When using a credit/debit card the buyer is given a receipt with the details and cost of what was bought (inc Vat details) and a card holder copy receipt. The cardholder copy has no details of what was bought, just the amount.
My client gives me a lot of Cardholder receipts but not the other part which has all the details on. I am thinking that you cannot use the cardholder receipt as a record like you would use a normal invoice.
Does anyone know what the Revenues stance is on this subject or give me some general advise.
Well I don't know HMRC's authorised position on this, but I should imagine it goes along the lines of...The cardholder copy is certainly evidence of where you spent the money and the amount you spent, so I would suspect this would be borderline acceptable for tax purposes, they would certainly prefer you to have the full information though and may challenge certain items depending on the shop it was bought for, ie a tescos card receipt might not be for the printer paper you are claiming it is as they sell such a variety of things, but one from Joe Bloggs Printing & Stationery would be less likely to be challenged.
From a VAT point of view then technically you should not be reclaiming any VAT on the purchase as you do not have the VAT receipt (which would be the other part), and so if there was an inspection you may find a problem if these receipts have been used in that way.
Hope that helps.
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Jenny
Responses are my opinion based on the information provided. All information should be thoroughly checked before being relied on.
Hi I am having the same problem as Keybus. It is always for fuel receipts, I have the card machine payment receipt but rarely the actual main fuel receipt. Do you think it is ok to claim the vat back on these or not at all?
I've actually had a case where on a VAT inspection these sort of receipts were rejected.
The inspector quite rightly pointed out that just because the client was at place X on business and bought fuel there does not mean that the whole receipt was for fuel and may also include magazines, sandwiches, a DVD or CD, etc. so unless there was a receipt showing the puchase and the breakdown for VAT purposes then it was not acceptable and rejected.
Where there is evidence of many similar proper receipts with the occassional one that is not in the proper format but the amount is consistent with the other receipts then I think you would be very unlucky to have an inspector who actually kept to the letter of the regulations although they quite rightly could.
Where a large percentage of the receipts are incorrect then they would likely all be rejected on an inspection.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Good question Suffolker. I can't imagine a visiting VAT officer disallowing the VAT for a round £40 spent at say a BP station unless there were other shortcomings in the records. They might issue a written instruction to keep valid receipts, and it would be foolhardy to disregard that.
Keybus, i would write a short letter explaining that s/he is discarding the invoice. It may come to light that they are also buying sweets/newspapers/tobacco. Occasionally, I have full receipts land on my desk for petrol when i know their only vehicle is diesel engined.
Thanks for your replies. He had about 160 fuel payments last year, about 110 of them had full and proper receipts the other 50ish were either just the card merchant slip or nothing at all. Sometimes the receipts even turn up (screwed up) months later! Sadly they are very rarely a round figure but when I do see the receipts there is only say 1 in every 20 that actually has anything other than fuel on and even then it it just a packet of mints. Perhaps I will allow some of the card merchant ones then
-- Edited by Suffolker on Sunday 24th of July 2011 02:12:17 PM
Hi, yes i did mean £40.00 but omitted the decimals. A third missing is a large proportion. Would an account at a local filling station be an option, so you could get copy monthly statements? Tim
I personally do not put them through for VAT. I make an entry in the accounts for the gross amount but not for VAT.
As Shaun says, you can never be sure that they are just for fuel, and many card receipts actually say "This is not a VAT receipt" on them, so I point that out to clients, just to educate. How can I process a VAT posting, when I know it's not valid?
While I agree there may be some discression on the part of a VAT officer, I don't take the chance.
Personally I'd like to see the registration numbers printed on the VAT receipt too.
Bill
-- Edited by Wella on Sunday 24th of July 2011 02:48:20 PM
I automatically ask for a VAT receipt whenever I buy petrol and pay by credit card as the garage I normally use doesn't give out the receipt with the details on if paying by C/C (only the c/c receipt). Even though I'm not VAT registered it's the only way you get the details of litres, cost per litre and total. I don't even use the receipts for tax purposes just for my own information - and I write the mileage on the receipt as well. But us bookkeeper types tend to be a bit OCD about these things anyway as I've been noticing on postings on this forum. So it's ok for us to automatically check - but normal everyday folk just assume the bit of paper they are handed will have the details on.
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Never buy black socks from a normal shop. They shaft you every time.
I'm imagining that as you're aware there are 50 missing receipts that the client has either declared to you that they were for fuel (then you yourself are at no risk for processing the VAT element), or the bank statement states where the purchase took place.
See what evidence you do have - bank statements will state "PFS" or "Store" if they fill up at Tescos. I would argue the hind leg off a donkey on behalf of my client if such a claim were disallowed on a point of principle. Everybody loses a receipt now and again. I'd also show that i'd instructed the client in writing to keep receipts. Reinforce the importance by giving them a free receipt spike to be kept in the vehicle. Tim
EDIT G/F informs me that Tesco's also show UPT (unattended payment terminal)
-- Edited by Don Tax on Monday 25th of July 2011 09:49:55 AM
