Is there VAT on safety boots? Depends!

Is there VAT on safety boots? Depends!

Is there VAT on safety boots? Depends!

In the UK VAT is charged on pretty much everything but there are some exceptions and it's not always simple. Safety footwear is one of them. By safety footwear we mean shoes or boots that have various protective solutions to the perils of the work place such as steel toe capped boots. First, a technicality: no safety footwear is specifically exempt but safety boots are zero-rated. This technicality is pretty meaningless though.

The first thing to note is that VAT is chargeable on safety shoes or trainers. There are no exceptions here. Boots are different though. At what point does a shoe become a boot? Believe it or not there is an answer based on the British Standard BS EN 345:1993 and that's a leg height of 90mm measured vertically from the rear of the sole.

They must be marked as approved by the European CE mark or the famous BSI kite mark. This is quite important because there is a lot of footwear being imported direct from Chinese factories being sold in the UK which don't have these marks or even worse have forged this mark.

The next important point is that the boots must be sold for "industrial use". HMRC believe the word is clear enough and I agree. Because there is no VAT on safety boots people may try to acquire them to use for general everyday use. Let me give you a very specific example. Have a look at CAT's Colarado boot. Now have a look at a CAT Holton. They are that same desirable CAT appearance but the Holton is often a lot cheaper because the added cost of the steel toe cap is outweighed by the complete absence of Value Added Tax. HMRC don't like the idea of this footwear becoming too mainstream and denying them of valuable tax revenues but I'm sure there are many that do inevitably purchase them for everyday use.

One final and important point on whether VAT is paid and that's who the customer actually is. The retailer must ensure that the purchaser is not an employer buying safety footwear for their employees. The retailer is not allowed to do it but there are several online safety boot retailers out there that do not show the appropriate messaging and provide the functionality to pay the VAT if needed. They are supposed to check whether the customer is buying a lot and of lots of different sizes for their team. So, employers must pay VAT at the point of sale if you are buying them for your employees. This isn't necessarily a problem since many employers will VAT registered also and can claim the cost back.

Steel toe cap boots are VAT-free for individuals buying them for industrial use.

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