Vat registration number pending?

[patientlady]

We have been invoiced by a company today stating that the vat reg number is pending and have charged vat.

The invoice is rather amateur as well. I am wondering if we are paying for an invoice scam. I have checked on the net, as best I can & note the company was registered in Sept 09, and the salesman did state they are a new company and we are buying into a new concept, but are there any other checks we can make?

 

[decworld]

You cant charge VAT without a VAT number, or rather YOU cant claim it back without a VAT number.

 

[Faith28]

Don't pay the VAT part. There is no number for it so you cannot reclaim it back.

Tell them the VAT part of the payment is pending.

 

[saxondale]

pay them the net amount and ignore them

 

[Atilla]

When the VAT number is pending, VAT still has to be accounted for. The supplier should inform the customer of the situation. VAT is due on invoices from when you apply.

Well, that's how i read it on the VAT pages.

 

[patientlady]

Oh dear conflicting replies!

 

[saxondale]

Oh dear conflicting replies!

nah, atilla doesnt get VAT (or mileage) LOL.


to do it by the book they should have sent you a seperate proforma for the VAT element.

all depends what they told you at the start.

 

[m31]

When the VAT number is pending, VAT still has to be accounted for. The supplier should inform the customer of the situation. VAT is due on invoices from when you apply.

Well, that's how i read it on the VAT pages.

I agree. I had to be VAT registered from November last year so applied for registration in October. I had to start charging vat from 1st November even though I was still awaiting my VAT number and had to put on the invoices 'vat number pending'. It wasn't a problem in my case as I mainly sell to the general public who did not care that my vat number was pending but if I was selling to vat registered businesses then my understanding is that I would simply re-issue an invoice once VAT number was ready

 

[AberdeenNicky]

Check the HMRC website for a concise answer to your question:

I'd post a link, but I haven't made enough posts to do that yet. Go to HMRC and then search for VAT registration. The first link about "waiting for vat registration" has all the info you need.

I didn't realise this either until I looked it up. I have been putting off invoicing clients because I thought I needed to wait for my VAT number to come through, but turns out I don't need to.

 

[Ray_Stewart]

This is the relevant bit of the HMRC site:-

Invoicing in the meantime

Until you receive your VAT registration number you must not charge VAT, or show VAT as a separate item on your invoices. To make sure that you do not lose income in the period after you applied for VAT registration but before you receive your VAT registration number, you should increase your prices by the VAT rate relevant for your goods or services, and explain to your customers why you are doing so.

Once you are registered, you can then reissue those invoices, amended to show your VAT registration number and the VAT charged. This will ensure that your VAT-registered customers can reclaim the VAT that they have paid.

Lots of businesses get this wrong although mostly it doesn't matter as long as you re-issue the invoice asap with the VAT no. on it.

The main problem comes when a business doesn't make allowance for the VAT from the date they applied to be registered. Then they either have to invoice again adding the VAT and ask the customer nicely if they will pay the VAT, or the total invoice will assumed to include VAT and you pay it out of your own pocket.