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VAT registration thresholds

The current VAT registration threshold is more than £90,000. Understand the separate rolling-12-month and future-30-day tests, registration dates and notification deadlines.

£90,000: more than, not at least

For an ordinary UK-established business, the normal VAT registration threshold is £90,000 from 1 April 2024. Exactly £90,000 does not meet the historic test: taxable turnover must be more than £90,000.

Historic test: at every calendar month end, review taxable turnover over the previous 12 months, or the shorter period since starting business. This is a rolling test, not turnover for an accounting or tax year.

Forward test: at any time, reasonable grounds to expect more than £90,000 of taxable turnover in the next 30 days alone create a separate obligation. Do not add this forecast to the previous 12 months.

The two tests have different effective registration dates. Historic liability normally leads to registration on the first day of the second month after the breach month; forward liability leads to registration on the date the expectation first arose.

Rule summary

Threshold, taxable turnover and registration timing

Since 1 April 2024 the normal registration threshold is £90,000. At the end of each calendar month, check whether taxable turnover in the preceding 12 months (or less for a newer business) is more than that amount. It is not an annual financial-year limit.

Separately, if there are reasonable grounds to expect taxable turnover of more than £90,000 in the next 30 days alone, the forward test applies. An expected £90,000 exactly does not meet that test either.

Historic test: liability arises at the first relevant month end. Notify HMRC within 30 days after that month end; the normal effective registration date is the first day of the second following month.

Forward test: liability arises when the reasonable expectation first exists. The effective registration date is that date, not the later sale/payment date. Notify HMRC before the end of the 30-day period beginning with the expectation date.

Taxable turnover generally includes standard-, reduced- and zero-rated supplies. Ordinary exempt and out-of-scope supplies are excluded. Some reverse-charge transactions and other adjustments can count; classification must be checked before using this tool.

Below or exactly at the threshold, voluntary registration may be possible if the business makes or intends to make taxable supplies. A temporary historic breach may qualify for an HMRC-approved exception; mainly zero-rated businesses may seek exemption. Neither is automatic, and zero-rated turnover is still taxable turnover.

Worked examples

How the rule behaves in practice

  • Exactly £90,000: no historic trigger: At a month-end review, taxable turnover is £90,000 exactly and there is no expectation of more than £90,000 in the next 30 days alone. Neither standard mandatory test is triggered. £90,000 is not more than £90,000; continue reviews and consider voluntary registration separately.
  • £90,001: historic trigger and timing: The first month end at which rolling taxable turnover exceeds the threshold is 31 August 2026, with £90,001. No earlier or separate forward liability exists. The historic test triggers. Notify HMRC by 30 September 2026; the normal effective registration date is 1 October 2026. These dates follow VAT Notice 700/1's August month-end example.
  • Forward test: next 30 days alone: On 20 January 2026, a £100,000 taxable contract creates reasonable grounds to expect more than £90,000 in the next 30 days alone. Rolling turnover has not exceeded the threshold. The forward test independently triggers. Registration is effective from 20 January 2026; notification is due by 18 February 2026, following VAT Notice 700/1's example. Do not wait until the turnover is actually earned.

Practical consequences

  • For the historic test, notify HMRC within 30 days after the first liable month end. For the forward test, notify before the end of the 30-day period beginning with the expectation date. The worked examples below show both timelines.
  • Taxable turnover includes standard-, reduced- and zero-rated supplies; ordinary exempt and out-of-scope supplies do not count. Check classification and special adjustments, including relevant reverse charges, before adding figures.
  • Voluntary registration is a separate choice for a business making or intending taxable supplies, even when neither mandatory test is met. An exception for a temporary historic breach or exemption for mainly zero-rated supplies requires HMRC approval; do not assume it removes liability automatically.
  • NETPs do not have the ordinary UK-established threshold protection. Transfers of going concerns, VAT groups, Northern Ireland acquisitions, earlier registration liability and disputed supply classification need specialist review. These cases are outside the paired calculator.
  • Late registration can require accounting for VAT from the correct effective date and may lead to penalties. A later assessment or cash receipt does not erase an earlier obligation.

Important limits

  • The form does not collect the first breach month or first expectation date, so it cannot calculate a specific registration deadline. Establish those dates from records; earlier liability must not be postponed by a later assessment.
  • Exempt/out-of-scope supply classification, reverse charges, asset disposals, business transfers, NETPs, VAT groups, Northern Ireland acquisitions and HMRC exceptions/exemptions require separate review. Select No / unsure if outside the supported case.

Primary sources and review date

Reviewed on . Preserved source review from the accepted scoped statutory repair; this contract migration does not re-date that review.

Applies to: £90,000 threshold from 1 April 2024; historic and future tests have different registration dates.

Reviewed scope: Ordinary UK-established business, correctly identified taxable turnover, not already registered; no NETP, group, transfer, exception/exemption or earlier liability.

Review basis and change triggers

Reviewed model: vat-registration-threshold-calculator: £90,000 threshold from 1 April 2024; current standard UK-established business rules; reviewed 26 September 2026

  • A cited source or statutory regime changes.
  • Reviewed content, runtime adapter or domain implementation changes.
  • A new effective period falls outside the supported scope.

Turn the result into an action plan

  • Use the VAT Registration Threshold Calculator with verified month-end taxable turnover and a separate next-30-days expectation.
  • Identify the first breach month and first expectation date from records; if both tests apply, confirm the correct earliest liability and registration treatment rather than choosing the later one.
  • Consult the primary sources below and notify HMRC using the registration service. Keep the evidence for turnover classification and any exception/exemption request.

Use the tool

VAT Registration Threshold Calculator

Check the two separate VAT registration tests: more than £90,000 of rolling taxable turnover, or an expectation of more than £90,000 in the next 30 days alone.

FAQ

Does exactly £90,000 require registration?

Not under the normal historic test: the figure must be more than £90,000. A separate future-30-day trigger or specialist rule can still require registration.

Is the next-30-days test added to historic turnover?

No. It concerns expected taxable turnover in that future 30-day period alone.

Why is there no assessment-date field?

An assessment date is not necessarily the first breach month or first expectation date. The tool checks the triggers; records must establish the dates needed for registration timing.