VAT liability of common items of printed material

The rules governing whether printed material is liable for VAT or whether it can be zero-rated are relatively involved and complex and, as such, we will not attempt to cover them here. However, as a general guide we have reproduced below, from HMC’s published guidelines, lists of common items that are standard-rated or zero-rated in most circumstances. Where there is any doubt we will always charge VAT.

Examples of Standard-rated Items
– Acceptance cards
– Account books
– Address books
– Albums
– Amendment slips
– Announcement cards
– Appointment cards
– Autograph albums (uncompleted)
– Badges
– Bags, paper
– Ballot papers
– Bankers’ drafts
– Billheads •
– Bills of lading
– Bills of quantity (blank)
– Binders
– Bingo cards
– Biorhythm charts
– Blotters
– Book covers
– Book marks
– Book tokens
– Bookmakers’ tickets
– Business cards
– Calendars
– Certificates
– Cheques and cheque books
– Cigarette cards
– Cloakroom tickets
– Colour cards
– Compliment slips
– Copy books
– Correspondence cards
– Coupons
– Coupon books
– Credit cards
– Delivery notes
– Diaries (unused)
– Dividend warrants
– Dressmaking patterns
– Engineers’ plans
– Envelopes
– Exercise books
– Fashion drawings
– Flash cards
– Folders
– Form letters
– Forms
– Football pool coupons
– Framed decorative maps
– Games
– Globes
– Graph paper
– Greetings cards
– Index cards
– Inlay cards for cassette, CD or video
– Insurance cover notes
– Invitation cards
– Invoices
– Labels
– Letter headings
– Letters (hand-written)
– Log books (blank)
– Lottery tickets and cards
– Manuscript paper
– Manuscripts
– Medical records
– Membership cards
– Memo pads
– Memorial cards
– Menu cards (with space for completion)
– Microfiche
– Microfilm
– Microform copies
– Music rolls
– Note books, pads and paper
– Order books and forms
– Paper, unprinted
– Parts of books
– Pattern cards
– Photographs
– Photograph albums
– Plans
– Playing cards
– Poll cards
– Pools coupons
– Postcards (whether completed or not)
– Posters
– Price cards and tags
– Printed pictures
– Questionnaires
– Receipt books and forms
– Record books
– Record sleeves
– Record labels
– Record sleeves
– Registers
– Rent books
– Reply-paid coupons and envelopes
– Reproductions of paintings
– Score cards
– Scrap books (blank)
– Scrolls (hand-written)
– Seals
– Shade cards (unless they contain substantial printed text)
– Share certificates
– Stamp albums (whether completed or not)
– Stationery
– Stationery books
– Stickers
– Swatch cards
– Swatch books
– Sweepstake tickets
– Tags
– Temperature charts
– Tickets
– Time cards and sheets
– Tokens
– Toys
– Transcripts
– Transfers
– Transparencies
– Visiting cards
– Vouchers
– Wall charts
– Waste paper
– Wills
– Winding cards
– Wrapping paper
– Wreath cards
Examples of Zero-rated Items
– Accounts (fully printed)
– Advertising leaflets
– Agendas (fully printed)
– Almanacs
– Amendments (loose-leaf)
– Annuals
– Antique books
– Antique maps
– Articles of association (complete in booklet form)
– Astronomical charts
– Atlases
– Autograph books (completed)
– Bibliographies
– Bills of quantity (completed)
– Books
– Booklets
– Brochures
– Bulletins
– Catalogues
– Charts (geographical or topographical)
– Circulars
– Colouring books (children’s)
– Comics
– Company accounts and reports
– Crossword books
– Diaries (completed)
– Dictionaries
– Directories (completed)
– Election addresses
– Encyclopaedias
– Football programmes
– Geological maps
– Handbills
– Holiday and tourist guides
– Hydrographical charts
– Hymn books
– Instruction manuals
– Journals
– Leaflets
– Loose – leaf books
– Magazines
– Mail order catalogues
– Manuals
– Maps
– Memoranda of association (completed in booklet form)
– Missals
– Monographs
– Music
– Music scores
– Newspapers
– Orders of Service
– Painting books (children’s)
– Pamphlets
– Periodicals
– Picture books
– Poster magazines
– Prayer books
– Price lists (fully printed leaflets or brochures)
– Programmes
– Rag books
– Recipe books- Road maps
– Scrap books (completed)
– Ships’ logs (completed)
– Sports programmes
– Staff journals
– Text books
– Theses
– Timetables (in book or leaflet form)
– Topographical plans
– Tracts
– Trade catalogues
– Travel brochures
– Trade directories