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Value Added Tax (VAT) Registration Details

Registration in the UK.

You must register in the following circumstances:-

a) At the end of the month if the value of taxable supplies in the past twelve months has exceeded the annual threshold.

b) At any time if there are reasonable grounds for believing that the value of taxable supplies in the next 30 days will exceed the annual threshold.

Please note that taxable supplies excludes engagements in other E.E.C. countries but that you may need to register for VAT in that E.E.C. country if the income from those engagements exceeds that country’s VAT registration threshold.

Please remember that HMRC can levy automatic penalties for failure to register and for the late submission of Returns. Will you please remember to keep photocopies of your quarterly VAT returns.

If your turnover will not exceed the above registration limits it would still be to your advantage to voluntary register if the majority of your clients are themselves registered for VAT as you will be repaid all your input tax.

Registration in other E.C. Country

The supply of artistic services performed outside the UK are no longer subject to UK VAT as those supplies now fall outside the scope of VAT. UK VAT legislation is now in line with the EC 6th directive whereby the place of supply of the artistic service is where those services are actually performed. Please note that this does not effect the recovery of any UK VAT on expenditure attributable to the supply of those services but what it does mean is that there is a potential liability to register for VAT in other EC countries.

This therefore presents the situation where an entertainer who performs in other EC countries will be deemed to be providing his services there and if his income is above that country’s VAT registration threshold then he may therefore be required to register for VAT in that EC country. If you have no business establishment in that EC country where you are performing it may be necessary to appoint a fiscal representative to register for VAT on your behalf. This would obviously be a costly process as the representative would be jointly and severally liability for any VAT debts and would probably require an advanced payment or bond from yourself to cover any such liability. It is therefore advantageous to try to
avoid registration wherever possible.

It is possible in most EC countries to arrange for the obligation to account for VAT to be shifted to the recipient of your services. In most cases this would be the local promoter who will already be registered for VAT in his own country. If the tax shift is allowable in that country, the promoter can declare VAT on the services that you provide and therefore overcome the problem of you having to register for VAT in that country.