The domestic reverse charge for building and construction services was originally planned to come into force on 1st October 2019, but this was delayed for 12 months in response to industry concerns that some businesses were not ready to implement the changes required.
It has recently been announced that to help businesses overcome the effects that the coronavirus pandemic has had on them and give them more time to prepare, the introduction of the reverse charge has now been delayed for a period of 5 months until 1st March 2021.
HMRC has said that it remains committed to the introduction of the reverse charge and has put in place a robust compliance strategy for tackling fraud in the construction sector using tried and tested compliance tools.
In the intervening period, HMRC will work closely with the sector to raise awareness and provide additional guidance and support to make sure all businesses will be ready for the new implementation date.
HMRC will update the reverse charge guidance to reflect the change in the implementation date and the need for end users and intermediary suppliers to inform suppliers where they want to be excluded from the reverse charge .
