Vat on livestock

weatherbyfoxer

Currently im in the process here of vat registering and was wondering if I can claim the vat back on cattle and sheep bought in the mart?..I know you don't get paid the vat on the sale of stock but seen the vat separate on a docket I got yesterday from a mart for buying a few cattle

epfff

You can.

Talk to a good/experienced professional about vat registering before you go for it.

weatherbyfoxer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119973750#Comment_119973750

Thanks epfff,I have been discussing it with my account and it look like the right thing to do with the contracting work I do along side my farm,My main concern was looseing vat on selling stock but this might no be as bad if I can claim it back on bought in stock

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119973813#Comment_119973813

Are you forming a company as well the farm can be kept outside the company set up. I know a few contractors that do this. Contracting business is vat reg and within a company set up.

The farm is totally separate and it is charged for contracting services

alps

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120011865#Comment_120011865

Great option..

DBK1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120011865#Comment_120011865

Exactly how I do it here and it works very well.

@weatherbyfoxer I would strongly advise to keep both enterprises separate. There’s no advantage to having a farm vat registered for 90+ percent of farms. There’s no vat on the majority of your main farm expenses so there’s very little to claim back.

Make sure you’re getting good advice from an accountant experienced in that type of thing and I’d recommend you get them to go through your last 2 or 3 years accounts and recreate them as if you had kept everything together and were vat registered and also if you had set up a separate contracting company to the farm and vat registered the company and left the farm as is. Compare the 2 then and see what the pros and cons are.

Bass Reeves

Most contracting businesses have to vat register at some stage. You get caught by turnover at some stage.

Incorporating at that stage is the answer but the farm should be left outside the company set up unless it's a fairly large dairy farm or tillage farm and even then there can be advantages in letting it outside the structure.

weatherbyfoxer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120011865#Comment_120011865

No,not currently forming a limited company,currently the contract working is out growing the current tractor and machinery I have on the farm here.I have went back through my previous stock sales and predicted stock sales for the coming years and with what I will be claiming back on silage wrap,diesel,service,repair,mart dockets,vet,other farm services and machinery it definitely out weight what I will be paying back by a decent margin

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120012968#Comment_120012968

Problem for if you decide to incorporate in a few years time any vat surplus for a few previous years ( three I think )has to be repaid out of the sole trader allowance.

Tractor is a once off purchase. Usually if your vat reclaim is higher than you vat payment to revenue you are not making money

Talk to an accountant that really understands the farming business. It could be short term gain long-term pain.