My firm acts for a number of clients based in Europe. I’m concerned about the VAT position on invoices after Brexit. Is there any guidance on this?
Following the end of the Brexit transition period, the VAT treatment of business to consumer (non-land related) supplies by UK lawyers to EU clients has changed and moved outside of the scope of VAT.
You need to adjust your client billing system to reflect the changes on VAT when invoicing individual clients.
There has been no change to business-to-business (non-land related) supplies by UK lawyers to EU clients, which remain outside the scope of UK VAT.
The liability to account for VAT is instead shifted to the EU client under the reverse charge rules, which ensure that tax is charged in the EU state where the services are received.
For further information, see our guidance on VAT after Brexit.
Disclaimer
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information in this article, it does not constitute legal advice and cannot be relied upon as such. The Law Society does not accept any responsibility for liabilities arising as a result of reliance upon the information given.
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