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VAT - From: 1996 To: 1996

This page lists 36 cases, and was prepared on 02 April 2018.

 
Trustees of the Nell Gwynn House Maintenance Fund v Commissioners of Customs and Excise [1996] STC 310
1996
CA
Sir Christopher Slade, Swinton Thomas LJ and Butler Sloss LJ
VAT

1 Cites

1 Citers


 
Customs and Excise Commissioners v Madgett and Another T/A Howden Court Hotel Ind Summary, 15 January 1996
15 Jan 1996
QBD

VAT, European
A hotel's offering of a coach trip to collect guests may make them travel agents for VAT purposes. The case was referred on to the ECJ.
1 Cites

1 Citers


 
B J Rice and Associates (A Firm) v Commissioners of Customs and Excise Times, 14 February 1996; [1996] STC 581
14 Feb 1996
CA

VAT
Liability for VAT was determined at date of supply of services not date of bill.
Value Added Tax Act 1983 4 5
1 Cites

1 Citers


 
Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales v Commissioners of Customs and Excise Times, 15 February 1996
15 Feb 1996
QBD

VAT
The regulation of professional practices is not an economic activity - no VAT.
Value Added Tax Act 1994 4(1)

 
Commissioners of Customs and Excise v UBAF Bank Ltd Gazette, 20 March 1996; Times, 15 February 1996
15 Feb 1996
CA

VAT
VAT on solicitors fees recoverable though not attributed to taxable outputs.


 
 Regina v City of London Magistrates Court Ex Parte Asif and Others; QBD 17-Feb-1996 - Times, 17 February 1996
 
Mohr v Finanzamt Bad Segeberg C-215/94; [1996] EUECJ C-215/94
29 Feb 1996
ECJ

European, VAT
ECJ Articles 6(1) and 11(A)(1)(a) of the Sixth Council Directive (77/388/EEC) on the harmonization of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes, in respect of the definition of a supply of services and the constitution of the taxable amount, respectively, are to be interpreted as meaning that an undertaking to discontinue milk production given by a farmer under Regulation No 1336/86 does not constitute a supply of services.
Consequently, any compensation received for that purpose is not subject to turnover tax.
Where it grants such compensation, the Community is not in the situation of a consumer who remunerates a service supplied by a farmer who gives such an undertaking, but is acting in the common interest of promoting the proper functioning of the Community milk market.
[ Bailii ]
 
Intercommunale voor Zeewaterontzilting v Belgium (Judgment) C-110/94; [1996] ECR I-857; [1996] EUECJ C-110/94
29 Feb 1996
ECJ

European, VAT
The principle that VAT was reclaimable on the cost of acquiring a right later to purchase land to be used for VATable trade was applied to allow deduction of VAT on the cost of a study undertaken by a company in order to decide whether to commence an economic enterprise or not, even though it decided not to proceed and never made any taxable outputs.
1 Cites

[ Bailii ]
 
Fine Art Developments Plc v Commissioners of Customs and Excise Times, 01 March 1996
1 Mar 1996
HL

VAT
VAT charged on catalogue price when to unregistered agents not actual price.

 
Mohr v Finanzamt Bad Segeberg Times, 08 March 1996
8 Mar 1996
ECJ

VAT, European
Compensation paid to farmer ceasing milk production not subject to VAT.

 
Regina v Choudhury; Regina v Uddin Times, 12 March 1996
12 Mar 1996
CACD

VAT
VAT prosecutors should allege particular complaints if possible, not general.
Value Added Tax Act 1983 39(1) 39(2) 39(3)

 
Primback Ltd v Commissioners of Customs and Excise Times, 30 April 1996; [1996] STC 757
30 Apr 1996
CA

VAT
A retailer giving a discount was liable for Vat only on the discounted finance price, not on the full retail price.
1 Cites

