VAT deductibility for fund-raising: clarity at last

VAT deductibility in the context of non-economic activities is having its moment in the spotlight. First was the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) decision’s in University of Cambridge (Case C-316/18) concluding that VAT incurred on services relating to the investment of donations and endowments (an outside the scope of VAT activity) is not deductible unless there is an objective link between the outside the scope activity and the taxpayer’s wider taxable activities. The university failed to obtain the right to recover the VAT incurred on services obtained to manage its investment fund as it could not be proven that the cost of these services formed a component of the university’s prices charged for its taxable activities. Hot on the heels of this judgment the Supreme Court...