VAT registration threshold: when your Lancashire business must register

The VAT registration threshold is £90,000 of taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months (since 1 April 2024). You must register if your taxable turnover goes over the threshold in the last 12 months, or you expect to go over it in the next 30 days alone. The habit of watching it matters.

Rolling 12 months, not the tax year

A good Christmas and a quiet spring can still push you over. We look at the last 12 months every time we close your books. If you only look in April you are late.

When registering early is smart

If your customers are VAT-registered businesses, they can reclaim what you charge. You can reclaim what you spend. Registering early can be a cash win on a van, a fit-out or a big software year. If your customers are the public, adding 20% can hurt sales more than the reclaim helps.

The first return is the dangerous one

People register, then invent a system in week ten. File the first return from software with a digital link. That is Making Tax Digital, and it is not optional.