Gateshead Jewish Nursery v HMRC

In Gateshead Jewish Nursery v HMRC (TC03807 – 16 July 2014) a new structure was held to be an extension subject to standard rated VAT.

Gateshead ran a nursery. It had built additional accommodation and appealed against HMRC’s decision to treat the construction services for the new structure as standard rated.

Under VATA 1994 Sch 8 group 5 the construction services could only be zero rated if the new structure was not an extension but an annexe capable of functioning independently with its own main access. It was accepted that the building was to be used ‘solely for relevant charitable purposes’.

The FTT observed that the test was objective and that the way the building was actually used or accessed might guide the answer but was not determinative. The FTT found that the new structure was simply an additional room which was fully integrated with the existing...