Assisted Instrument Purchase Scheme (AIPS) – For Schools and Colleges

The AIPS enables students at government funded Schools and Colleges to purchase musical instruments at VAT free prices. The School or College buys the instrument on the student’s behalf including VAT and charges the student the ex VAT price (a small handling charge of up to 5% can be added by the School or College administration).

The VAT is reclaimed by the School or College in the normal way provided that the conditions below have been satisfied.

In order for a student to purchase an instrument under this scheme the following conditions must be met:
The instrument must be for the student’s own use and be a necessary part of their music education (for example you cannot study flute without a flute).
The tuition must form part of the normal School or College curriculum.
The instrument is required for regular classroom use (for example, weekly).
The instrument must be portable (ie. brought to School or College by the student).
The student must be receiving tuition in School or College from a qualified tutor (either School or College teacher or external music tutor).
The instrument must be appropriate to the needs of the student.
The instrument must be purchased by the School or College on behalf of the student and handed to the pupil in a School or College teaching room.
Payment is made direct by the student to the School or College at the School or College's agreed price prior to instrument delivery.

In addition the School or College must fulfill the following conditions:
The School or College cannot make a profit on the sale otherwise VAT must be paid (the school can levy a handling charge but this must be clearly stated to the purchaser on the receipt of the instrument).
The School or College then places the order(s) with Discount Musical Instruments Ltd with full payment by Cheque or BACS.
Discount Musical Instruments Ltd will provide an invoice to the School or College for each instrument clearly stating that the instrument was purchased under the AIPS.
Once the instrument has been received, warranty and repair service will be provided direct by Discount Musical Instruments Ltd.
Download (below) the School/College Information Pack, which includes notes for the School/College, notes for Individual Students and a School/College Order Form. There forms can be modified by the School or College to include your details. Please feel free to pass the details of the Assisted Instrument Purchase Scheme to parents and guardians of your School or College via email or subscription services such as ParentMail. If your require any more information or details or even assistance regarding AIPS please contact us via our contact form .