In Ebley House Ltd v HMRC (TC02816 – 15 August) a company (E) opted to tax a property which it owned and which had previously been used as a children’s home in 2001. It renovated the building and in 2007 it sold it to a charity which operated a residential school for children with learning difficulties. Although E had opted to tax the property it treated the sale as exempt from VAT and repaid the input tax which it had previously reclaimed. HMRC issued an assessment charging tax on the sale. E appealed contending that the effect of VATA 1994 Sch 10 para 5(1)(b) was that the option to tax was not applicable as the property was intended to be used solely for a residential purpose. The First-tier Tribunal accepted this contention and allowed the appeal.
In Ebley House Ltd v HMRC (TC02816 – 15 August) a company (E) opted to tax a property which it owned and which had previously been used as a children’s home in 2001. It renovated the building and in 2007 it sold it to a charity which operated a residential school for children with learning difficulties. Although E had opted to tax the property it treated the sale as exempt from VAT and repaid the input tax which it had previously reclaimed. HMRC issued an assessment charging tax on the sale. E appealed contending that the effect of VATA 1994 Sch 10 para 5(1)(b) was that the option to tax was not applicable as the property was intended to be used solely for a residential purpose. The First-tier Tribunal accepted this contention and allowed the appeal.
