Consultation outcome

Draft legislation: The Value Added Tax (Drugs and Medicines) Order 2019

From:
HM Revenue & Customs
Published
3 October 2019
Last updated
6 February 2020 — See all updates
This consultation has concluded

Detail of outcome

The regulations are not being amended as a result of the consultation. However, there may need to be a change to the commencement provisions to ensure that they fully reflect the timing of prospective changes to the definition of health professionals in the Human Medicines Regulations 2012.

You can read:

Original consultation

Summary

We are seeking views on draft legislation that amends the scope of the zero rate for prescription drugs to ensure consistency with the Department of Health and Social Care’s Human Medicines Regulations 2012.

This consultation ran from
to

Consultation description

We want your views on draft legislation that will amend the scope of the VAT zero rate by inserting ‘an EEA Health Professional’ and ‘an approved country health professional’, both within the meaning of Regulation 213 of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012, into the definition of ‘appropriate practitioner’ in note (2B) to Item 1 of schedule 8 to the VAT Act 1994.

The insertion of ‘EEA Health Professionals’ will have effect in relation to supplies made before EU exit day and the insertion of ‘approved country health professionals’ will have effect in relation to supplies made on or after EU exit day.

The change will enable prescriptions issued by all approved medical practitioners to qualify for the zero rate.

This consultation will mainly be of interest to online prescription service companies, their UK patients, and dispensing pharmacists.

The proposed amendments will align the UK’s VAT legislation with the Department of Health and Social Care’s Human Medicines Regulations 2012, which already permit prescriptions written by EEA health professionals to be dispensed by UK pharmacies.

An amendment to the regulations will come into force on EU exit day. This will replace the category ‘EEA health professionals’ with ‘approved country health professionals’.

The new category will include professionals and countries on a list published under Regulation 214(6A) and, on EU exit day, this list will include existing EEA health professionals.

Before responding, you can read the:

  • draft legislation
  • draft tax information and impact note

Documents

(Draft) The Value Added Tax (Drugs and Medicines) Order 2019

PDF, 128 KB, 2 pages

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(Draft) Tax information and impact note

PDF, 398 KB, 3 pages

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Updates to this page

Published 3 October 2019
Last updated 6 February 2020 + show all updates

  1. Published outcome summary.

  2. The email address for responses has been amended (if you have already submitted a response to this consultation, please resubmit).

  3. First published.

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