VAT checker for building work — 20%, 5% or zero-rated

Plenty of building work does not carry the standard 20%. Conversions, homes empty two years or more, new builds and energy-saving installations can drop to 5% or nothing at all. Pick the job, put your labour and materials in, and see the three rates side by side with the rule the answer comes from.

What is the job?

Pick the line that matches the work you are pricing.

Your figures, before VAT

This is a plain-English guide to the rules, not tax advice. Confirm the rate with your accountant or HMRC before you invoice, and keep the evidence for the job — an empty-property letter, a client certificate or planning paperwork — with your records.

How it works

  1. 1Pick the line that matches the work — conversion, empty home, new build, repair, adaptation and the rest.
  2. 2Read the rule behind the answer, and the watch-out that would change it.
  3. 3Put in your labour and the materials you are supplying, before VAT.
  4. 4Compare 20%, 5% and zero-rated on your own figures, and see the difference against the standard rate.
  5. 5Confirm the rate with your accountant before you invoice, and keep the evidence with the job file.

Now find the cheapest place to buy

Take your quantities across to Price Planter and compare them across UK builders' merchants — including whether splitting the order across two merchants works out cheaper.

Compare material prices

A plain-English guide to the main VAT positions on UK building work, not tax advice. Rates and reliefs change, borderline jobs turn on details a checker cannot see, and the responsibility for the rate on your invoice stays with you — confirm with your accountant or HMRC.

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