The Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announced a VAT payments deferral on 20 March to support businesses suffering with cash flow problems during the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you’re a UK VAT registered business and have a VAT payment due between 20 March 2020 and 30 June 2020, you have the option to:

• defer the payment until a later date

• pay the VAT due as normal

By cancelling your Direct Debit to HMRC with your bank, you will opt in for the deferral. However, if you do not cancel this, HMRC may attempt to automatically charge VAT on receipt of your VAT return. There is no need to inform HMRC if you wish to defer your payment. If you wish to, you can continue to make payments as normal during the deferral period.

HMRC will also carry on paying repayment claims as normal. You must continue to submit VAT returns as normal. VAT payments due following the end of the deferral period will have to be paid.

Further information about how to repay the VAT you’ve deferred will be available soon.

If you would like free advice from a Chartered Management Accountant during this period, please do not hesitate to contact us– we would be more than happy to support small businesses in any way we can!