Reply to: VAT on iPads?

[Friday Blue]

They provide them to all workers the same way they do laptops/desktops then? Do you get to keep it with you 24/7? Nice perk if so.

they provide them to staffy, but not to contractors like myself. it was part of the requriement to work there, lol, (i have only found out after i landed). For those who didn't want to spend the cash, they can borrow one from the office. Since at the time i was tempted by one, so i went to get one anyway. i can see some didn't want to get one, but sucked it up anyway as it was a relatively small cost to the business. (because borrowing one from office has some lengthy check-in/check-out procedures). For an office with an average age around 50, i think this place is defintiely filled with a lot of old geeky engineers.

[northernladuk]

got to take my hat off to whoever pull that one off (forcing everyone to use ipad whenever a client is nearby).

Look for the guy that has apple everything and and has a day off generally around release dates and comes in looking tired the day after.

[d000hg]

They provide them to all workers the same way they do laptops/desktops then? Do you get to keep it with you 24/7? Nice perk if so.

[Friday Blue]

And it's hard to find a use case where you are required to have an Apple iPad rather than a generic PC.

strangely my current client force me to use an ipad because "I'm part fo the team" and they all use ipad. lol. especially this "team" is an engineering team and not a sales team. but hey, I'm not complaining.

got to take my hat off to whoever pull that one off (forcing everyone to use ipad whenever a client is nearby).

[d000hg]

And it's hard to find a use case where you are required to have an Apple iPad rather than a generic PC.
I think for the majority of us, the majority of usage would not be at work - a couple of meetings a week Vs messing about with it at home and on the train.

But regardless this isn't my concern - my usage is developing tablet apps and this requires an iPad specifically as I've established this is the tablet brand my potential customers want, so I don't have a choice to go Android.

[Boo]

You are allowed mixed use for things like that but the majority of the use should be for business purposes.

It's not true that the majority of the use has to be for work. What's required is that any non-work use is "incidental" and the relevant pages (which ICBA to dig out for you) on the HMRC website specifically state that provided the item is *required* for the work to be performed then the amount of home use does not affect the fact that such use is incidental.

E.g. if you are required to use an iPad to take notes in a meeting (perhaps because there is a corporate requirement to have the minutes in a particular format) then the fact that the meetings only occupy 5 minutes of the week and you spend all of your non-working hours watching DVDs on the iPad does not alter the fact that your personal use is incidental.

Boo

[SueEllen]

Yes, if you use it only for work.

You are allowed mixed use for things like that but the majority of the use should be for business purposes.

[d000hg]

Its not dodgy at all, perfectly acceptable to have whatever device you like to take notes, access documents, publish documents etc. etc.

Yes, if you use it only for work. 'Dodgy' refers to the fact many probably buy an iPad because they want an iPad, and find a way to justify it as a business tool, rather than needing it as a business tool.

Doesn't mean it can't be valid, but I doubt it is in most cases.

[craig1]

If you sign up for an Apple Business Account (linky), you can order VAT exclusive items from them. Useful for those of us not on the FRS. Makes for an early VAT recovery and accounting exercise rather than any savings though.

[Pondlife]

Which is fine but I would put money on the fact most people that have an ipad for 'work' quote these tools but never use them. I don't see one single person using an ipad in anger in our large office but I know many put them through the books.

At the end of the day I guess it doesn't matter as long as you can convince HMRC and at these costs they won't really give a damn, I just hate it when people try and justify it when there isn't any.

You say that but one of the permie managers at client co uses his instead of a notepad all the time. He has a number of useful apps on it and swears by it. He paid for it himself out of his own pocket.

I don't have one (at the mo) cos I can't see me using it at home, nevermind work.

[northernladuk]

Its not dodgy at all, perfectly acceptable to have whatever device you like to take notes, access documents, publish documents etc. etc.

Which is fine but I would put money on the fact most people that have an ipad for 'work' quote these tools but never use them. I don't see one single person using an ipad in anger in our large office but I know many put them through the books.

At the end of the day I guess it doesn't matter as long as you can convince HMRC and at these costs they won't really give a damn, I just hate it when people try and justify it when there isn't any.

[JamJarST]

Thanks AtW (and others), very helpful. I'm not FRS so 20% back reduces the price from £329 to £274 which is pretty good value... then my CT is reduced too.

This is for a real business case (specific plan B software project), not merely to have a tablet to use at work (which I reckon is a bit dodgy, HMRC aren't mugs). In terms of business customers, many who are in California, iPad is the only sane choice (at least until we see how Windows8 tablets pan out).

Its not dodgy at all, perfectly acceptable to have whatever device you like to take notes, access documents, publish documents etc. etc.

[d000hg]

Yes, it's 20% VAT and they provide you with VAT receipt - certainly for online orders.

Thanks AtW (and others), very helpful. I'm not FRS so 20% back reduces the price from £329 to £274 which is pretty good value... then my CT is reduced too.

Get the ASUS Transformer Prime. Amazing tool for your business. Even comes with a keyboard for use in meetings. Amazing bit of kit. I got mine from PC World and it was delivered the next day. A bit pricey, but... "the company paid".

This is for a real business case (specific plan B software project), not merely to have a tablet to use at work (which I reckon is a bit dodgy, HMRC aren't mugs). In terms of business customers, many who are in California, iPad is the only sane choice (at least until we see how Windows8 tablets pan out).

[PMMan]

Tablet

I'm considering getting an iPad2 for my Plan B now the price dropped after iPad3 was announced. But from neither the main or business Apple store can I see VAT be listed, or a non-VAT price listed... I just see £329 for the 16Gb WiFi.

Do tablets attract a regular 20% VAT like PCs? Does Apple Store provide a proper VAT receipt or do I need to find it somewhere else?

Get the ASUS Transformer Prime. Amazing tool for your business. Even comes with a keyboard for use in meetings. Amazing bit of kit. I got mine from PC World and it was delivered the next day. A bit pricey, but... "the company paid".

[MarillionFan]

I'm considering getting an iPad2 for my Plan B now the price dropped after iPad3 was announced. But from neither the main or business Apple store can I see VAT be listed, or a non-VAT price listed... I just see £329 for the 16Gb WiFi.

Do tablets attract a regular 20% VAT like PCs? Does Apple Store provide a proper VAT receipt or do I need to find it somewhere else?

Mine was a legitimate business expense as was my new touch screen, TV enabled Touchsmart. Can't get a contract without them.