brauniq.
HUEN
Back to the blog
Accounting AI

ÁNYK to eÁFA: what Hungarian SMEs should do before 2027

NAV: ÁNYK shuts down on 31 December 2026 and VAT returns move to eÁFA. What to do before then.

BBrauniq team· AI and automation 6 min read
ÁNYK to eÁFA: what Hungarian SMEs should do before 2027

ÁNYK, the form-filling program most SMEs still use for VAT returns, shuts down on 31 December 2026, the Hungarian tax authority (NAV) says. Move to eÁFA before then, via its web interface or machine-to-machine (M2M) connection. Safest is to file one in-year period on eÁFA first, because the December return is due in January.

What is ending, and what is not

In December 2025 the NAV wrote that under a mandatory DÁP (digital state) rule, ÁNYK shuts down on 31 December 2026 and from 2027 data can only be sent through data-based solutions. The legal background is Government Decree 322/2024, section 152 (13): the NAV may run the old service only until 31 December 2026.

A tool is ending, not the form of the return. Section 184 (2) of the current VAT Act allows three routes: the form, or a draft approved on the web interface or via the machine interface. We found no provision making eÁFA mandatory from 2027, yet the practical step is to switch by year end.

December is the delicate period

Monthly filers file by the 20th of the following month, quarterly filers by the 20th after the quarter, annual filers by 25 February of the next year. The December, Q4 and annual returns are due in 2027, when the NAV says ÁNYK no longer runs.

Yet the August 2026 guide for form 2665 still covers the 12th month and Q4. It also requires late filings and self-corrections for 2026 periods on that form, for the last period until the end of 2032. That leaves an open gap.

A possible postponement

Professional circles, for example MKOE in a letter, have raised a postponement, but Adózóna reported on 25 September that there is no official decision yet. Do not build a plan on it.

M-lap: less reporting on eÁFA

The M-lap is the VAT return appendix on incoming invoices. Act LXXXIII of 2025 tightened it from 1 July 2026: the VAT actually deducted would have had to be shown per tax rate. In June the Ministry of Finance said it did not want this applied to any period.

Act XXXV of 2026, promulgated on 30 July, reversed it. According to an Adózóna summary, reporting on received invoices after 1 July can follow the rules in force on 30 June.

In ÁNYK the M-lap stays mandatory, though the form 2665 guide makes the deducted-VAT fields voluntary. eÁFA filers, however, are exempt from the M-lap declaration under point 15 of Annex 10 to the VAT Act.

Where the switch stands

According to an Adózóna article of 25 September citing NAV data, nearly 460,000 taxpayers used ÁNYK in the first seven months of 2026, fewer than 6,500 used the eÁFA web interface and fewer than 500 M2M. If this does not change, many will be learning the new system at the same time in December.

Approval is the filing

Under section 184 (3) of the VAT Act, approving a draft return on the web interface or through M2M counts as filing it. Approval is not a preview: if the draft is wrong and you approve it, you have filed a wrong return.

If someone files through more than one route, the first one submitted counts. Once a return filed on eÁFA is self-corrected on the form, it can only be corrected on the form from then on. The NAV deletes an unapproved M2M draft on the last day of the month after the filing deadline.

Web interface or M2M

The NAV says the web interface is open to businesses with fewer than 100,000 invoices per filing period and suits those without complex domestic transactions best. The NAV builds the draft from its transaction data, which you can check, amend and complete.

The M2M connection suits companies with more documents and complex tax decisions, but also works below 100,000 invoices if the bookkeeping is digital. The NAV may flag discrepancies before submission, and validation can take 3 to 5 days.

M2M self-correction and XSD 2.0

M2M filers who self-correct within 15 days counted from filing, or at the latest from the due date, pay no self-correction surcharge. Since 3 August 2026 M2M works only with XSD 2.0, so check this with your software vendor.

What AI can automate around eÁFA

eÁFA does not take responsibility off the accountant, only the assembly of the draft. The work shifts to checking whether the NAV draft matches what the company actually booked, and part of that can be automated.

  • Invoice data reconciliation: automatic matching of the NAV's invoice data with general ledger entries, highlighting missing, duplicated or mismatched items.
  • Flagging discrepancies before approval: because approval is the filing, the check has to run before it, not after.
  • Posting and tax code suggestions: based on earlier booking patterns, with human approval, with unclear items routed to the accountant.

Paper and scanned documents

Reading documents that arrive on paper or as scans is a separate task, covered on our document processing AI page.

To do before year end

  1. Decide per company: web interface or M2M, based on invoice volume and accounting software.
  2. As an accounting firm, check that representation rights are registered with the NAV for every client.
  3. File at least one in-year period on eÁFA and compare the result with your own VAT analytics.
  4. For M2M, get written confirmation of XSD 2.0 support from the software vendor.
  5. Write down who approves the draft and after what check, because that click is the filing.

Where to go from here

To hand the reconciliation and discrepancy screening to a machine before anyone approves a draft, see how we build accounting AI solutions. This article is not tax advice. For a decision tailored to your company, ask your accountant or tax adviser.

Sources

Further sources

#eÁFA#ÁNYK#VAT return#M-lap#eÁFA M2M#NAV

FAQ

Does the law make eÁFA mandatory from 2027?

Section 184 of the VAT Act in force also recognises the paper-style form, and we found no provision making eÁFA mandatory from 2027. But the NAV has announced that ÁNYK shuts down on 31 December 2026, so the practical step is to switch by year end.

What happens if I approve an eÁFA draft return?

Under section 184 (3) of the VAT Act, approving the draft counts as filing the return. After that it can only be fixed by self-correction, so every check has to run before approval.

Do I still need to fill in the M-lap if I file on eÁFA?

No: under point 15 of Annex 10 to the VAT Act, those who file on eÁFA are exempt from the M-lap declaration. In ÁNYK the M-lap stays mandatory, but under the form 2665 guide the fields for VAT actually deducted are currently voluntary.

Should we choose the web interface or M2M?

According to the NAV, the web interface can be used by businesses with fewer than 100,000 invoices per filing period. M2M suits companies with more documents or already digital bookkeeping, and since 3 August 2026 it works only with XSD 2.0.

Related service

AI for accounting

Brauniq builds AI that supports accounting: it reads incoming invoices, categorises them, suggests ledger entries, tracks VAT and NAV deadlines and produces reports.

Service detailsFree assessment

Also related: Document processing AI

Related articles