I want to purchase an item that I saw on a recent trip to the UK, and have it shipped to the U.S. The seller informs me that I can request a reclaim form to claim a VAT refund once the item is received, but she did not offer VAT refund services when I looked at the item while in her shop. Is it possible to reclaim VAT if I have the item shipped if she is not a VAT program participant? And, who would I contact once the item is received to file a claim/get the form?

The vendor (and possibly you) is confused.

The VAT refund scheme is irrelevant in this case. It applies to goods you buy and take home with you.

But VAT simply doesn't get charged on goods shipped directly to customers outside the EU. The vendor should simply charge you 14.9% less than the normal price, make out a zero-rated VAT invoice and produce a quarterly or monthly return reflecting this mix of fully-taxed and zero-rated sales.

Most of us do that all the time without any effort. HOWEVER:

HMRC,in a bid to make life easier for our more intellectually challenged shopkeepers, has introduced all kinds of retailer schemes. Some of these, for very small (and, IMHO, very stupid) retailers, may (they're all too fiddly for most of us) assume all their sales are fully taxed. It may actually be that they can't easily zero-rate an export sale.

If this is the case, your vendor should call the VAT helpline (0845 010 9000) to sort this out. She should have done so without spouting nonsense to you. We're clearly not just a nation of shopkeepers, but a nation of very useless shopkeepers.

flanner is correct for sure. The point of a VAT credit is the items are shipped out of the country. You aren't shipping it - the seller is. I have never heard of ANY merchant trying to convince someone they have to claim the VAT after receiving the goods. She sounds either lazy or a bit short in the smarts department. Most merchants are more than happy to deduct the VAT off the top - as a selling point if nothing else.

I don't think there is a way you could claim the VAT afterwards even if you wanted to.

Thank you so much for your help...I thought that what she was telling me didn't make much sense in light of what I do know about the VAT process. One more question for clarification: If she does not particpate in the VAT program, can she still deduct the VAT before shipping?

I don't understand your question.

A trader with a turnover of less than £61,000 is not required to register for VAT, or to charge it.

Actually though, a retailer buying her goods conventionally would be doolally not to register for VAT. And a retailer with a small turnover who's NOT registered for VAT and doesn't need to be (as some very small antiques dealers sourcing only by buying from the general p;ublic might be) is committing a criminal offence by pretending to add VAT.

So it's virtually impossible for her to be outside the VAT system unless she's a crook, balmy or both.

If by "program" you mean the VAT refund scheme, the question doesn't apply. Exports outside the EU are zero-rated. Period.

As I said, though, there are special schemes HMRC set up to make life easier for retailers, and she might be on one of them. For all I know, if everything she sells is fully VATable and she has no export customers, she might have set her scheme up to make zero-rating one export a year difficult. That's what the VAT helpine is there to help her work hervway around, though she might simply not want to get involved.

Quite unfairly in my experience, the VAT people have a reputation amonmg many traders for being difficult to deal with. Almost without fail, the truth is that traders who think like that just aren't very good at dealing with people assertively.

Are you willing to tell us what "the item" is? The reason I ask is that somebody may know of another source for same that requires less hassle.

The item I am hoping to purchase is a handbag made by The Bridge. The Bridge products do not appear to be available in the U.S.