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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
National
Sally Weale and Richard Adams

Paying private school fees years ahead may create VAT disputes, experts warn

Two teenage school girls standing in front of a large whiteboard side by side solving a mathematics equation on the board
Tax experts are concerned that schools using the schemes could face legal challenges from HMRC. Photograph: SolStock/Getty Images

Parents paying seven years’ worth of private school fees in advance to escape Labour’s plans to add VAT could be “sleepwalking” into protracted tax disputes, experts have warned.

Advance payment schemes have been available for years at some independent schools. But since Labour confirmed its plans to add VAT of 20% to school fees, the uptake has gone up sharply as parents seek ways to keep costs down.

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