Grants of Interests in Land – Councils and Market Rents

Whether we are discussing hire of rooms; market stall rents; festival pitches; Hire of Registered Wedding Venues - there is a trend for HMRC to review their past acceptance of these as qualifying as VAT Exempt interests in land and are now arguing that they are actually Standard Rated supplies. This will be a concern across a range of sectors including local authorities and again we are aware of HMRC visits to review income treatment. In some cases VAT Tribunals have already arisen on the liability points – recently on the hire of Registered Wedding Venues in a Hotel.