# Reclaiming VAT from UK



## clonjess (20 Feb 2008)

Hi, I am trading under an Irish limited company and I want to purchase PC equipment from the UK. If i reclaim VAT from the UK Revenue or get the PC exempt from VAT, must I then account for VAT @ 21% on my Irish VAT return and pay it to the Irish Revenue? Any info would be much appreciated..many thanks


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## mathepac (20 Feb 2008)

No - you supply your Irish VAT reg no to your UK supplier and purchase the goods VAT free from the UK. Thats it, end of.


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## Nige (20 Feb 2008)

mathepac said:


> Thats it, end of.


 
Not quite. You then self account for the VAT on your Irish VAT return - so charge yourself the 21% VAT (as if it were an additional sale) and, if you are entitled, also reclaim that VAT.


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## mathepac (20 Feb 2008)

Nige said:


> Not quite. You then self account for the VAT on your Irish VAT return - so charge yourself the 21% VAT (as if it were an additional sale) and, if you are entitled, also reclaim that VAT.


Sorry, missed out closing the loop.


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## clonjess (25 Feb 2008)

Many thanks...


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## extopia (25 Feb 2008)

Nige said:


> Not quite. You then self account for the VAT on your Irish VAT return - so charge yourself the 21% VAT (as if it were an additional sale) and, if you are entitled, also reclaim that VAT.



That's a new one on me. How exactly does this work in practice? How do you "charge yourself the VAT" in the books?


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## Graham_07 (26 Feb 2008)

extopia said:


> That's a new one on me. How exactly does this work in practice? How do you "charge yourself the VAT" in the books?


 
It's not new, in fact has been around since the final implementation of the single market on, was it 2000? a bit before the Euro I think. The idea is you get a theoretical VAT credit for the item which is included in either purchases for or not for resale as the case may be / EU acquisitions.
You then have to include a theoretical sale under EU acquisitions. Basically, the two transactions cancel each other out financially but they must be put through the VAT system in the business.


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## Jayk69 (11 Sep 2008)

Hey there really hoping some1 maybe able to help me out here. I understand about the reclaiming of V.A.T. back from the U.K, just looking for some advice and if what has been mentioned can work with this. 

Story is that I manage a football team in Ireland, i went to and English supplier to buy our team kits etc as they were close to €2500 cheaper. Can the VAT be claimed back by an Irish VAT registered company that doesn't actually buy in clothing??? I'm getting confused by different people giving me different explanations. Is it a VAT free invoice i would be looking for and does this company have to submit the invoice in Ireland???


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## dereko1969 (12 Sep 2008)

they could possibly claim it back but they would be defrauding the revenue and if audited would be made to pay interest and penalties


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## Jayk69 (21 Sep 2008)

Thanks for that but I really need to know ASAP how to get this VAT back as its close to €700 and thats massive to a small club like ours, can some one please help me and give me some advice.


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## mathepac (22 Sep 2008)

Jayk69 said:


> ... I really need to know ASAP how to get this VAT back as its close to €700 and thats massive to a small club like ours, can some one please help me and give me some advice.


I'm unsure as to what additional advice you need.

If the club purchasing the gear is VAT registered in Ireland, then supply the Irish VAT reg no to the UK company and they supply the gear VAT free.

If you are proposing that a third-party VAT-registered Irish company purchases the gear, once they sell it to the club, then they must charge VAT at Irish rates. Unless of course they wish to sponsor the donation of the gear to the club...


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## Lillywhites (30 Dec 2012)

Hi,

I run a company who are attending an exhibition in the UK at the end of January. The company running the exhibition included VAT on the invoice, when I went back to them asking for a VAT free invoice because we are an Irish company I got the following reply:

"Hi
Sorry about this but VAT still needs to be paid because the event takes place in the UK. Events are classified differently for VAT I'm afraid."

Does anyone know if this is in fact the case? Does it make a difference when it comes to paying VAT if it is for an event taking place in the UK?

And if VAT is due is there some way I can reclaim this from the UK government? (I'm assuming here there is no way we can reclaim it as part of our Irish VAT return to revenue given that they would have never received the VAT paid in the first place so they are hardly going to repay it to our company).

Thanks for any advice provided.


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## thunder99 (30 Dec 2012)

They are correct. The service is been provided in the UK and not exported, so UK VAT is due.

You can reclaim the VAT, but I'm not exactly sure how.


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## Lillywhites (31 Dec 2012)

Thanks for the reply thunder99, I will look a bit further into how the VAT can be reclaimed.


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## mandelbrot (31 Dec 2012)

Lillywhites said:


> Thanks for the reply thunder99, I will look a bit further into how the VAT can be reclaimed.



You should start here:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vat/managing/international/EU-visits.htm


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## smeharg (2 Jan 2013)

Lillywhites said:


> Hi,
> 
> I run a company who are attending an exhibition in the UK at the end of January. The company running the exhibition included VAT on the invoice, when I went back to them asking for a VAT free invoice because we are an Irish company I got the following reply:
> 
> ...


 
The UK's VAT rules changed recently in relation to the supply of exhibition space.  Whether or not UK VAT should be charged will depend on what is actually being supplied.

If it is merely exhibition space it is treated as a supply of land and UK VAT applies.  If the supply includes accompanying services, then it is not regarded as a supply of land and UK VAT should not apply when the supply is to a non-UK VAT registered business (provided the normal procedures for are followed).

See here for more details:


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