VAT on Furniture is ILLEGAL - Statement from VAT Office Bulgaria
We are now in possession of a statement from the Tax office in Bulgaria that states the following:
According to art.67, paragraph 2 from the VAT law, when at the moment of agreeing the sale and delivery it is not expressly said that the tax is due separately, it is assumed that it is included in the agreed price.
The tax is assumed included in the announced price when the goods are been supplied – subject to retail sales in the trade network - art.67, paragraph 3 from the VAT law.We also have two documents showing how the law has been applied in 2 cases as stated above.
What does this mean?
Once the company has charged for goods, unless it has expressly agreed with the client to charge vat at a later date then under Bulgarian law the price paid is assumed to INCLUDE VAT. It also states that it is the responsibility of the company to pay the vat to the state.
There is no legal basis for your suppliers requirement that additional VAT be paid before they will deliver your furniture pack this is nothing more than attempted extortion. In this situation the law expressly states that the supplier cannot make delivery conditional on the payment of additional VAT because VAT has ALREADY BEEN PAID.
What you can do now.
1.Download and print off copies of the documents from the VAT office the Bulgarian statement and its English translation from the members area of the BAPG web site.
2.Print off copies of ALL your VAT related correspondence with ** including; your order, your receipt, the email from ** that states the VAT needs to be paid before the furniture can be delivered. (Client update: furniture installations), evidence of what you have already paid. Also print the PDF of the web pages showing VAT inclusive
3.Write to the supplier ***; tell them that you are in possession of a statement from the VAT office in Burgas and that there is no legal basis for their demand for VAT. To make delivery of the furniture conditional on payment of additional VAT is illegal and attempted extortion. Include copies of all the printed evidence from 1 and 2 above. Tell them that they have ONE WEEK to install your furniture/refund your money or you will be making a complaint to the police and commencing legal proceedings in Spain.
4.Also inform ** in your letter that the latest advice from the British consul in Sofia states:
‘If an individual believes a criminal act has taken place it should be reported to the Bulgarian police, whether in the region the alleged crime took place or centrally in Sofia, for further investigation. Alternatively, a report can be made of an alleged crime to a police force in the United Kingdom, providing any evidence you may have, and requesting that the Bulgarian individual or company involved are also investigated through international channels’
You can down load and print a copy of this letter written to one of our members
HERE:
5.This means: in the first instance it is better to make a complaint to the Bulgarian Police. If you are planning to be in Bulgaria and would like to make a complaint BPAG will assist you. If you are not planning to be in Bulgaria then you can still make a complaint to your local police and ask them to have it investigated through International channels.
6.If ** do not comply with your demand and refund your money or deliver your furniture then make a complaint to the police that you have been a victim of attempted extortion. You will need to supply all of the evidence to the police including the email that states that furniture will be delivered after VAT is paid and the statement from the tax office in Builgaria.
7. If you have already paid the VAT write to *** with the above evidence and tell them that their requirement that additional VAT be paid before they would deliver your furniture now appears to be extortion. Tell them that if they do not refund the additional VAT you have paid within one week then you will be making a complaint to the police that you have been a victim of extortion.
8.There is a template for a letter to ** on the BPAGweb site which you can download and modify to suit your own situation
