Date of publication: September 2016
All VAT registered businesses are required to produce invoices which comply with VAT legislation. Whether VAT is chargeable can be a complex question and advice should be sought.
Where the invoice is issued to a customer in another EU state, the issuing business’ VAT registration number must be prefixed with the letters GB.
The EU recipient’s VAT number, including the national code letters must be shown. This information is required by the issuing business for separate reporting of sales to other EU states. Most accounting software collates this information.
If VAT is not chargeable on a particular supply (because it is outside the scope, or subject to reverse charge, for example)the reason why VAT is not due must be shown on the invoice.
Copies of any cancelled invoices should be kept and an explanation recorded, as HMRC have a right to enquire about any gaps in invoice sequencing.
In addition to the above items, UK registered companies are required to include on all communications, including invoices, the company number, registered office address and place of incorporation (normally England & Wales).
VAT 1
Disclaimer: This note does not contain a full statement of the law and it does not constitute legal advice. Please contact us if you have any questions about the information set out above.
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