VAT on cosmetic treatments & botox

VAT on cosmetic treatments & botox

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Morning all & seasons greetings,

I have a client who has a "clinic" offering treatments such as botox fillers etc my initial understanding of the position was that as these treatments where not as a result of a medical referral (although carried out by a nurse) they were standard rated for VAT purposes.

I'm just double checking my thinking around this and have reviewed the Skatterverket vs PFC Clinic AB - which appears to rule that such treatments are "medical care" and as  result VAT exempt?

Does anyone have any specific experience / comments on this? If so, it would be much appreciated, thanks, JMB

Replies (10)

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By cheekychappy
28th Dec 2015 10:14

Vatable
Botox and these kind of treatments fall short of medical treatment in my opinion.
Though in come circumstances cosmetic surgery could be an extension of the medical care carried out.

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By Jambo55
28th Dec 2015 10:18

Thanks Cheeky Chappy - yes I agree, there could be scenarios whereby there is a referral for a botox treatment for medical reasons but as a rule of thumb I think these should be standard rated, adjusting only for "exceptional" referred treatments

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chips_at_mattersey
By Les Howard
29th Dec 2015 09:45

Fine line!

There is a fine line here; HMRC Notice 701/57 para 4.4 makes only a brief comment that cosmetic surgery may be exempt. Practitioners have assured me that this is quite common. But I remain unconvinced.

Do be careful, but you may find that your client's competitors take a different line, leaving them with a 20% price advantage,

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By shaun king
29th Dec 2015 22:54

Exempt

I had a large private hospital/clinic who undertook cosmetic treatments and after a degree of argument HMRC accepted the treatments were exempt.

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By cheekychappy
29th Dec 2015 23:06

Interesting Shaun

and I may have jumped the gun a bit.

 

Did the private hospital only carry out cosmetic procedures?

 

I vaguely remember a case that relied on "therapeutic purposes" but can't remember much about it! 

 

Given that botox application doesn't have to be carried out by a medical professional in the UK, if this is the core of the business, I'm not sure I would be happy arguing that the supplies are exempt. 

 

I would be interest to hear from the OP what the other treatments are.

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By shaun king
29th Dec 2015 23:25

Botox

OP says they are carried out by a nurse who is a registered practioner!!

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By cheekychappy
30th Dec 2015 00:51

But they don't have to be carried out by a nurse who is a registered practitioner.

I don't think that wholly identifies it as an exempt supply. Think of registered medical professionals that write reports for insurers etc.

If it is purely for cosmetic reasons, then VAT should be applied, regardless of who administers the Botox.

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By shaun king
30th Dec 2015 10:40

What is the definition of Cosmetic

I am unsure, as I am sure many others would in how you decide whether a supply is "purely for Cosmetic reasons". If you take that view your business will not last long as the competitors will be 20% cheaper.

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By cheekychappy
30th Dec 2015 10:54

Given that most medical services are exempt because they protect, maintain or restore the health of the person concerned, I don't see how Botox falls into this category unless the procedure is an extension of a treatment programme. 

I am not a VAT expert, that's you. I would hope that you would give a stronger argument to exempt the supply than you have already given. I don't think that other businesses might exempt the supply is a good enough reason.

 

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By Mikolaj
15th Jan 2019 16:58

People have such medical procedures for mental health reasons due to low self-esteem. As long as such a procedure is carried our by a registered medical practitioner then there will always be an argument that there is a theraputic reason. The practitioner should keep consultation notes to prove this.

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