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The High Court decision in CRC v Rank Group plc [2009] STC 2304 confirmed that participation fees for playing mechanised cash bingo (MCB) should have been exempt from VAT.
HMRC have since received representations that the judgment applies more widely to other forms of bingo played under the same sections of the Gambling Act 2005 as MCB.
As a result, the department will consider claims for VAT accounted for on participation fees for other types of bingo, in addition to MCB, and have published Revenue & Customs Brief 75/09 explaining what businesses need to do.
However, the Rank litigation continues, with the Court of Appeal due to hear HMRC’s appeal in April 2010.
Businesses may therefore prefer to wait until the final outcome of the litigation is known, although protective claims can be lodged.
