Spring 2008 Newsletter Content Winter Of Discontent CGT Winners CGT Losers Shifty Business Anything To Declare? Long Arm Of The Law Irreplaceable You Earn As You Pay Ask Questions Later Capital Ideas ISA ISA ISA Referee! Go Green VAT Or No VAT? Taking The Register Close Encounters May Contain Nuts Going Concern Ancient History Business And Pleasure Do Your Duty Know Your Rights Time To Go? Passing The Buck

Taking The Register One of the frustrations of starting up a new business at the moment is the length of time it can take to get a VAT registration processed. You're trying to be good, you've told HMRC you're trading, and then you have to promise your customers a proper invoice in a couple of weeks that turns into a month... it's embarrassing. The problem is that the VAT system has been under attack for several years from organised fraudsters who register businesses, make large VAT reclaims and then disappear with the money. It's a little more complicated than that, but the fraud depends on being able to register for VAT - so HMRC are now much more wary about issuing registration numbers. They want to run checks on the people involved and on any previous business connections, and they will look very closely at anyone who says they want to trade internationally in mobile phones. If you are an honest trader who just wants to get on with it, HMRC have a target of processing your application in 14 days. They have a backlog, but they are improving - and they have issued some "top tips" to help you avoid the common mistakes that slow down an application unnecessarily. If you need to register for VAT, we will be happy to help you get it done as quickly and painlessly as possible.