Input tax disallowed due to inadequate evidence

The taxpayer was incorporated in January 2022 and registered for VAT at the same time. It submitted its first return for the period to October 2022 which showed output tax of nil and a claim for input VAT for £1 754. HMRC rejected the claim on the basis that the taxpayer had not provided proper evidence to support the input tax claimed. The return was adjusted to nil and the taxpayer appealed.

The taxpayer’s main business activity was alleged to be the export of luxury UK retail goods. The First-tier Tribunal reviewed a claim for Chanel bags from Harrods where the receipt produced by the director did not meet the conditions for claiming input tax as specified by reg 14 of the VAT Regulations 1995. One of the conditions is that an invoice must show the name address and VAT registration number of the supplier but...