
For SmartAccounts users, the updates planned by the Estonian Tax and Customs Board will not bring major changes to existing processes. Our development team is already working on the updates related to the TSD, and we will be ready for our users to submit TSD Annexes 1 and 2 for October both via the integration and using the updated XBRL GL file format.
A few things to keep in mind
- In the initial version of the TSD update, which is expected to be completed in October 2026, users submitting data via the integration are currently not expected to have the option to submit a confirmed TSD . This means that, at first, users will most likely need to submit TSD in an unconfirmed status and then log in to e-MTA to confirm them.
- Please note that the current version supports the submission of both confirmed and unconfirmed TSD. However, if Annexes 3–7 are completed in e-MTA, the declaration must also currently be submitted to e-MTA via the integration in an unconfirmed status. According to the initial plans, the confirmation service will be added next year.
- As the updated file format requires more detailed data in certain places than is currently needed, some additional data fields may need to be completed for certain transactions.
Summary and key takeaways
- Changes are coming to the Estonian Tax and Customs Board’s systems, and reporting will gradually move towards data-based reporting.
- From 1 October 2026, the submission of TSD Annexes 1 and 2 will change, and the file format will be updated. Going forward, data can be submitted using an XBRL GL file.
- From 1 April 2027, the submission of the VAT return will change.
- SmartAccounts users who have activated the e-MTA integration will still be able to submit data through the integration from 1 October 2026. The view for TSD annexes and the file format will be updated.
- Companies that already have the e-MTA integration activated will not need to activate it again after the changes.
- Annexes 3–7 will still need to be completed manually in the e-MTA environment after the changes.
- In the first phase, users will be able to submit TSD via the integration in an unconfirmed status. The option to submit confirmed declarations will be added in the new year.
- SmartAccounts users who have not activated the e-MTA integration will be able to upload transactions using an XBRL GL file starting from 1 October 2026.
- As there may still be further changes related to the VAT return and the employment register, we cannot yet share more detailed information about those updates. What we can say is that SmartAccounts will first be ready for the TSD updates and, in line with the relevant deadlines, also for the upcoming changes to the VAT return.
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More information is available on the website of the Estonian Tax and Customs Board.
