VAT Registration

How does VAT work?

VAT is charged on the supply of all goods and services made in the course of a business by a taxable person, unless they are specifically exempt. All businesses must register for VAT if their annual turnover of taxable goods and/or services is above a given threshold, currently set at £90,000. Businesses may cancel their VAT registration if their annual turnover falls below a second set threshold, currently set at £88,000.

VAT is charged on the additional value of each transaction. It is collected at each stage of production and distribution. A business pays VAT on its purchases (known as input tax), and charges VAT on its sales (known as output tax). It will settle with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) for the difference between the two. In the end the cost of the tax is borne by the final consumer.

The main body of VAT law is consolidated in the VAT Act (VATA) 1994, as amended. Section 1 and schedule 1 to the Act are the main provisions regarding VAT registration.

Recent changes to the VAT registration threshold

There have been a number of reviews of the registration threshold over the last thirty years without any major reforms.

The threshold was frozen at £85,000 for the period 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2024, when it was increased to £90,000.

This increase was announced by the then Chancellor Jeremy Hunt in the Spring 2024 Budget, when he noted that this represented “the first increase in seven years” and that it would “bring tens of thousands of businesses out of paying VAT altogether, and encourage many more to invest and grow.”

The Chancellor Rachel Reeves did not make any announcements regarding the VAT registration threshold in the government’s Autumn 2024 Budget, although there have been calls for the threshold to be increased in line with inflation.

The Exchequer Secretary James Murray set out the government’s position on setting the registration threshold in answer to a PQ in January this year. In this the minister noted “at £90,000, the UK has a higher VAT registration threshold than any EU country and the joint highest in the OECD. This keeps the majority of businesses out of the VAT regime altogether.” The minister added “the government’s approach to the VAT threshold and applicable rates aims to balance potential impacts on small businesses, including their growth and financial sustainability, the economy as a whole, and tax revenues.”

Further guidance

HMRC’s VAT Guide (VAT Notice 700, September 2023) provides an overview of the basic rules of VAT (see section 4). HMRC also publish guidance on the procedure for registering for VAT (VAT Notice 700/1: Who should register for VAT, May 2025). A supplement to the second of these publications sets out the VAT registration thresholds since 1990.

HMRC provide an online tool to help business owners estimate the implications for their business from registering for VAT.