If you own commercial property and want to claim the VAT back, you’ll need to “opt to tax” it. But what does this really mean? How should you go about it and what does it cover?
Published 04.04.2012
When you buy a commercial property, the first question to consider is whether to exercise an option to tax it. But when do you really need to opt to tax and when don’t you?
Published 01.06.2017
Once you opt to tax a commercial property you probably know that the option remains in force for 20 years. However, there are ways to avoid the VAT charge. What’s involved?
Published 27.08.2015
Businesses often charge VAT on properties they rent out but forget to tell the VATman that they’ve opted to tax. How difficult is it to make a belated notification to undo the damage?
Published 05.06.2014
Property businesses receive many different payments, some are taxable, some exempt and some outside the scope altogether. So what’s what as far as the VATman is concerned?
Published 05.03.2012
You own a commercial property and have opted to tax it. When you come to sell, the purchaser says your option is disapplied and you have to pay the VAT back on the purchase price. What’s going on?
Published 05.09.2011
It’s not unusual for a business to purchase a building, opt to tax it and then decide that this was the wrong thing to do. Once you’ve opted to tax can you subsequently get out of it?
Published 23.12.2014
Opting to tax can reduce VAT costs for property developers, landlords, and owners. But it’s not all plain sailing. We’ve highlighted two of the common traps that businesses fall into and how you can
escape them.
Published 15.02.2011
If your business buys or rents out a non-residential property, you may want to make an option to tax election to save VAT. There is often confusion between forms VAT1614A and VAT1614H - which one
must be used and when?
Published 02.09.2022
If you opt to tax a commercial property, in most cases you have to wait for at least 20 years before you can revoke it. But how do you do so and are there any potential pitfalls?
Published 02.02.2016