1 Citers


 
Faaborg-Gelting Linien v Finanzamt Flensburg Times, 09 May 1996; C-231/94; [1996] STC 774; [1996] ECR I-2395; [1996] EUECJ C-231/94; [1996] All ER (EC) 656; [1996] CEC 587; [1996] 3 CMLR 535
2 May 1996
ECJ

VAT, European
A non-takeaway restaurant is a supply of services, and a ferry supply was made from its place of business. The supply of prepared food and drink at a restaurant resulted from a whole series of services (including the preparation and service of the meal); and that since restaurant transactions were characterised by a cluster of features and acts of which the provision of food was only one component and in which services largely predominate, they were to be characterised as supplies of services. This must be so though the quality of the food and the cost (eg of champagne at the meal) is very high indeed. The court distinguished the situation where the transaction relates to "take-away" food: such a transaction is a supply of goods. Where the transaction consists of a composite supply of services and goods (or of different categories of services) which from an economic point of view cannot be severed, the principal supply must be identified and the character of the principal supply determines the character of the component parts of the transaction: "In order to determine whether such transactions constitute supplies of goods or supplies of services, regard must be had to all the circumstances in which the transaction in question takes place in order to identify its characteristic features." and "Consequently, restaurant transactions are characterised by a cluster of features and acts, of which the provision of food is only one component and in which services largely predominate. They must therefore be regarded as supplies of services within the meaning of art 6(1) of the Sixth Directive. The situation is different, however, where the transaction relates to "takeaway" food and is not coupled with services designed to enhance consumption on the spot in an appropriate setting."
Council Directive 77/388/EEC May 17 1977
1 Citers

[ Bailii ]
 
Customs and Excise v R and R Pension Fund [1996] EWHC 385 (Ch); [1996] STC 889
7 May 1996
ChD
Buxton J
VAT
Appeal by the Commissioners from a decision of the VAT Tribunal in an appeal whereby the Tribunal allowed an appeal by the respondents, Trustees of the R & R Pension Fund, against a decision of the Commissioners contained in two letters the decisions being that the provisions of the Capital Goods Scheme, set out in Regulation 37 of the VAT (General) Regulations 1985, as well as the provisions at paragraph 3(9) of Schedule 10 to the VAT Act 1994, both apply to the respondents' input tax apportionment.
[ Bailii ]
 
Customs and Excise v British Telecommunications Plc [1996] STC 818; [1996] EWHC 384 (QB)
8 May 1996
CA
Nourse, Millett, Tucker LJJ
VAT
Appeal by the Commissioners of Customs and Excise from a judgment of Mr. Justice Dyson when he dismissed an appeal by the taxpayer, British Telecommunications Plc ("BT"), from a decision of a Value Added Tax Tribunal which discharged an assessment to output tax. The appeal raises a question of general importance both in the United Kingdom and in other Member States on the common system of value added tax upon which there is as yet no decision of the European Court of Justice.
The case is concerned with the liability to output tax of a taxable trader who makes continuous supplies of goods or services and invoices and receives payment from customers at periodic intervals in the course of a continuing contractual relationship with the customer. Such arrangements are commonplace, particularly in relation to the supply of utilities, though they are not confined to such cases.
[ Bailii ]
 
Commissioners of Customs and Excise v British Telecom Plc Gazette, 30 May 1996; Times, 14 May 1996
14 May 1996
CA

VAT
VAT was not payable on overpayments by customers which were retained and then set off against later accounts to the same customers.


 
 Svenska International Plc v Customs and Excise; Admn 24-May-1996 - [1996] EWHC Admin 899
 
Wellcome Trust Ltd v Commissioners of Customs and Excise Times, 10 July 1996; C-155/94; [1996] EUECJ C-155/94
10 Jul 1996
ECJ

VAT
Trustees trading in shares were not involved in an 'economic activity' for VAT purposes.
[ Bailii ]
 
Commissioners of Customs and Excise v St Mary's Roman Catholic School Times, 15 July 1996
15 Jul 1996
QBD

VAT, Construction
Services must have temporary link to construction of new building if zero rated.
Value Added Tax Act 1983 Sch 5 Grp 8 Itm 2

