VAT registration service for limited companies

A company must register when its taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000, or when it expects taxable turnover in the next 30 days alone to go over £90,000. Our VAT registration threshold guide covers both tests, the deadlines and what counts as taxable turnover.

See also: VAT registration threshold

If you register late, the company must pay HMRC the VAT due on sales made since the date it should have been registered, even if it did not charge VAT to customers. GOV.UK says the company might also need to pay a penalty.

Tell us the real date turnover first went over the threshold. We will not move that date to make the position look better. A late registration still needs to be made as soon as possible.

If turnover went over the threshold only temporarily, you can apply to HMRC for a registration exception. This is done on the paper VAT1 form, and HMRC decides each request. If it refuses, the company must register.

A company can choose to register for VAT when its turnover is below £90,000. When you register voluntarily you can choose the registration date, and it can be backdated by up to 4 years. Think it through first: HMRC says that once it agrees a registration date it will not normally let you change it, and a request to change the date has no right of appeal or review.

• Possible benefit: you can reclaim VAT on business costs, which can help if most customers are VAT registered and can reclaim the VAT you charge them.
• Possible benefit: after registration you can usually reclaim VAT on goods bought for the business up to 4 years before your registration date that you still have, and on services bought up to 6 months before it. These are claimed on your first VAT return.
• Possible drawback: if most customers are the public or are not VAT registered, adding VAT can make your prices higher for them or reduce your margin.
• Possible drawback: you must charge VAT, keep VAT records and file VAT returns on time, even in quiet periods.
• This page is general information, not tax advice. If the decision is finely balanced, speak to an accountant before you apply.

• Company registration number and the 10-digit Corporation Tax Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR). If you cannot find the UTR, request it first.
• A short description of what the company sells or provides, and the business address if it is not the registered office.
• Taxable turnover for the last 12 months, an estimate for the next 12 months, and the date turnover went over £90,000 or the date you realised it would in the next 30 days.
• The date the company started trading or plans to start, and the registration date you would like. HMRC decides the effective date.
• Business bank account name, sort code and account number. If there is no account yet, tell us why so we can check whether HMRC can accept the application.
• Identity details for one director, such as full date of birth, home address and National Insurance number. HMRC may ask a director without a UK National Insurance number for other proof of identity.
• Corporation Tax, PAYE or Self Assessment information HMRC may ask for as an identity check, and the PAYE reference if the company has employees.
• Any other UK or Isle of Man business the directors have been involved in during the last 2 years.

Some cases need extra HMRC questions or a paper route, such as buying a business, VAT groups, land and property, labour supply or businesses not established in the UK. We check the route with you before payment.

Registration is not instant, and we cannot promise how long HMRC will take. HMRC's notice says to contact its VAT Registration Service if you have not heard after 40 working days.

Not included: VAT returns, bookkeeping, tax advice on special arrangements, or paying VAT. You can also register directly with HMRC online yourself, free of charge.

1. Check the company's taxable turnover against the £90,000 threshold on a rolling 12-month basis, and look ahead 30 days for any large order or contract. If you are below the threshold, decide whether voluntary registration makes sense.
2. Find your company on SimpleFilings and answer the VAT questions: turnover, trading start date, business activity, bank account and director details. We check the answers and ask for anything missing before you pay.
3. Authorise SimpleFilings as your agent for VAT through the route HMRC requires. We use our own HMRC agent access, so you never share your Government Gateway password.
4. Review the prepared application and approve it. We then submit it to HMRC. Most companies can register online; we tell you first if your case needs the paper VAT1 form or another route.
5. HMRC posts the registration details: your 9-digit VAT number, the date you are registered from (the effective date of registration), when your first VAT return is due and how to set up your business tax account.
6. Sign up for a VAT online account as soon as the VAT number arrives, as GOV.UK requires. From the effective date, charge VAT, keep VAT records and file VAT returns using software that works with Making Tax Digital.

See also: How to register a limited company for VAT · VAT registration: do it yourself, use SimpleFilings or use an accountant · Making Tax Digital for VAT

• Keep trading. The company owes VAT from its registration date, so plan your pricing for that date now.
• Do not show VAT as a separate item on invoices until you have the VAT number.
• You can tell VAT-registered customers that VAT invoices will follow. Once you have the number, send them invoices showing VAT within 30 days.
• Once registered, your 9-digit VAT number must appear on every VAT invoice you issue.

• Checking turnover once a year instead of at the end of every month on a rolling 12-month basis.
• Counting the company's financial year, rather than the last 12 months, against the £90,000 threshold.
• Missing the forward-look test when a single large order or contract is coming.
• Leaving out zero-rated sales, or services bought from abroad under the reverse charge, which both count towards taxable turnover.
• Choosing a voluntary start date without thinking about the VAT you will need to charge on sales already invoiced from that date.
• Assuming the application is complete when it is submitted. Wait for HMRC's confirmation of the VAT number and start date.