A structural loophole in HMRC’s 2021 online marketplace VAT rules is being systematically exploited by overseas dropshippers using bogus UK limited companies. Until HMRC extends deemed reseller obligations to all marketplace sellers - not just overseas ones - the evasion will continue unchecked. 1. Background: The 2021 Deemed Reseller Rules In January 2021, HMRC introduced the deemed reseller rules as part of a wider effort to close the VAT gap on cross-border e-commerce. Th

Six months or a year is a long time in business. Two, three, or five years is a lifetime. Yet when it comes to tackling market distortions caused by tax abuse in online retail, the UK's authorities have consistently been slow to act — and sometimes slow even to recognise that a problem exists — despite the very real damage being done to legitimate UK businesses. Businesses are not statistics. They represent livelihoods for owners and their employees. They generate the tax rev

Today marks the release of " Tax Avoidance: The Musical " – the 14th and final episode of The Corruption Diaries (Series 2) available wherever you get your podcasts . Just over a year ago, Naomi Fowler of the Tax Justice Network (TJN) invited me to record a series of podcasts about the work of Retailers Against VAT Avoidance Schemes (RAVAS). Over the next ten months, I worked with the brilliant Leo Schick. What started as a series of interviews evolved into something none o

RAVAS is proud to support a joint letter signed by a diverse coalition of 19 trade associations, professional bodies, and campaign groups—ranging from the British Retail Consortium to Dan Neidle’s Tax Policy Associates . Written by Andrew Goodacre of the British Independent Retailers Association (BIRA) , the letter has been submitted to Exchequer Secretary Dan Tomlinson . It highlights a critical loophole: currently, Online Marketplaces (OMPs) are only required to collect VA