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De wereld staat op scherp. Geopolitieke spanningen, economische sancties, handelsoorlogen, datalekken en strenge regels zoals die onder ‘VAT in the Digital Age’ maken één ding duidelijk: dataopslag in het buitenland is geen vanzelfsprekendheid meer.
More and more organizations—especially in sectors where security, reliability, and compliance are critical—are deliberately choosing local or even sovereign data storage. And rightly so. The rollout of VAT in the Digital Age only raises further concerns about foreign cloud solutions.
What role does VAT in the Digital Age play?
ViDA is a new EU legislative package that mandates real-time e-invoicing and reporting for all B2B transactions within the European Union. This means businesses must automatically and immediately transmit their VAT data to the tax authorities of various Member States—without delay, without error.
This shift requires:
- Robust IT systems that can operate in real-time
- Uniform data formats that meet EU standards
- And above all: secure and consistent data storage
Storing such sensitive transactional data abroad brings added risks: delays or unauthorized access can result in compliance failures, financial penalties, or cash flow disruptions. And that’s just the beginning—trust in major US-based cloud providers is declining for several reasons.
Four reasons to think twice about foreign data storage
For years, the cloud was presented as a borderless, scalable, and always-on solution. But growing political instability, unpredictable world leaders, and international legislation have made the physical location of data more important than ever. Let’s take a closer look at the risks of cloud storage outside Europe:
- Conflicts between EU and non-EU legislation
When storing data outside the EU, conflicting legal frameworks may apply. European companies must comply with the GDPR, while foreign providers may be compelled to hand over data to their national authorities—such as under the US CLOUD Act. This can trigger legal disputes, fines, or sanctions.
- Access by foreign governments without owner consent
In some countries, intelligence agencies or government bodies have broad powers to demand access to data. Even information belonging to a European organization can fall under foreign jurisdiction once stored on non-EU servers. This threatens the confidentiality of strategic or personal data.
- Availability disruptions due to sanctions or global conflict
Geopolitical developments can suddenly limit access to foreign data centers. Economic sanctions, trade disputes, or international blockades may temporarily—or permanently—cut off access. The result? Critical business operations grind to a halt, with severe consequences for service continuity.
- Reputation damage and loss of trust—especially in sensitive sectors
If customers, partners and regulators find out that your data is stored in politically unstable or insecure environments, their trust in your organization may erode significantly. This is especially true for organizations in healthcare, government, finance, or industry—all sectors in which data integrity is vital for both operations and brand image.
Dutch cloud storage: safe, compliant, local
Now for the good news. Our partner OpenText offers the best of both worlds: international expertise paired with local reliability. OpenText runs its own data center in Amstelveen, enabling your organization to store data locally—without compromising on performance, scalability, or innovation.
OpenText applies strict and consistent security protocols to protect customer data, fully aligned with the EU’s data privacy standards. Thanks to its fully segregated and independent European data zone, OpenText can deliver its cloud services even more securely. This zone is physically and logically separated from all other networks, including hardware and access structures.
In other words: as a tcf. client, you know exactly where your data is hosted and who can access it. Better yet, you can rest assured that you are fully compliant with both Dutch and European regulations.
Want to understand what ViDA and other EU regulations mean for the secure and compliant design of your processes? Get in touch with us—we’re happy to help.
