What is VAT?
VAT is a sales tax which most businesses have to charge on the supply of certain types of goods and services within the European Union (EU). Governments of each EU state are responsible for setting their own country’s rate of VAT, which is currently 20% in the UK. This rate must be applied when we sell goods within the UK and to buyers in other EU countries, even if the rate in the buyer’s country is different.
Currently VAT is not chargeable on Books or the P&P on sending them.
According to eBay policy, VAT cannot be added after a buyer purchases an item and it must therefore be included in the list price. This is designed to remove all hidden costs so buyers don’t end up paying more than they were expecting, but it would mean that some international buyers would pay more than they should if we did not have a policy on this.
So how can we not charge VAT if you don’t live within the European Union?
Unfortunately, eBay does not currently provide a simple way to do this, which is why we have some workarounds. These will apply depending on your country and the type of buyer you are:
For all non-EU countries: Because you are automatically charged a different P&P rate to Europe, we have discounted all our P&P charges by the amount of VAT included in the list price.
For example:
If our item price is £12, the VAT included is £2.00. (20% of £10) Let’s say the item weighs around 300g and after adding a little for packaging, our total costs for posting it by Airmail are £3.50. Subtracting the £2.00 VAT from this gives us £1.50 for P&P.
For Channel Islands and non-EU countries in Europe:
We will send you a refund through Paypal as soon as we can. Please bear in mind that there is quite an administrative burden in doing this and we will always give priority to getting customers’ orders sent out. Please do let us know if you have been waiting over a week for the refund. We are only human and it’s possible we’ve missed you.
How much will we refund?
We will send you 16.67% of the total invoice amount. For example: 16.67% of £12.00 = £2.00, which is 20% of £10.
Don’t forget: There will be no VAT refund for books or for customers who don’t live in one of the following locations:
Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia Herzegovina, Canary Islands, Channel Islands, Croatia, Faroe Islands, Georgia, Greenland, Iceland, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Norway, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vatican City State.
For non-UK VAT registered businesses:
We may be able to zero-rate your invoice if you can provide us with adequate evidence to support your status, so you must get in touch with us before you buy. We reserve the right to refuse your request or cancel an order if we are not satisfied with your credentials.
Please note that providing false evidence for the purpose of avoiding VAT is a serious criminal offence and we will be obliged to inform the relevant authorities if we suspect this has happened.
Our VAT details:
Comany Name: Acorn Web Shops Ltd.
Company Number: 6071595
VAT Number: GB 944003747
Registered Address: 6 Philcote Street, Deddington, Banbury OX15 0TB (U.K.) | 
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