 
Victoria and Albert Museum v Commissioners of Customs and Excise Times, 18 July 1996
18 Jul 1996
QBD

VAT
Taxpayer was unable to reclaim tax paid where returns had been made under an unfavourable formula.
VAT Notice 700 App J

 
Commissioners of Customs and Excise v Croydon Hotel and Leisure Co Ltd Times, 08 August 1996; [1996] STC CA 1105
8 Aug 1996
CA

VAT
The limitation period on recovery by Commissioners runs from date of return, not the accounting period.
Value Added Tax Act 1983 Sch 7 para 4(5)
1 Cites

1 Citers



 
 Commissioners of Customs and Excise v Stevenson; CA 15-Aug-1996 - Times, 15 August 1996
 
Dudda v Finanzamt Bergisch Gladbach C-327/94; [1996] EUECJ C-327/94; [1996] ECR I-4595
26 Sep 1996
ECJ

VAT
ECJ (Judgment) The first indent of Article 9(2)(c) of the Sixth Directive 77/388 on the harmonization of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes which, under the special scheme for services supplied between taxable persons where the cost of the services is included in the price of the goods, lays down that the place where services relating to certain activities, including cultural and artistic activities and, where relevant, services ancillary thereto, are supplied is the place where those services are physically carried out, must be interpreted as covering the activity of a person who provides sound-engineering for artistic or entertainment events by choosing and operating the equipment used, adjusting it to the particular acoustic conditions and the desired sound effects, and who supplies the requisite equipment and operating staff, where the service which he provides constitutes a prerequisite for the performance of the principal artistic or entertainment service supplied. The fact that the person concerned has undertaken in addition to coordinate the sound effects to be produced with his assistance with certain visual effects produced by other persons cannot affect this interpretation of that provision.
The intention of the Community legislature was that where artistic or entertainment services are supplied in a Member State and the organizer of the event charges the final consumer tax in the same State, that tax - its assessment basis being all those services the cost of which is included in the price of the complete service paid for by the final consumer - must be paid to that State and not to the various Member States in which the various intermediate suppliers of services have established their businesses.
Sixth Directive 77/388 9(2)(c)
[ Bailii ]
 
Regina v Commissioners of Customs and Excise ex parte McNicholas Construction Co Ltd [1996] EWHC Admin 111; [2000] STC 553
15 Oct 1996
Admn
Dyson J
VAT
Where there was no real transaction underlying a claim for VAT credit, no VAT credit can be claimed.
Dyson J said: "the words 'to the best of their judgment' permit the commissioners a margin of discretion in making an assessment; a taxpayer may only challenge the assessment if he can show that the commissioners acted outside the margin of their discretion, by acting in a way that no reasonable body of commissioners could do. In order to succeed, the taxpayer must show that the assessment was wrong in a material respect, and that if so, the mistake is such that the only fair inference is that the commissioners did not apply best judgment"
1 Citers

[ Bailii ]
 
Eastbourne Town Radio Cars Association v Commissioners for Customs and Excise [1996] EWHC Admin 129
18 Oct 1996
Admn

VAT
The commissioners sought to charge VAT on subscriptions paid to an association who provided centralised support services to its members. It claimed that the fees were provided as agents for its members, and so were exempt.
Value Added Tax Act 1994 4(1) 94(2)(a)
[ Bailii ]
 
Regina v City of London Magistrates' Court and Commissioners of Customs and Excise (ex parte Barry Peters and Judith Peters) [1996] EWHC Admin 141
23 Oct 1996
Admn

VAT

[ Bailii ]
 
Eismann Alto Adige v Ufficio IVA di Bolzano C-217/94; [1996] EUECJ C-217/94
24 Oct 1996
ECJ

