Ordering and VAT - What I forgot to mention...

....was that my mother, who I am ordering the laptop for, lives abroad, but
in the EU. So she is a registered business but not in the UK, which means
she should not have to pay VAT, right?

Thanks to everyone who replied in such detail to my original posting and
sorry I left out this vital piece of information...

And David, you see I even anonymised my address a little

Thanks again!
Michael

"Michael" wrote in message
m...
...was that my mother, who I am ordering the laptop for, lives abroad, but
in the EU. So she is a registered business but not in the UK, which means
she should not have to pay VAT, right?

Thanks to everyone who replied in such detail to my original posting and
sorry I left out this vital piece of information...

And David, you see I even anonymised my address a little

Thanks again!
Michael


Yes & No. The shop ALWAYS charges VAT. So you always pay it at first. There
is a scheme (uses form VAT414 see hmrce.gov.uk) where you buy the item, get
this pink form filled in by the shop, attached to the receipt. When you
leave the country, for example to take the item to your mum, you get it
stamped by airport HMRCE then send it in and get a refund. Mail order firms
were removed from the scheme about three years ago.

But why bother. Any VAT paid will be reclaimed. Your role I assume is to
select the PC with your youthful and masculine technical knowledge :-) but
she is buying it. Easiest thing is for the order to be placed mail order,
QUOTING HER EUROPEAN VAT NUMBER, and it will be shipped VAT-free - but in
any event VAT paid is reclaimed in her country. I have in my time put French
TVA and Irish VAT on my VAT return in the input section and it has reduced
my VAT bill.

You can't fiddle this by the way. If the item is delivered in the UK, except
perhaps airside cargo or bonded warehouse, the mail order firm MUST charge
VAT.

Thanks David for your quick and informative reply! Your help is much
appreciated.

On Mon, 6 Nov 2006 04:13:12 -0000, David Atherton wrote:
There is a scheme (uses form VAT414 see hmrce.gov.uk)

"Vehicles Brought into the United Kingdom"?
see
http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channelsP... pageVAT_Forms

where you buy the item, get
this pink form filled in by the shop, attached to the receipt. When you
leave the country, for example to take the item to your mum, you get it
stamped by airport HMRCE then send it in and get a refund. Mail order firms
were removed from the scheme about three years ago.

So this method would only work with bricks-and-mortar vendors?

Your role I assume is to
select the PC with your youthful and masculine technical knowledge :-)

100% right

but she is buying it.

Exactly. Ideally I would like the bill made out in her name, but the
shipment to me, although I realize this will not be easy.

Easiest thing is for the order to be placed mail order,
QUOTING HER EUROPEAN VAT NUMBER, and it will be shipped VAT-free - but in
any event VAT paid is reclaimed in her country. I have in my time put French
TVA and Irish VAT on my VAT return in the input section and it has reduced
my VAT bill.

OK - but this will only work if it's shipped directly to Germany, right?

You can't fiddle this by the way. If the item is delivered in the UK, except
perhaps airside cargo or bonded warehouse, the mail order firm MUST charge
VAT.

I need to configure it a bit and transfer some files etc. before she can
use it. Meaning it would need to be delivered to me in the UK. In this case
the only way to get VAT back would be via the pink form above?

Thanks again!
Michael