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Getting Started with the VAT4U Travel App
The VAT4U Travel App is your travel companion for reclaiming the VAT (Value Added Tax) your company pays on business travel expenses. When you travel for work, the app helps you do two things that make VAT recovery possible — and it does them right at the moment that matters: while you're standing at the counter.
This article explains what the app is for, who it's for, how you get access to it, and how to use it on the road.
Why this app exists
When your company pays VAT on travel expenses, a large part of that tax can often be reclaimed. But VAT authorities are strict: they only refund VAT when the supporting paperwork is correct. A normal till receipt is frequently not enough — many countries require a full, compliant invoice that shows your company's legal name, address, and VAT/TAX numbers.
In practice, two things go wrong:
Employees forget to ask for a proper invoice, or don't know what details a merchant needs to put on it. By the time the expense reaches finance, it's too late to fix.
Receipts get lost in wallets, bags, and inboxes before they're ever submitted.
The VAT4U Travel App is built to solve both problems at the source — in the traveler's hands, in the moment of the purchase. Every recovered euro starts with a compliant invoice and a captured receipt, and this app is designed to make both effortless.
Who the app is for
The app is designed for traveling employees — the people actually out in the field paying for hotels, meals, transport, conferences, and other business expenses.
It is not an admin or accounting tool. The configuration, company setup, and the actual VAT recovery processing all happen in the VAT4U web platform, managed by your company's finance team or VAT4U VAT Recovery service team. The mobile app is the traveler's side of that system: simple, fast, and focused on the two things you do on the move.
How you get access
Access always comes from your company — but there are now two ways in, and your company decides which applies to you.
1. You're invited (Traveler invitation)
Your company's VAT4U administrator (usually someone in finance or tax) invites you to VAT4U with the Traveler role. You receive an email with a link to activate your account. From that point you can log in to the app with your email.
2. You sign yourself in (if your company allows it)
Many companies would rather not invite every traveler one by one. If your administrator has enabled sign-in without an invitation and added your work email — or your whole company email domain — to the company's authorized list, you can get into the app with just your email address. No invitation link, and no password to remember: the app emails you a one-time code, and the first time you sign in you simply add your name. You're then set up automatically as a Traveler.
So the typical chain is:
Your company sets up (or already has) a VAT4U company account at app.vat4u.com.
Your administrator either invites you as a Traveler, or turns on self sign-in and authorizes your email / email domain.
You download the app and sign in with your email (see Logging in securely below).
Not sure which applies to you? Just open the app and enter your work email. If your company has set you up either way, you'll receive a login code. If nothing arrives, ask your company's VAT4U administrator to invite you or authorize your email.
Logging in securely
Signing in is passwordless — you log in with your email and a one-time code, so there's no password to create or remember.
When you open the app for the first time, you'll see a short introduction, then you'll be asked for your email address.
Enter your email. If your company has set you up (by invitation or by authorizing your email), we send a 6-digit code to that address.
Enter the code. Open your email, read the code, and type it in. The code is valid for 5 minutes. For your security, after 5 incorrect attempts the code stops working and you'll be asked to request a new one.
You're in. If you already have a VAT4U account, that's it. If this is your first time and you're signing in via your company's authorized list, you'll be asked for your first and last name to finish setting up your Traveler profile — no password needed.
If your company requires two-factor authentication (2FA): if you already have an account with an authenticator app set up, after the email code you'll also be asked for your authenticator code. Enter it to finish signing in. (In rare cases the app may tell you to set up 2FA first — open the VAT4U web application to enroll, then return to the app.)
Prefer a password? Existing account holders can still choose "Log in with password instead" on the email screen and sign in the classic way. New self sign-in travelers don't have a password — the email code is all you need.
Once you're in, the app remembers you, so you won't need to sign in every time you open it.
What you'll do in the app
There are really just two core jobs, and the whole app is organized around them.
1. Get compliant invoices with your virtual business card
This is the part that happens before you get an invoice — and it's where most VAT recovery is won or lost.
On the Home screen you'll find your virtual business card. It carries everything a merchant needs to issue a proper, compliant invoice to your company:
Your company's legal name
Company address
VAT number and local tax number
Your name, job title, email, and phone
Before you request an invoice, tell the app which country you're traveling to. You can pick it from the list or tap Use My Location to detect it automatically. This matters because invoice rules differ from country to country.
