In case you have already paid VAT inside a foreign eu country and have to pay extra for exactly the same again throughout your home country then you can certainly reclaim vat to lower the load of double check vat number taxation. The entire procedure can be completed online, particularly if your vat registered business is situated in the UK where the HM revenue and customs or hmrc department offers several vat online services such as the vat refund scheme which makes reclaiming vat easy.
If you have purchased goods from another vat enabled country within the EU such as Spain, Sweden, Hungary, Poland, Italy, Germany, etc where you do not have a vat registered business and still have already paid vat in the country of origin then you can and should claim that vat back. This will not only lower product cost but also enable vital funds to flow back into your organization. Even though the vat reclaiming process usually takes between four to 8 months to complete, you can easily appoint a vat agent that is an expert in eu vat and uk vat refund rules. This should help you to focus on your business while your agent attempts to reclaim vat as your representative by using the online vat refund scheme.
Before you can post the first claim for vat, you will need to be a vat registered trader in the United Kingdom and will also need to sign up for vat refund with the hmrc. You will have a maximum of 9 months after the end of the calendar year to make your vat refund application. Since you can easily fill out the online vat form to reclaim any previously paid vat, you won’t need to complete and dispatch any paperwork but might need to attach scanned copies of vat paid invoices for claims over a stipulated amount. Some countries might also insist on looking at original invoices that you might need to dispatch in order to get an effective refund. Again, your vat agent can help you to complete all necessary formalities.
Many eu countries have their own version of the vat invoice and also have different vat rates for various products or services. For example, Poland requires its vat registered traders to issue a faktura invoice or vat invoice. However, most eu countries do offer some kind of vat refunds to avoid the problem of double taxation on goods and services. You cannot deduct the vat refund amount in your routine vat returns but will instead have to use the vat refund scheme for the same. If you have made a vat reclaim in a eu country then you will usually receive the refund amount in their currency. You can either transfer the refund figure to an account in the country or directly arrange for the money to be received within your UK banking account by giving them the required details including your bank account number.
If you constantly have to import services or goods to the UK where vat has already been paid you then should sign up for the vat refund scheme provided by the hmrc vat department. Once you successfully reclaim vat you’ll be able to accurately price your products and services while getting a much needed financial injection in your business.