HMRC’s interpretation of a key VAT rule has changed, meaning that newly registered businesses are being denied refunds.
Furthermore, because the tax authority has failed to publically announce its change in procedures, some tax advisers and taxpayers could potentially have been over-claiming input VAT on new VAT registrations.
When a business is required to register for VAT it will already have some stock and assets, and these are used after the registration date, in connection with sales where VAT applies.
Up until HMRC’s very recent rule change, a trader was able to reclaim all the input VAT paid on those goods, in their first VAT return, as long as any relevant goods were acquired in the four years before the date of registration, and the items are still held at the date of registration.
The above rule applied for the last 43 years; however, HMRC’s new policy is that a trader cannot reclaim all of the input VAT paid on those goods.
HMRC apparently changed their approach from 1st January 2011, but it is not possible to confirm this because the record of updates to the VAT input manual only goes back to February 2012.
Affected traders are being advised that they should seek the help of a professional accountant who can complete a VAT return on their behalf, while taking the new rules regarding refunds into account, to ensure returns are submitted correctly.