How To Find Your VAT number

VAT registered companies will all have a singular VAT quantity assigned to them. Should you can’t discover your VAT quantity, there are many methods to find it.

You possibly can examine your current paperwork together with VAT certificates or letters from HMRC regarding your VAT registration or ongoing accounts, you’ll be able to name HMRC to examine the main points, or use your Authorities Gateway account to search out the quantity in your on-line tax account.

Discovering Your VAT Quantity From Current Report

Upon getting a VAT quantity, it will likely be included on all official documentation from HMRC and your accounting paperwork. Verify the next data that you’ll have to find your tax quantity:

Verify the next locations to search out your VAT quantity: 

VAT certificates and letters from HMRC

Gross sales invoices you’ve despatched to shoppers

Historic VAT returns

Your accounts system (significantly if it’s on-line)

Contracts or finance functions that reference VAT numbers.

It’s doubtless that you just retailer these sorts of paperwork rigorously in a single place, so it must be straightforward sufficient to search out the lacking info.

Discovering Your VAT Quantity By way of The VAR Helpline

HMRC has a useful helpline for anybody that requires help with VAT.

Merely name 0300 200 3700 for help. You will have to have the ability to show your identification and hyperlink to the enterprise. You possibly can then both be advised your VAT quantity on the telephone or have a reminder despatched to you by way of the put up.

When you’ve got a quantity however aren’t positive if it’s a VAT quantity, you can too use the ‘examine a VAT quantity’ device on-line right here.

Discovering Your VAT Quantity With Authorities Gateway

If you’re registered for self evaluation, are an organization proprietor or handle your tax affairs on-line, you should have a authorities gateway ID. It’s a login that grants you entry to your tax particulars on-line.

Should you signal into your authorities gateway account, you’ll be able to go to the VAT particulars part in your account the place the quantity you want will probably be displayed.

Most companies will now be registered for on-line tax submitting as a part of the making tax digital initiative (MTD). Because of this your VAT quantity may also present in your HMRC account on-line once you login.

Discovering Your VAT Quantity From Your Earlier VAT Historical past

One of many best methods to search out present numbers for issues is to take a look at earlier data for a similar factor. On this case, asking HMRC for a registration historical past letter will aid you to search out your VAT quantity together with info on when it was arrange, de-registered and different helpful details about your VAT quantity’s historical past.

What’s VAT and Why It Issues

Worth added tax (VAT) is a tax paid on items and companies. It may be collected at each stage of the availability chain the place supplies, services and products are exchanged between companies and companies to prospects.

Companies which might be tax registered should acquire and pay VAT to HMRC whereas prospects are charged VAT on the level of sale when buying on-line or in-store. The cash raised goes to the Authorities.

The present commonplace UK VAT charge is 20% on most items and companies. Lowered VAT charges are additionally in motion for objects like youngsters’s security tools (automobile seats) and most meals.

Here’s a record of all present VAT charges within the UK: https://www.gov.uk/vat-rates

Why Do You Want A Tax Quantity?

It’s legally required {that a} enterprise has a VAT quantity if they’ve a turnover of £85,000 or extra. In the event that they meet this threshold however fail to register for VAT, they’re topic to giant monetary penalties.

When an organization exceeds £85,000 in turnover in a 12 month interval, or they count on to exceed it within the subsequent 30 days, then VAT registration is required. This is applicable to sole merchants, partnerships and restricted corporations.

The penalties on non-compliance with VAT registration may be extreme. From monetary penalties of 100% of the unpaid VAT and prosecution for tax evasion, it truly is finest to make sure that your corporation tax affairs are so as. An accountant can assist you to make sure you’re totally compliant and provide you with a warning if any modifications are wanted as your corporation develops.

When You Want a VAT Quantity

Turnover threshold, enterprise constructions and buying and selling with EU nations are all triggers for needing a VAT Quantity.

The primary level {that a} enterprise might want to register for VAT is after they attain £85,000 taxable turnover in 12 months or count on to hit it within the subsequent 30 days. Taxable turnover is enterprise gross sales excluding VAT and is obligatory as soon as these thresholds are triggered.

Sole merchants who change their enterprise construction to restricted corporations, partnerships that change into restricted legal responsibility partnerships or if an current VAT enterprise joins your corporation are additionally causes that require a VAT quantity.

Buying and selling with EU nations obligates VAT registration and provides proof that you’ll deal with VAT on EU gross sales appropriately. Any purchases made out of EU provides entitle you to say VAT refunds.

 The way to Verify If Your Enterprise Ought to Be VAT Registered

While most small enterprise homeowners may have a agency deal with on their accounts, earnings and turnover, some could also be unaware of their present monetary place. If you end up within the latter camp, you must take devoted steps to checking when you have exceeded the VAT registration threshold.

You are able to do this by reviewing your taxable turnover: 

• Including up the gross sales and earnings from your corporation within the final 12 months. Should you use a finance software program like Xero or Sage, this will probably be straightforward to see. Should you manually log your work on spreadsheets, merely sum the entire of each the gross sales and earnings acquired this yr.
• Exclude any VAT you charged prospects in these calculations
• The results of your taxable turnover future. If it’s greater than £85k, then it is advisable act now. If it’s much less, then you definitely don’t should be VAT registered.