European, VAT
ECJ Article 22(8) of the Sixth Directive (77/388) on the harmonization of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes, as amended by Directive 91/680 supplementing the common system of value added tax and amending Directive 77/388 with a view to the abolition of fiscal frontiers, must be interpreted as not precluding a national rule requiring accompanying documents to be drawn up in respect of goods transported within the confines of the Member State concerned.
The complete and exhaustive harmonization of the formalities which the Member States may impose on internal transactions for the correct collection of value added tax and for the prevention of evasion has not yet been carried out by the Community legislature and the latter, when laying down the rule that internal transactions and those between Member States should be treated equally, did not intend to prohibit a Member State from imposing formalities which are stricter on internal transactions than those applying to intra-Community trade.
[ Bailii ]
 
Argos Distributors v Commissioners of Customs and Excise Times, 18 November 1996; C-288/94; [1996] STC 1359; [1996] ECR I-5311; [1996] EUECJ C-288/94; [1997] QB 499
24 Oct 1996
ECJ
Advocate General Geelhoed
European, VAT
VAT was payable on the value of a discount voucher only, and not on the full price of the goods. "According to the court's settled case law, the taxable amount for the supply of goods or services is represented by the consideration actually received for them." VAT had been charged on vouchers on a basis inconsistent with Community law. The reference raised no question about whether the same could be said about teacakes: "There is only one difference between the early vouchers claim and the [late vouchers and teacakes] claims; as regards the early vouchers claim, the national legislation itself contravened the Directive, whereas with respect to the other two claims that legislation was unimpeachable in itself but was misapplied. Yet the end result in the two instances was precisely the same: the Directive was breached…" and "It is manifestly clear from the documents before the court that, in regard to both teacakes and gift vouchers after August 1992, the commissioners applied national tax legislation in a manner inconsistent with the directive."
1 Citers

[ Bailii ]
 
Elida Gibbs Ltd v Commissioners Of Customs And Excise Times, 12 November 1996; C-317/94; [1996] EUECJ C-317/94; [1996] STC 1387; [1996] CEC 1022; [1997] QB 499; [1997] BVC 80; [1996] ECR I-5339
24 Oct 1996
ECJ

European, VAT
ECJ Where
(a) a manufacturer issues a money-off coupon, which is redeemable at the amount stated on the coupon by or at the expense of the manufacturer in favour of the retailer, (b) the coupon, which is distributed to a potential customer in the course of a sales promotion campaign, may be accepted by the retailer in payment for a specified item of goods, (c) the manufacturer has sold the specified item at the "original supplier' s price" direct to the retailer and (d) the retailer takes the coupon from the customer on sale of the item, presents it to the manufacturer and is paid the stated amount,
or
(a) the manufacturer, in the course of a promotion scheme, sells items of goods at the "manufacturer' s price" direct to a retailer, (b) a cash-back coupon for an amount stated on the packaging of those items entitles the customer, if he proves purchase of one of those items and satisfies other conditions printed on the coupon, to present the coupon to the manufacturer in return for payment of the stated amount, and (c) a customer purchases such an item from a retailer, presents the coupon to the manufacturer and is paid the stated amount, Article 11(A)(1)(a) and Article 11(C)(1) of the Sixth Directive are to be interpreted as meaning that the taxable amount serving as a basis for determination of the value added tax payable by the manufacturer is equal to the selling price charged by the manufacturer, less the amount indicated on the coupon and refunded. The same applies if the original supply is made by the manufacturer to a wholesaler rather than directly to a retailer.
That interpretation necessarily follows from the principle that the taxable amount serving as a basis for the VAT to be collected by the tax authorities cannot exceed the consideration actually paid by the final consumer which is the basis for calculating the VAT ultimately borne by him and from the principle of neutrality of the tax whereby within each country similar goods should bear the same tax burden whatever the length of the production and distribution chain.
The VAT system is not disturbed as a result of that interpretation since there is no need to readjust the taxable amount for the intermediate transactions. That amount remains unchanged since, for those transactions, observance of the principle of neutrality is ensured by application of the conditions for deduction set out in the directive, which enable the intermediate links in the distribution chain, such as wholesalers and retailers, to pay to the tax authorities only the part of the VAT representing the difference between the price paid by each to his supplier and the price at which he supplied the goods to his purchaser.
The Court described the basic principles of VAT: " The basic principle of the VAT system is that it is intended to tax only the final consumer. Consequently the taxable amount serving as a basis for the VAT to be collected by the tax authorities cannot exceed the consideration actually paid by the final consumer which is the basis for calculating the VAT ultimately borne by him.
Thus in Staatssecretaris van Financien v Hong Kong Trade Development Council (Case 89/81) [1982] ECR 1277 at 1285, para 6 the court held that it was apparent from EC Council Directive 67/227 of 11 April 1967 on the harmonisation of the legislation of the member states concerning turnover tax (the First Directive) (JO 71 14.4.67 p 1301 (S Edn 1967 p 14)) that one of the principles on which the VAT system was based was neutrality, in the sense that within each country similar goods should bear the same tax burden whatever the length of the production and distribution chain.
That basic principle clarifies the role and obligations of taxable persons within the machinery established for the collection of VAT.
It is not, in fact, the taxable persons who themselves bear the burden of VAT. The sole requirement imposed on them, when they take part in the production and distribution process prior to the stage of final taxation, regardless of the number of transactions involved, is that, at each stage of the process, they collect the tax on behalf of the tax authorities and account for it to them."
1 Citers

