VAT on pitches at antiques fairs

Possibly! Pitch fees have typically been treated as a supply of land and therefore exempt from VAT (unless the landlord had opted to tax the property).

However, HMRC undertook a VAT inspection at one of the biggest organisers of Antiques fairs last year. Subsequently there have been discussions at EU-level and HMRC are now of the opinion that VAT should be charged on pitch fees, because they do not represent a supply of land alone.

There are normally ancillary services such as promotion of the fair, power, security etc. and because these cannot be separately identified and they are significant, under this shift of opinion the whole pitch fee would be subject to the standard rate of VAT.

The fair organiser is appealing and they do stand a chance of winning. But in the meantime, you may well see a rise in pitch fees as organisers will be wary that they could end up with big VAT bills if HMRC win.

It could also have wider consequences for car boot sales, serviced offices and market stalls.

Date published 3 Oct 2014

This article is intended to inform rather than advise and is based on legislation and practice at the time. Taxpayer’s circumstances do vary and if you feel that the information provided is beneficial it is important that you contact us before implementation. If you take, or do not take action as a result of reading this article, before receiving our written endorsement, we will accept no responsibility for any financial loss incurred.