Ceroc was not a form of dance taught in schools

The taxpayer provided Ceroc dance lessons. Attendees paid between £5 and £8 for a session which included a licensed bar and disc jockeys to play the music. The taxpayer claimed the supply was one of ‘private tuition in a subject ordinarily taught in a school or university by an individual teacher acting independently of an employer’. As a result the exemption in VATA1994 Sch 9 group 6 item 2 applied.

HMRC said the sessions were recreational rather than educational and Ceroc was not commonly taught in schools or universities so did not qualify for the exemption. The First-tier Tribunal allowed the taxpayer’s appeal so HMRC appealed. It said the tribunal had erred in saying the supplies consisted of dance teaching and there was no evidence that Ceroc was commonly taught in schools and universities.

The Upper Tribunal noted that the lower tribunal had concluded that teaching...