There is a lot happening on the VAT front and I’ve been busy with various projects, so I’m conscious of neglecting vatexchange.co.uk over the past few weeks. I'm actually writing this blog at 1.52 in the morning because I've been so busy over recent weeks and I haven't had time to sit down and do my blog (okay I know I won't be getting votes of sympathy here, we're all busy!). But on the plus side, it does mean that there are plenty of things to talk about.
The main things are a couple of very important changes that come into effect next year. I’ve posted an article about the new VAT Online Services and the changes to the Place of Supply of Services (“POSS”) on the forum. There is a load of information about the new and updated VAT Online Service on the HMRC newspage and other help available so if you are one of the businesses affected by teh new online filing requirements from 1 April next year, you can't say that you haven't been warned!
The POSS changes are important for other reasons. If you don’t do anything other than UK business, then don’t worry about the changes to the POSS rules as they won’t affect you. Just forget about them and get on making money! But if you are involved at all with supplying or receiving services to or from EC customers/supplies, then you should make yourself familiar with the changes that are coming into effect from 1 January onwards.
In practice, the changes won’t affect the VAT treatment of the majority of transactions, ie whether or not you charge UK VAT. However there is an important change in principle because of the introduction of new “General Rules” concerning supplies to EC customers which relates to WHY you do or don’t charge VAT.
I think that if you are involved in EC business or you are an accountant/advisor with clients involved in EC commerce, then you should at the very least understand the fundamental shift in principle for future reference. It's actually one of the most fundamental changes in VAT principles for a very long time and as a VAT consultant, I strongly urge anyone with any involvement in EC business to get their head around this development.
There are also a number of changes to certain classes of transactions between 2010 and 2015, albeit limited, that will affect whether or not they are liable to UK VAT as well as other practical changes such as the introduction of ESLs for supplies of services next year. Let me know if you have any queries about the new rules and whether they will affect you.
Using the “Contact Us” form
Over the past couple of months I’ve had a number of requests for information that should have gone on the forum but have been sent to me directly using the contact form. I’d like to stress that we only reply to queries free of charge if they are placed on the forums. The contact forms are primarily for queries or comments about the website itself or to request information about the consultancy services provided by VAT Exchange Limited.
I hope to respond to the outstanding queries in the next few days on the forum (I always remove any names or other specific details that could identify the originator when doing this) but for future reference if you want a quick response, please put your queries on the forums where I can see them and deal with them more quickly.
Marie