The Court of Appeal’s decision in Sub One Ltd (t/a Subway) (in liquidation) v HMRC [2014] EWCA Civ 773 was released on 10 June 2014. The decision concerns the VAT liability of hot takeaway food a subject that has been a rather contentious issue over many years. This article considers the approach taken by the court in deciding on the correct test reconciling the case with earlier decisions and the relevance of the principle of fiscal neutrality.
This case concerned the deceptively simple question of whether a hot toasted sandwich taken away by a customer should be treated in the same way as any other shop sandwich and therefore whether a toasted sandwich was a sale of hot food that should be taxed at the standard rate...
