Importing and VAT

[RichardHNY]

Hi

I have some imports landing soon and my freight forwarder has asked me to pay the VAT online or use they account at a charge.

How do I do this?
I'm not registered for VAT

What do I pay VAT on, The goods or goods and delivery?

Thank you for your help in advance.
Rick

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

You will have to use their account and they will probably charge you a handling charge.
You pay VAT on the goods + shipping + duty. UK charges will be treated separately, but may also attract VAT

 

[PowerForwarding]

Yep, the forwarder will bill you all this adn they will cover the charges with HMRC. as above VAT is paid on the value of goods and shipping costs

 

[Import Expert]

You can set up your own 'deferment account' in future should you begin to import regularly. You just need to weigh up fees from the forwarder against bank fees for the deferment guarantee they will need to provide. Another bonus can be cash flow - With a deferment account you do not have essentially pay the Duty/VAT from your bank account until the 15th day of the following month - So something customs cleared on 1st March for example would not go out of your account until 15th April.

More info here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...tice-101-deferring-duty-vat-and-other-charges

 

[StuartSpicer]

If the goods are coming from a non-EC country then the UK charges won't be liable for VAT.
To pay the import duty/VAT you can also pay via FAS (flexible accounting system). There are no charges except for your bank charges for a CHAPS. Note that BACS payments to the FAS account aren't part of the faster payment scheme so will take 3 days.

 

[number42]

Hi following the advice in this thread I think a VAT deferment account sounds very good, ive looked and requested an application form however HMRC require they say the bank to act as guarantor. How do you get a bank to act as guarantor? What incentive is there for them?

Our yearly VAT bill comes in at around £30k so would be great if could defer for cashflow as it is a pain having to estimate and reserve cash for an amount that can depend on exchange rate based calculations.

Thanks
Mark

 

[GraemeL]

The bank won't act as Guarantor. They will confirm to HMRC that you have sufficient funds to pay. While it sounds an attractive route for cash flow calcs, for a £1500 a month VAT outlay, you might find the admin required tips the scale the other way.
G

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

Also, unless things have changed, the deferment account only means that VAT for imports is not paid on arrival, but at regular intervals.

You will not get a single bill for £30K once a year!