Evidence required to support claims re input VAT
A recent tribunal case examined whether a taxpayer had sufficient evidence to support his claims to reclaim input tax.
It transpired that the invoices held by the appellant did not conform with the usual layout of invoices issued by the supplier. The supplier entered a signed witness statement, which was accepted by the Tribunal, in which he stated that he had not issued the disputed invoices nor made any fuel supply to the appellant.
The appellants provided some scant evidence of making payments to the ‘supplier’ but were unable to provide any other supporting evidence such as delivery documents, order confirmations etc. The Tribunal found for HMRC and the appeal was dismissed.
This case provides a useful reminder for businesses to retain adequate documentation and information to support input tax claims.