Once a country is selected, the app gives you country-specific guidance so you ask for exactly the right thing:
The invoice threshold — many countries allow a simple receipt for small amounts but require a full invoice above a certain value. The app shows you where that line is, so you know when a plain receipt is fine and when you must insist on a full invoice.
What to ask the merchant — a ready-made question you can show at the counter: "Can you please provide me an invoice with the following details? Thank you!"
Country-specific tips — practical notes on what a compliant invoice needs in that location.
When the merchant needs your company details, just open the business card to its full-screen view and show it across the counter — no spelling out VAT numbers, no mistakes.
2. Capture and submit your invoices/receipts
This is the part that happens after you collect the invoice — capturing the proof before it gets lost.
Tap the Add Expense button in the center of the bottom bar, then choose the company the expense belongs to.
From there you can:
Scan an invoice — point your camera at the invoice and the app tracks its edges live, auto-captures when it's in frame, and lets you fine-tune the corners before saving. You get a clean, cropped image every time.
Pick from your gallery — already have a photo? Add one or several existing images straight from your phone.
Invoices you capture are collected into a queue on your device, so you can scan several in a row — a whole day's worth of meals and taxis — and submit them together.
When you're ready, tap Submit to send them to your company's VAT4U profile, where the finance team picks them up for VAT recovery processing. A progress bar keeps you informed, and if anything fails to upload (say you lost signal), it's kept safely on your device so you can retry later.
Keeping track of what you've sent
The Expenses tab shows your history, split into Recent (the last 30 days) and Archive (older). Each item shows its status — pending, submitted, or failed — so you always know what's already on its way to recovery and what still needs your attention.
If expense capture is turned off for you
Not every traveler is set up to submit expenses. Your company's administrator can decide whether your profile is allowed to capture expenses.
If it's turned off for you, the capture screen will tell you so, and the scan and submit buttons won't be available. You can still use the virtual business card and invoice guidance — that part is always available to help you get compliant invoices.
To have expense capture enabled, contact your company's VAT4U account administrator.
Settings and help
The Settings screen lets you:
Log out of your account
Open the Help Center for more support
For administrators: managing access
This section is for company VAT4U administrators who set up who can use the Travel app and what they can do. All of this is configured in the VAT4U web platform, under Company settings → VAT4U Travel.
Choosing how travelers get in
You have two options, and you can use both at once:
Invite travelers individually — add each person with the Traveler role, the same way you invite any VAT4U user. They receive an activation email.
Allow sign-in without an invitation — turn this on when you'd rather not invite everyone by hand. Then authorize who may sign themselves in by:
Adding individual email addresses — type them in, paste a list, or import a CSV (export your list from Excel as CSV first). This is the recommended, most precise option.
Authorizing an email domain (e.g.
yourcompany.com) — anyone with access to an email address at that domain can sign in and create a Traveler account. This is broad, so prefer an explicit email list where you can. Public and disposable email providers (Gmail, Outlook, temporary-mail services, etc.) are blocked automatically and can't be authorized.
Authorized users sign in with a one-time email code — no invitation and no password required (see Logging in securely above). They're set up as Travelers automatically the first time they sign in.
Note: Removing an email or domain from the authorized list stops new sign-ups from it, but does not automatically remove travelers who already signed in. Remove their access from the user list if needed.
Enabling expense capture
By default, a traveler using the app can only view country tips and present the company's details to a merchant (the virtual business card) to obtain a compliant invoice.
If you also want a traveler to capture invoice/receipt images and upload them to VAT4U, enable this in Company settings → VAT4U Travel. When it's off, the traveler can still use the business card and invoice guidance, but the scan and submit buttons won't be available to them.
The big picture
Everything in the app points at one goal: maximizing your company's VAT recovery, without making your trip harder.
The business card and country tips make sure the expense is eligible — you walk away with an invoice the tax authorities will actually accept.
The invoice capture and submission make sure the proof actually reaches the people who file the claim.
You don't need to understand VAT rules, thresholds, or filing deadlines. You just travel, show your card when buying, snap your invoices, and submit. The app and your finance team handle the rest.
Need to be invited? Ask your company's VAT4U administrator to add you as a Traveler. Need a feature enabled or have a question about your account? Your VAT4U administrator is your first point of contact, and the Help Center is always available from Settings.