Thursday, 17 December 2020 11:28
As anticipated, TRBusinessâs âKeep tax-free sales at airports and the VAT Retail Export Schemeâ (VAT RES) petition for the UK has received an official response from Parliament.
This publication launched the petition in October amid a wave of opposition to the Treasury and HM Revenue & Customsâ Decision to axe VAT RES and the airside extra-statutory concessions next year, with more than 11,700 signatures recorded at the time of writing.
The government said in its response: “Visitors can shop VAT-free when purchases are sent directly to overseas addresses. The withdrawal of the tax-free schemes is part of a package of changes, with significant benefits for UK consumers.
Chief executive Brian Duffy said: “Despite significant headwinds throughout the period, we achieved a good sales performance with domestic customers offsetting lower tourist and airport sales in the UK, and elevated momentum in the US.”
The boss told the Standard that there was high demand for Rolex and other brands from UK customers.
The company, which floated in May 2019 at 270p per share, said it now expects revenues in the year to May 2 2021 to be between £900 million and £925 million.
It had previously guided £880 million to £910 million.
The retailer intends to repay furlough money received from the Government during this financial year.
This measure is not expected to have a significant impact on family formation, stability or breakdown. Customer experience is expected to be positively impacted as travellers can now purchase duty-free goods when travelling to EU countries.
However, the government added, the VAT Retail Export Scheme will not be extended to EU visitors and will be withdrawn for non-EU visitors in Great Britain from January 1, 2021 as it is a costly relief which does not benefit the whole of Great Britain.
The authority continued: Retailers will instead continue to be able to offer VAT-free shopping, consistent with international principles of taxation, to non-EU visitors who purchase items in store and have them delivered direct to their overseas addresses.
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