Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

UK VAT contract review checklist: determining VAT due and allocating liability in commercial agreements

Published by a LexisNexis Tax expert

Checklists

Use this Checklist to concentrate on the key points you should consider when assessing a commercial contract (such as an intellectual property licence) for VAT purposes. A more detailed treatment of these areas is set out in the Practice Note: How to review a contract for VAT purposes.

The Checklist is arranged around two core steps for reviewing a contract for VAT:

Decide whether VAT is due under the contract
Determine how liability is allocated between the parties

Decide whether VAT is due under the contract

To make this assessment, you should have addressed all of the following:

Question: determine the subject matter of the contract, ie what is being supplied?
Context
Lawyer's notes...

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Matthew Wentworth-May

Winslows

A law graduate of University of Southampton and taxation masters graduate of University of London, Matthew qualified as a tax barrister at Pump Court Tax Chambers before working for City law firm Olswang for 11 years.Matthew advises clients on corporate, commercial and real estate transactions, including M&A and private equity transactions, business restructurings, joint ventures and venture capital investments. Matthew also specialises in international tax and VAT....

Web page updated on 20/05/2026

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