dixon9

VAT:

I understand that if your invoicing falls below 65K per year you don´t need to be VAT registered.

Advantage is that it is easier to make your quotes more competitive in domestic and certain commercial situations - Disadvantage is that perhaps some customers (Commercial, Industrial or local authorities?) may need your company to be VAT registered to carry out work? No VAT registeration and you lose work?

How many sole traders/small Ltd companies on here are VAT regsitered? Is it worth it?


Commercial or Domestic:

Commercial work does have the advantage of no Part P registration fees I suppose.

Which customers are easier to deal with? Which is more profitable in general?


Any feedback greatly appreciated.

sparkyork

although im no where near earning 65k at the moment, i dont think id bother going vat registered anyway, seems like a lot of hassle, alot more paperwork, and an extra 500 pound accountancy bill. it does have its perks i suppose but its pretty much swings and roundabouts when dealing with vat, someones gotta pay it in the end.

a customer of mine asked if i was vat registered and said no im not but i can get invoices from wholesalers made out in your name so you can claim it back still.

domestic or commercial, suppose realistically you'd of thought more in commercial but it depends on the premises and what gear is going in i.e 25k AV systems and all that!

rich

Spudmiester

[quote=dixon9;11640]VAT:

I understand that if your invoicing falls below 65K per year you don´t need to be VAT registered.

Advantage is that it is easier to make your quotes more competitive in domestic and certain commercial situations - Disadvantage is that perhaps some customers (Commercial, Industrial or local authorities?) may need your company to be VAT registered to carry out work? No VAT registeration and you lose work?

How many sole traders/small Ltd companies on here are VAT regsitered? Is it worth it?

I depends who you are working for. If you do mostly domestic, then its a bad idea, as you will be 17.5% more expensive than someone who is not VAT registered.
However , if you are working for customers who themselvs are VAT registered and you are not, they cannot claim the VAT back that you have added into the cost of the materials.
I went VAT registered when I did'nt need to for his reason as my customers are nearly all commercial/industrial.

If you do go VAT registered, get a bookeeper to sort it all for you, then give it all to the accountants at the end of the year, it will save you a lot of headaches, lets face it most of us hate paperwork, we are sparks, not paper shufflers.

Any more questions just ask, will help where I can.

Spud

sparkyork

hey up if your customer is vat registered and you are not, your customer can claim the vat back if you get your wholesaler to produce an invoice in the customers name. ive had to do this for my client in leeds.

rich

dixon9

Which means that its difficult to mark up on the materials you bought without the customer knowing how much profit you´ve made on them?

I suppose the solution is NOT to itemise labour and materials - just one job lot price in that circumstance.

sparkyork

ocontrare (dell boy style) my wholesaler produced an invoice for the customer in there name and stuck my percentage on top of the price. theres ways round things most of the time

rich

London Luke

no way would i go VAT reg if doing domestic work

Cirrus

I used to be VAT registered on an old business cos my T/O was over 50 grand a month. It was a complete nightmare with quarterly returns and sooo much more paperwork. Worse part was writing cheques to the vat man every quarter for thousands of pounds! Only good thing was being able to buy stuff 17.5% cheaper than I could personally so when I needed a new telly, the company did. If I wanted a new camera, it was of course for the company etc..