I have a VAT question for you and and have emailed the HMRC dept but they havent replied yet and I am worried Im doing the EC sales list wrong.
We are UK based and sell under bond whisky and UK duty paid whisky to the UK and worldwide. My query refers to under bond shipping only to customers with a valid VAT number.
If i sell casks or drums which are still in the warehouse, I zero rate these (T0) If i sell bottles/cases under bond, I put these in the EC sales list (T4 on sage). If I invoice for bottling or shipping, I put these in as EC services so they do go in the ECSL under services. (T22)
I am not sure if regarding case sales, I should be putting them as T0 (because they are being sent under bond) or T4. how can I explain to customs that some go to a temporary consignee and so duty and tax is paid beforehand (so these should be T4 even though theyre being shipped under bond), some go to a tax warehouse so may be taken out immediately or in years time and I have no idea of knowing how?
My hubby and co-director says if Im doing it wrong, its not a massive deal (like doing the VAT return wrong and having to repay money) and if the Customs people in Austria can say to our customer and say You should have paid £xxx in VAT on goods supplied he can just prove these goods are still warehoused and the VAT will be paid once they are released. Does anyone have any help with this or am I over-complicating things? It's literally case sales I am confused about, not the rest.I've posted this on a few forums so hoping someone knows what I am on about!!!
Sales to another MS and placed in bond are T4, as you describe them. You will still need to obtain the purchase's VAT Number, to allow you to zero rate them. Sales will still need to be included on the EC Sales List.
I disagree with your husband! Failure to show, for example, correct entries on the ECSL may be subject to financial penalty (these are becoming more common). Lack of proper documentation may also trigger a wider investigation (there is some re-routing of bonded goods); you will not want to be considered fraudulent just because the paperwork is not completely accurate!
You should start by speaking with your Accountant, and ask him to find a Customs Consultant to advise. Better a modest fee today, than a huge legal bill later!