[ Bailii ]
 
Thorn Materials Supply Limited and Another v Commissioners of Customs and Excise [1996] EWCA Civ 877
4 Nov 1996
CA

VAT

[ Bailii ]
 
Regina v Commissioners of Customs and Excise ex parte Kay and Co, Association of Optometrists, Colaingrove Ltd, Greenlee Group Plc, Rayner and Keeler, National Provident Institution, Allied Domecq Plc, Wardens of Commonality etc [1996] EWHC Admin 245
19 Nov 1996
Admn

VAT

1 Citers

[ Bailii ]
 
The Commissioners of Customs And Excise v Nizar Bassimeh CA Civ 999
20 Nov 1996
CA

VAT, Taxes Management
The respondent had operated a restaurant through a limited company. The commissioners issued notices of assessments and penalties against the company, now in liquidation, and the defendant, on the basis that the company had consistently under-reported its takings. The commissioners appealed a decision setting aside the notices. The argument was as to whether notices had to be issued for the separate quarters. Because the revenue could calculate the penalty as equivalent to the amount under declared, no separate calculation need be made, even though, in this case, no penalty was recoverable for part of the period.
Finance Act 1985 13(4)
[ Bailii ]
 
Commissioners of Customs and Excise v Safeway Stores Plc [1996] EWHC Admin 257
22 Nov 1996
Admn
Keens J
VAT

[ Bailii ]
 
Commissioners of Customs and Excise v Royal Society for Encouragement of Arts Times, 20 December 1996; [1996] EWHC Admin 295
29 Nov 1996
Admn

VAT, Charity
Work supplied to a charity for advertising may be zero-rated if for publication.
Value Added Tax Act 1994 Sc8Gr15It8
[ Bailii ]
 
Regina v Commissioners of Customs and Excise, ex Parte Kay and Co; Regina v Same, ex Parte Similar Times, 10 December 1996; [1996] STC 1500
10 Dec 1996
CA
Keene J
VAT, Constitutional
The commissioners had no power to impose time limits on retrospective refund claims.
Bill of Rights 1688 - Value Added Tax Act 1994 80
1 Cites

1 Citers


 
Commissioners for Customs and Excise v Marchday Holdings Limited Times, 20 December 1996; Gazette, 29 January 1997; [1996] EWCA Civ 1171
11 Dec 1996
CA

VAT, Construction
Extensive work on an existing building may be more than a conversion and therefore may be zero-rated.
Value Added Tax Act 1983 Grp 8 Sch 5 Note 1A
1 Cites

1 Citers

[ Bailii ]
 
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