VAT receipt?

[nextdayprint]

I bought some stuff today from TK Max for a trade show, and was shocked when the girl behind the till, and then her manager, both insisted they don't offer VAT receipts! What, if any, are the legal obligations in terms of VAT receipts in retail?

 

[longleaf1]

I thought that if a business was VAT registered then regardless of the industry they had to provide a VAT receipt to there customers that are also registered?

 

[mangoprint]

That is very strange. Is there a head office you can call?

 

[MyAccountantOnline]

I bought some stuff today from TK Max for a trade show, and was shocked when the girl behind the till, and then her manager, both insisted they don't offer VAT receipts! What, if any, are the legal obligations in terms of VAT receipts in retail?

They should indeed issue a VAT receipt on request but you might want to bear in mind this which comes from HM Revenue & Customs VAT guide -

If you make retail sales and you make a sale of goods or services for £250 or less including VAT, then when a customer asks for a VAT invoice, you can issue a simplified VAT invoice that only needs to show:

• the seller's name and address
• the seller's VAT registration number
• the time of supply (tax point)
• a description of the goods or services

Also, if the supply includes items at different VAT rates then for each different VAT rate, your simplified VAT invoice must also show:

• the total price including VAT
• the VAT rate applicable to the item

If you accept credit cards, then you can create a less detailed invoice by adapting the sales voucher you give the cardholder when you make the sale. It must show the information described in the six bullets above
You do need to keep copies of any less detailed invoices you issue

If you have a till receipt and the purchase was less than £250 you may well already have a VAT receipt.

 

[nextdayprint]

Thanks for that, but it seems ridiculous to me that with the minefield of variable vat rates etc, that there is no legal requirement to provide a detailed VAT receipt. Whilst I don't want to go down the route of the Americans, I do feel all receipts from VAT registered companies should be legally required to be VAT receipts with a break down of taxes and duties on them - not hard for automatic telling systems. This simplifies things for B2B and also allows consumers a better understanding of how much tax they are really paying.

Just my 2p.