CIS - are "muck-away" services within scope?

Is the supply of a service using a lorry with a bucket grabber within CIS (and VAT DRC)?

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Can anyone clarify whether “muck-away” services, where a large lorry with its own attached bucket grabber comes on site to pick up spoil/waste, such as topsoil, bricks, hardcore, etc. and then remove it.  The business providing the muck-away is not otherwise involved in the construction site.

My confusion is that HMRC’s guidance in CIS 340 states that earth-moving on site is within the scope of construction operations for CIS, but the transport of spoils from a site are excluded.

Muck-away services are potentially within both of these two descriptions.

Does anyone have a view as to whether it is within the CIS and therefore whether such supplies will be subject to the VAT Domestic Reverse Charge from October 2020?

HMRC have been unhelpful and only suggest referring to their guidance.

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By Wanderer
18th Oct 2019 10:15

CIS is mentioned in this thread:-
https://www.accountingweb.co.uk/any-answers/can-muck-away-be-zero-rated-...
& whether it's 'construction services' was discussed here (in context of VAT):-
https://www.accountingweb.co.uk/any-answers/japanese-knotweed-removal-ze...

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By The Dullard
18th Oct 2019 10:17

No.

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JCACE
By jcace
18th Oct 2019 11:21

CISR14240 explains "FA04/S74 (2)(f) defines as within the scope of the Construction Industry Scheme
‘operations which form an integral part of, or are preparatory to, .... such operations as are previously described in this subsection, including site clearance, earth-moving etc etc...
However, the following activities are not considered to be construction operations...
transport of spoil from site"
I would not describe the removal of spoil from the site as an integral part of the construction. Further, as transport of spoil from site is specifically excluded, I would be comfortable treating the loading of the lorry in order to transport spoil from site within that excluded activity.

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