VAT invoices: the £250 simplified invoice limit

The rule

1. A VAT-registered supplier can issue a simplified VAT invoice when the value of the supply is £250 or less and the customer agrees. A business based in Northern Ireland has one more condition: the customer must not be from an EU member state.

   ›What HMRC says

   “You can issue a simplified invoice if all of the following conditions exist:”

   “the value of the supply you are making is £250 or less”

   “your customer agrees”

   “if your business is based in Northern Ireland your customer must not be from an EU member state”

   Report a problem

2. For a transaction of more than £250, the supplier must issue a full VAT invoice.

   ›What HMRC says

   “You must issue a full VAT invoice if the transaction is for:”

   “more than £250”

   Report a problem

3. A simplified invoice must show the supplier's name, address and VAT registration number, the time of supply, a description of the goods or services, and for each VAT rate the total including VAT and the rate.

   ›What HMRC says

   “The simplified invoice must include:”

   “your name, address and VAT registration number”

   “the time of supply (tax point)”

   “a description which identifies the goods or services supplied”

   “for each applicable VAT rate, the total amount payable, including VAT, and the VAT rate”

   Report a problem

4. VAT invoices are the evidence for claiming input tax.

   ›What HMRC says

   “VAT invoices provide evidence for claiming input tax.”

   Report a problem

How Bilbx applies it

• Bilbx reads the supplier's VAT number and the VAT printed on each receipt you scan.
• In the export from Tax Lab, part of Bilbx Premium, the "VAT evidence" column marks each claimed receipt: "VAT captured" when it shows VAT, "Small purchase" when it shows none and is for £250 or less, and "VAT not captured" when it shows none and is for more than £250.
• The column shows what Bilbx read on each receipt: above the line, "VAT not captured" is a prompt to look at the receipt again.

Worked examples

Bilbx's own tests run these exact cases against the website and the app.

• £250 · VAT not shown

  What HMRC asks for:

  A simplified VAT invoice can do

  Bilbx's export says:

  Small purchase

• £250.01 · VAT not shown

  What HMRC asks for:

  A full VAT invoice

  Bilbx's export says:

  VAT not captured

• £300 · VAT shown

  What HMRC asks for:

  A full VAT invoice

  Bilbx's export says:

  VAT captured

Check a receipt

Enter a receipt to see what Bilbx does with it under the UK's rules. It is worked out in your browser by the same code the app runs, and nothing you enter is sent or stored.