Value Added Tax

How we can help

Value Added Tax (VAT) is probably the most cumbersome tax for any business. There are lots of different rules and schemes, different goods and activities have different rates and on top of balancing all of that complexity, the returns to HMRC are frequent, either monthly or quarterly. This is because VAT is the third largest source of revenue for HMRC and so, getting it right is very important to both them and the business owners.

VAT is not just a tax unique to the UK however and there is much wider legislation for the European Economic Area (EEA) and International legislation as well (all those countries trading with European nations). VAT locally to the UK is complex but as it is a Europe wide tax and has international legislation, it is often best to seek advice on it’s full implementation. As your business scales, so does this prevailing legislation.

Any business that makes more than £85,000 in the UK in turnover from a ‘chargeable activity’ must register for VAT when they exceed the threshold and must pre-notify HMRC that they are about to exceed this once they hit a certain threshold just below this value. Once this level is exceeded, we can support with the full VAT registration, come up with a VAT returns plan that suits your business cash flow needs and apply all relevant and correct rates to your goods and services, depending on your business types.

VAT often involves large amounts of money and a large volume of transactions so, can be very time consuming but also very costly if incorrect. We can offer a good support package alongside VAT using our bookkeeping and accounting software combination along with VAT returns to help your business process information correctly, timely, accurately and most importantly, to ensure everything up to date. This will allow us to complete the entire VAT process from start to finish so that you, as the business owner, don’t have to worry.

At RFBS, we can take away all the worry and stress of managing VAT within your business. We have learned the rules, know how the scheme works and by allowing us to support your business, you can be rest assured, that you’re in safe hands.

We offer a range of support and advice however to ensure your business is well-looked after such as:

• Cash flow monitoring
• International and global supply chains where VAT may be applicable
• International Customs & Excise and VAT declaration paperwork
• Managing VAT risk
• New products, diversification of operations and sector analysis
• Partial exemptions and non-chargeable activities
• Registration for Making Tax Digital
• Transactions, contract fulfilment and turnover monitoring
• VAT applicable funding or leasing
• VAT audits and monitoring
• VAT returns anti-avoidance