Buying goods from Italy -VAT or sales tax?

[fridaypassion]

I'm considering at the moment buying some stock from an Italian company. If the company charge me VAT how do I claim it back? I know if its the other way round I would get the company's VAT number over there and just not charge VAT at my end. Does it work the same in reverse?

[davepoth]

Are you VAT registered?

For goods supplied from Italy to a VAT registered company they don't charge you VAT - the purchase is marked down in a different box on the VAT return and gets added to your UK VAT balance IIRC.

http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail...

[Eric Mc]

Correct. If you supply your VAT number to the Itlaian supplier, they should Zero Rate the invoice to you.

[fridaypassion]

I've just submitted an application for VAT registration. Thanks.

[mick_p]

Anyone has a clear idea of what's gonna happen after this Brexit has been finalised? I deal in cars and bikes and have quite a few of them (especially motorbikes) from Italy. I sometimes buy them directly and carry them over in the UK by myself (this sometimes avoids any sort of tax or I go through a local agent ( www.sourcingitaly.com), with this Brexit I really don't know if I should stick with the Italian bikes (Ducati is one of my main revenue streams) or slow down in order to avoid to be stuck with higher costs in the coming years.

[Eric Mc]

Nobody knows and probably won't for quite a few years.

The assumption has to be that things will proceed as normal until told otherwise.

[ATG]

mick_p said:

Anyone has a clear idea of what's gonna happen after this Brexit has been finalised?

No one has a clue and it's not likely to become any clearer for a couple of years at the minimum. Good, eh?

[Ean218]

ATG said:

No one has a clue and it's not likely to become any clearer for a couple of years at the minimum. Good, eh?

Just like when we joined the EU, we had no idea how it would work out.....

[Eric Mc]

Actually, from a business point of view, we actually had a very good idea how the rules would work.

Obviously, over the 43 years since we joined, those rules did change and evolve. Ironically, in most cases the rules were beneficial for businesses selling to and buying from other EU countries.

Indeed, it was precisely BECAUSE we knew the export and import benefits that would accrue from joining the (then) EEC that the vast bulk of businesses back then were so keen for us to join.

By and large, the anti-EU sentiments that arose in the intervening years were little to do with the trading arrangements and more to do with cultural, social and legal aspects.