»Ê¹ÚÌåÓýapp

Further information on the availability of concessions is set out in Notice 700 »Ê¹ÚÌåÓýapp VAT Guide section 19.2 and Notice 700/21 Keeping VAT Records. You should view a request for a concession sympathetically, but you should not grant it automatically. In granting a concession, you should allow the minimum period of preservation in line with a trader’s commercial practice that is consistent with effective assurance. »Ê¹ÚÌåÓýapp recommended minimum periods of preservation for certain types of record are set out in VATREC3032.

Other factors that you should take into account when considering a request for a concession include:

• Is the granting of a concession likely to create serious assurance difficulties?
• Is there reason to doubt the trader’s revenue character? What is the trader’s reliability indicator and record of under-declarations? Has the trader been subject to a misdeclaration penalty?
• What degree of independent audit assurance is imposed?
• Would insistence on preservation of records for the maximum period create real storage problems for the trader and/or involve undue extra expense?
• Is the trader aware that, without concession, records may be preserved on microfilm, microfiche or by electronic means in line with Notice 700 section 19.

If you do grant a concession, you should confirm it in writing and keep a copy of the letter in the EF record on a permanent basis.