VAT/Tax on sports; how does 20% off sound?

[black]

(First let me say that I am no expert in accounting/tax matters)

Consider the following:

UK has a health overweight issue
UK has a cost of living crisis
Sport helps with physical & mental health
UK currently charges 20% tax on sporting activities
Wait.. what?

Common sense would say UKGov needs to consider reviewing this.

However it appears that there are some exemptions already in place; various conditions need to be met though, like a block of 10 bookings etc.

I wondered if there was much awareness of this?

[WednesdayMarch]

It would be nice if VAT wasn't charged on sporting activities but...

I have no knowledge of any tax breaks.

[Badass]

Sounds interesting, I’m not a accountant but a little Googling found this …

Under UK tax law, certain services supplied by eligible bodies, such as non-profit sports clubs, are exempt from VAT (Value Added Tax). These services generally include charges made to members for participation in a sport or physical activity.

This provision is laid out in the UK's VAT Act 1994, Schedule 9, Group 10, which details "Sport, sports competitions and physical education." According to this part of the VAT Act, the supply by an eligible body to an individual, except in the course of furtherance of a business, of services closely linked with and essential to sport or physical education, in which the individual is taking part, is exempt from VAT.

To qualify as an 'eligible body' for this exemption, an organization generally has to be non-profit and be constitutionally restricted from distributing any profit it makes. It should also have restrictions on any profits made being paid to members upon the organization's dissolution.

[black]

Yeah, the hockey/syncro/speed skating clubs could definitely benefit.

Pages 20,21,22 are quite interesting on this:

https://www.sportenglandclubmatters.com/pluginfile.php/37621/mod_resource/content/1/VAT%20Guidance.pdf

The skating NGBs could possible offer more guidance/templates to help.

[transmissionoftheflame]

It's an interesting idea.  Whether it would increase participation sufficiently to pay for itself in terms of physical and mental health benefits would be hard to say as so many factors are involved - but I guess a pilot could be designed to explore that.


There are many things at play - availability and cost of food that is easy to eat too much of, availability of entertainment and communication that doesn't need you to move from your sofa, availability of transport so you don't need to walk.  I would like to see more sports in schools, and probably more dietary education, though I am very wary of the state encroaching too much on what should be personal choices - and where there isn't a very strong consensus (for example, with regard to consumption of carbohydrates).


I live what seems to me a healthy lifestyle - lots of sport and physical activity, decent food (and not too much of it) - I would recommend this lifestyle to anyone, but I am wary of any initiative that tries to impose it or even nudge people or demonise them for not doing it.

[WednesdayMarch]

The skating NGBs could possible offer more guidance/templates to help.

Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah... <dies>