Accounting and invoicing for HVAC firms
Air conditioning, ventilation, cold rooms and servicing: HVAC engineers install, service and top up refrigerant. Saldiqo issues stage invoices for installation, bills maintenance contracts on schedule and records device deliveries and refrigerant as material.
What comes up for HVAC and refrigeration firms
Installation and servicing
New systems are installed once, servicing runs yearly. Both have their own prices and cycles.
Business customers with contracts
Restaurants, offices and practices sign maintenance contracts and expect on-time invoices.
Refrigerant and material
Refrigerant and spare parts are used per call-out and have to be assigned to the job.
How Saldiqo helps
- Stage invoice for installationQuote, stage invoice on ordering the unit, final invoice.
- Maintenance contracts as recurring invoicesYearly or half-yearly servicing on a fixed date.
- Material per call-outRecord receipts and assign them to the cost centre.
- Time trackingRecord call-out time and bill by effort.
Typical invoice lines
Examples that often appear on invoices in this industry. You set the prices yourself.
- Split air conditioner, supply and installation
- Air conditioning servicing, yearly
- Refrigerant top-up as used
- Ventilation system cleaning
- Fault repair, hour
- Stage invoice 40 % on order
Tax and invoicing in Malta
What applies to invoices in Malta, in short. As of October 2026.
- VAT
- Rates 18 %, 12 %, 7 % and 5 %. Malta has no zero rate in law. Exports, EU supplies, food and medicines are exempt with credit, which lets you reclaim input VAT. Exempt without credit does not.
- Article 11 small undertakings
- With up to €35,000 of domestic turnover a year you can be exempt under Article 11. The status ends on the day the limit is passed, and you still register with the VAT department. Saldiqo adds the exemption note and leaves VAT off.
- Tax invoice or fiscal receipt
- A tax invoice is issued only when the customer gives you a VAT number. Otherwise a fiscal receipt from an approved system is required. Saldiqo writes invoices. It is not a fiscal receipt system, and a Saldiqo PDF does not replace a fiscal receipt.
- Invoice timing
- Issue the invoice by the 15th of the following month, or when payment arrives if that comes first. Simplified invoices are allowed up to €100.
- E-invoicing
- There is no mandate. Public bodies accept e-invoices through Peppol (EN 16931). The tax authority plans e-invoicing and real-time reporting but has set no dates, and EU rules apply from 1 July 2030.
- VAT returns
- Returns are due by the 15th day of the second month after the period, with 7 extra days when you file and pay electronically. Article 11 businesses file a yearly declaration by 15 February. Saldiqo does not file returns.
- Record keeping
- VAT records for 6 years, income tax records for 9 years and company records for 10 years. Plan for 10 years.
- Late payment
- Interest on late business payments is 10.40 %, plus €40 compensation between businesses.
- Languages
- Use Saldiqo in English or Maltese and send invoices in either language.
Frequently asked questions
Can I bill maintenance contracts automatically?
Yes. A recurring invoice creates the invoice on a fixed date.
How do I bill refrigerant?
As an item with a quantity per call-out or as a re-invoiced receipt.
Do HVAC and refrigeration firms in Malta have to charge VAT?
If you are registered under Article 10, yes. Small undertakings under Article 11 with domestic turnover of up to €35,000 a year are exempt from charging VAT, but the status ends on the day the limit is passed.
Do HVAC and refrigeration firms in Malta need a fiscal receipt?
Sales to consumers need a fiscal receipt from an approved fiscal receipt system, and Article 11 businesses use one for all sales. Saldiqo is not such a system. It covers tax invoices to customers who give you their VAT number.
How long should HVAC and refrigeration firms keep invoices?
VAT records for 6 years, income tax records for 9 years and company records for 10 years, so plan for 10 years. You can store receipts digitally in Saldiqo. The legal duty to keep records stays with you.
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As of October 2026. General information, not legal or tax advice, without guarantee. For your case ask your tax adviser.