In Mandarin Consulting Limited v HMRC [2020] TC07714, a career coaching service to Chinese students was found to be a supply of consultancy services and not of education. The place of the supply for VAT turned on whether the supply was made to students staying in the UK or their parents in China.

Mandarin contended that:

HMRC argued that:

There was then a dispute as to whether the recipients of the supplies are the parents of the students or the students themselves.

The First Tier Tribunal (FTT) found that:

Where Mandarin entered into contracts with the candidates (mainly before July 2016), the question becomes where the candidates had their permanent address or usually resided.

The FTT, therefore, allowed Mandarin’s appeal for periods commencing in July 2016  but was dismissed in respect of earlier periods.

Links

Education and VAT
When considering what the VAT rate on income associated with education is, it should be considered whether it is a single or multiple supply.

Place of supply for VAT
The place of supply (POS) of a service determines whether the supply is within the scope of UK VAT and whether VAT is payable on that supply.

External links

Mandarin Consulting Limited v HMRC [2020] TC07714