Projecting subsequent month’s turnover: 

Estimate your subsequent month’s turnover excluding VAT for the subsequent 30 days utilizing the identical methodology as outlined above for the 12 month interval. If it goes over £85k, then it is advisable register for VAT.

VAT Scheme Changes

Flat charge accounting and annual accounting are VAT schemes which will alter your turnover calculations. Flat charge schemes permit small companies with a turnover of £83,000 or underneath to voluntarily pay VAT as a set share of turnover underneath £83,0000.

An annual accounting scheme permits the submission of 1 annual return slightly than the normal quarterly submissions required for VAT. This supplies extra flexibility on fluctuation in turnover.

Money accounting schemes imply companies pay VAT on buyer funds acquired slightly than invoices raised. Once more, the £85,000 threshold applies to money acquired strategies however there isn’t any requirement to regulate VAT thresholds for unpaid invoices.

VAT margin schemes are good for these reselling second hand items with out altering them. Right here, sellers solely account for VAT on revenue margin, not full sale worth and there’s no turnover threshold for these margin exemptions.

VAT Exemptions 

Should you’re in training, well being, finance, rental and not-for-profit sectors you might qualify for VAT exemptions or be topic to different registration guidelines.

In abstract, there are many causes and methods to examine if your corporation must pay VAT. The best choice is to examine with HMRC straight or with an skilled accountant who’s accustomed to your corporation to see which exemptions your corporation qualifies for and to find out if it is advisable pay VAT now or within the close to future.

Making use of for a VAT Quantity with HMRC

When the time comes to use for a VAT quantity with HMRC, observe the straightforward steps beneath to get your corporation arrange for VAT:

Overview of the appliance course of for VAT: 

• You will have to fill out the VAT1 kind on-line or by put up
• To do that, collect up the next info:
  • Enterprise tackle & contact particulars
  • The date you registered your corporation
  • An summary of enterprise actions – comparable to ‘promoting used automobiles’ or ‘marking companies’
  • Your anticipated taxable turnover
  • Enterprise checking account particulars – this should be in your corporation identify and someplace that HMRC pays refunds due into.

Registering for VAT is a reasonably fast course of, taking simply 5 working days to your VAT1 kind to be processed. Should you want your VAT registration quantity again faster than this, there may be an expedited service accessible for a number of hours however you’ll need to offer further verification.

After this course of is full, you’ll obtain your VAT certificates and VAT quantity by the put up or on-line. From this level it’s essential to begin charging VAT on gross sales made and schedule your VAT returns to report on the VAT acquired.

For all the pieces it is advisable learn about making use of for VAT, go to https://www.gov.uk/register-for-vat/how-register-for-vat

On-line Software Course of

Here’s a step-by-step walkthrough of the net HMRC VAT registration course of, steerage on VAT registration certificates, and steps to soak up case of errors.

On-line Software Course of To register for VAT on-line

• Arrange a Authorities Gateway account if you happen to don’t have already got one
• Present e-mail tackle and password
• Reply some private particulars
• Confirm your Authorities Gateway account by textual content message, tax credit, or ID checking app
• Sign up and enter your organization particulars by the net kind
• You’ll want your organization tackle, registration date, an in depth description of your corporation actions, turnover dates and extra
• Submit your software and also you’ll sometimes obtain your certificates inside 5 working days

VAT Registration Certificates 

• As soon as HMRC has processed your VAT registration software, you’ll obtain a VAT Registration Certificates
• Verify all your corporation particulars are appropriate on the certificates together with the VAT quantity, Enterprise identify, Enterprise tackle, your efficient VAT registration date also needs to be displayed.
• If there are any errors in your certificates: Make a remark of the errors and make contact with the HMRC VAT Registration Service telephone helpline to report errors. They’ll examine and reissue an correct certificates

Utilizing Your VAT Quantity

When you’ve got not too long ago utilized for VAT registration, you is perhaps questioning the right way to use your VAT quantity after getting it.

You will have to make use of your VAT quantity for gross sales invoices and receipts, VAT returns, when speaking to HMRC and reclaiming VAT.

Together with VAT particulars on gross sales invoices and receipts

You need to cost VAT on items and companies bought. Observe that there are some exemptions to this. It is best to let prospects know of your VAT standing by displaying your VAT quantity clearly on all invoices and receipts despatched to them.

A VAT return is distributed to HMRC quarterly and it’s the manner that you just report how a lot VAT you might have charged to prospects and likewise to reclaim VAT on allowable bills. You will have to finish this course of each 3 months until in any other case exempt.

Reference on VAT returns and speaking with HMRC

Everytime you talk about issues with HMRC, you must quote your VAT quantity. It should guarantee they’ll find the right file and will probably be wanted for telephone enquiries, VAT notices and VAT refund requests.

Claiming again VAT inputs and bills

There are some purchases you could declare VAT again on. This contains uncooked supplies, inventory, tools and mileage. Your accountant can help you with which objects you’ll be able to reclaim VAT on. It will likely be useful so that you can hold receipts for all enterprise purchases.

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To recap, if it is advisable know the right way to discover your VAT quantity, there are a number of methods to take action.

Merely examine your paperwork from HMRC, name the VAT helpline or log into your Authorities Gateway. Any enterprise that exceeds the £85k turnover threshold might want to register for VAT and there are penalties if you happen to fail to take action.