Court of Appeal Rejects BT’s Historical VAT Bad Debt Relief Claim

• BT plc was unable to claim VAT relief of £65 million between 1978 and 1989 due to deficiencies in the rules for VAT bad debt relief.
• BT has been pursuing a historical BDR claim since 2009, but the Court of Appeal has rejected both routes.
• The Court of Appeal refused permission for BT to appeal to the First-tier Tribunal and also struck out BT’s High Court claim for restitution.
• The Court of Appeal determined that the Old BDR Scheme excluded common law remedies such as restitution.
• The Court of Appeal concluded that HMRC had not been unjustly enriched and that BT’s failure to make a BDR claim within the requisite period was the reason for their loss.
• The Court of Appeal confirmed the High Court’s decision to strike out BT’s claim.

Source: taxscape.deloitte.com

Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.