T/O Down - Do we need to de-register for VAT?

oompahloompah

Hi everyone
we have been registered for VAT since our business started 8 years ago, but the recent downturn has affected us and we are now about £10/15K below the threshold with no signs we will be above it in the next 12+ months - do we need to de-register for VAT or can we just keep everything as previously?
I understand we have to register once we reach the threshold, but I'm unsure what the reverse is!
Thanks everyone
Oompah xx

chalkie99

There is no compulsion to de-register so leave things alone if you are happy the way things are and you are not going to benefit financially by changing.

paddyrg

You can stay as-is - in fact it is probably easier to keep things as they are and you'll be in the right place when the economy picks back up and you're minted ;-)

JasonLVC

You can voluntarily de-register once your tuenover drops below £75k in any twleve month period, sounds like you are certainly eligible to de-register if you want to.

You don't have to, provided the arrangement remains beneficial for you. If it gets to the point where you are not benefitting from the arrangement then consider de-registering.

The alternative is to consider switching to the flat rate scheme as, depending upon your trade/business, it may be beneficial to switch to flat rate when sales are low/purchases are low but you don't want to de-register just in case business picks up again.

Can I ask, what is your trade sector/business activity? - Builders, butcher, candle stick maker, etc?

bris

The downside of de-regestering is the final return. In the final return you need to account for all the tangable assets you own. Tangable assets are unsold stock, commercial vehicles, plant , machinery etc, basicly anything you bought, claimed VAT back on and still have. It can be a costly process to de-register, you should speak to your accountant about it.

oompahloompah

Thanks everyone. That's good - I would rather keep things as they are but was worried we had to de-register; all I could find was info on how to do so, not whether we had to or if it was a choice!
We are an events company.
thanks again
Oompah xx