Thread: Is anyone with Rapidswitch?

Hi

is anyone with Rapidswitch? we have an account with them for our members portal/support site.

I've noticed on my 1st Dec invoice (due 31st Dec) I've been charged 17.5% VAT not 15% I've also spoke to a friend who has a few servers with them who has found the same.

I opened a ticket with them but its on hold until the new year. Has anyone else found they have been charged 17.5% VAT for a Dec invoice not 15% ??

Removed - misleading and incorrect...


Just as a matter of interest tho, is it actually an invoice or a pro-forma for those on 30 day terms?

Actually forget all of above BS I've just spewed - the book mentions issues in YOU accounting for vat at the point of next return and leniency will be shown towards YOU, not that you can just charge WTF you like back...

Originally Posted by chrisbuk

I opened a ticket with them but its on hold until the new year.

What does that mean?

That's odd, we're doing what we did last year and just changing the VAT rate of all invoices generated after 00:01 on 1st at 17.5%

We do and have the same thing. Invoiced in December but using the 17.5% tax rate. I'd imagine this is because the item in question, is provided from 1st January. Not sure on the rules and don't really care because we'll claim it back regardless.

It is an actual invoice though (not proforma).

Originally Posted by Jon-RackSRV

That's odd, we're doing what we did last year and just changing the VAT rate of all invoices generated after 00:01 on 1st at 17.5%

Same here... quite a simple calculation:

Code:

    def self.vat_rate_on(date)
      if date.to_time >= Time.utc(2008, 12, 1) && date.to_time < Time.utc(2010,01, 1)
        15.0
      else
        17.5
      end
    end

I think it depends whether they do invoice accounting or cash accounting.

Originally Posted by AdamC

We do and have the same thing. Invoiced in December but using the 17.5% tax rate. I'd imagine this is because the item in question, is provided from 1st January. Not sure on the rules and don't really care because we'll claim it back regardless.

It is an actual invoice though (not proforma).

Quote HMRC Book in front of me buried under a pile of invoices:

"The standard rate of VAT is returning to 17.5% on 1 January 2010. So you'll need to apply the 17.5% rate to all sales of standard-rated goods and services taking place on or after that date"

Therefore if your goods/services are for January as you suggest, the one could presume the 17.5% rate applies. However reading further also states new rate on all takings/invoices after 1st Jan, then has a massive list of exceptions underneath.

However as you say it will be reclaimed in any case so no worries!

My understanding from our accountant is that if the services are for a period on or after 1 Jan 2010 a company has the option of using the 17.5% VAT regardlesss of whether the invoice date is before 1 Jan. Seems a rather funny thing to do, mind, as it will needlessly hit the non-VAT-registered customers, of which they must have a fair few.

Improves cashflow though!

Originally Posted by AdamC

Not sure on the rules and don't really care because we'll claim it back regardless.

You'll care when HMRC only let you have back the 15% you should have paid

I dont see what all the confusion is about - HMRC have made it a *LOT* clearer that when it shifted down to 15% last December in their knee-jerk-doesnt-fix-anything financial fiasco

For any sales of standard-rated goods or services that you make on or after 1 January 2010 you must charge VAT at the rate of 17.5 per cent. If you have a cash business and calculate your VAT using the VAT fraction you must revert to the VAT fraction of seven fortysevenths from 1 January 2010.

Payments taken *IN-ADVANCE* are accounted for in the VAT current period - so you should have been charged 15% not 17.5%

Originally Posted by othellotech

Payments taken *IN-ADVANCE* are accounted for in the VAT current period - so you should have been charged 15% not 17.5%

Snap. What we did before and what I intend to do this time round as well.

Hence a flurry of sales and signups (whoop!) to secure purchases prior to the VAT increase. Has no one else had a flurry of customers signing up with annual payment schemes lately?

Originally Posted by othellotech

Payments taken *IN-ADVANCE* are accounted for in the VAT current period - so you should have been charged 15% not 17.5%

They haven't paid, so that depends whether they are cash accounting or not...

And from page one of "VAT is changing on 1 January 2010" HMR&C book in front of me, as I quoted earlier:

"The standard rate of VAT is returning to 17.5% on 1 January 2010. So you'll need to apply the 17.5% rate to all sales of standard-rated goods and services taking place on or after that date"

That is the first line of the first paragraph, which is to be fair completely contradicted on page four as usual. Read what you will.

Originally Posted by JSamuel

Has no one else had a flurry of customers signing up with annual payment schemes lately?

Yup and for BS products like annual hosting where the saving is a few pence to a couple of quid... ridiculous - almost wish I was in retail scratching my share of the £3Mill per min over the counter on Boxing Day!

£1.5 Billion ££££ spent in one day from our poor hard up country in financial crisis... Bet the credit card companies are busily calculating their interest for all the unpaid next month already...