VAT: Company arranging for medical treatment
In Health Response UK Ltd v HMRC (TC00434 – 6 April) a company (H) helped employers to arrange 'swift and appropriate' medical treatments for employees who sustained a musculoskeletal injury. H treated its supplies as standard-rated and reclaimed input tax accordingly. HMRC issued assessments to recover the input tax on the basis that H's supplies were exempt supplies of medical care. H appealed. The Tribunal allowed the appeal holding that H was supplying a single composite service and that since only part of that service was rendered by registered medical practitioners H's supplies were standard-rated.
Why it matters: The Tribunal specifically rejected HMRC's interpretation of the scope of the relevant legislation. The company here was providing an intermediary service and the Tribunal rejected HMRC's attempt to treat its supplies as exempt.
