UK Supreme Court Rules on VAT Grouping and Time of Supply in Prudential Case

• UK Supreme Court dismissed Prudential’s appeal regarding VAT grouping and time of supply.
• The case involved the relationship between VAT grouping provisions and time of supply rules.
• The Court ruled that time of supply, not actual performance date, determines VAT group relief applicability.
• Silverfleet Capital invoiced Prudential for success fees after leaving the VAT group.
• HMRC argued success fees crystallized on invoicing, not during group membership.
• The First-tier Tribunal sided with Prudential, but HMRC won in higher courts.
• Supreme Court upheld HMRC’s position, confirming regulation 90’s application to continuous supplies.
• The Court stated VAT grouping relief does not cover contingent payments after leaving the group.
• Time of supply rules take precedence over actual performance timing for VAT purposes.

Source: vatcalc.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.

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