Brief 22/12: services connected to land

The UK’s interpretation of the 2010 rules for services has continued to highlight discrepancies with that from other EU locations, leading to double or no taxation. The latest clarification (HMRC Brief 22/12) covers various land-related services; in theory, the rules sound simple – they are taxed where the land is located. However, the legislation provides little clarity on the definition of such services outside the most obvious, and the existing guidance lead to a number of common cross-border B2B transaction being subject to UK VAT which was ultimately recoverable by the recipient, contradicting the ethos of the 2010 changes.