VAT registered to import?

[turbochrissy]

I recently registered for VAT as I now import products from Italy. My turnover in the last 6 years of running the business has never exceeded the threshold and I doubt it will do in the near future, but now I have to apply VAT to my services it is upsetting customers. Do I need to be registered in order to import? Can I setup another company that deals just with the import stuff?

Any help much appreciated

Chris

 

[Barnie]

if you sell straight to customers then it may not be worth being vat reg, suppliers may insist though to show your a credible business.

if B2B then it may be worth it.

IVA is 20% same as the UK. i used to import for years and pay vat in Italy but as were B2B now we registered


if dealing with the italians ask when factory closures are to, nothing worse than needed stock to find they have closed for 4 weeks

 

[turbochrissy]

Thanks for the advice. I worry that when we start to sell more in volume that people will want to be invoiced so that they can claim back the VAT on their purchase, so being VAT registered is the only way to do this. But on the service side of the business VAT is ruining things. Could I run the two seperately, with only one operating with VAT. Sounds too easy I know

 

[MyAccountantOnline]

Have a read of the HMRC guidance here on artificial separation - http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channels...CE_CL_000086&propertyType=document#P226_24246

section 13.5 is what you need to look at.