In New Deer Community Association v HMRC [2015] UKUT 604 (12 November 2015) the UT found that a building constructed for a charitable community association was not used as a ‘village hall or similarly’.
The issue was whether a building was to be used for a ‘relevant charitable purpose’ and in particular whether it would be ‘used as a village hall or similarly’ so that its construction was zero rated (VATA 1994 Sch 8 Group 5 Note 6).
The UT considered that the focus should be on whether the use or intended use of a building was similar to the use of a building as a village hall rather than on whether the building was similar to a village hall. The UT added that the use should be by people living in the vicinity and that it was essential that the activities carried on in...
