Andrew Needham looks at the ‘pros’ and ‘cons’ of retaining an existing VAT number when buying a business or changing the legal entity.
You can transfer aâ¯VATâ¯registration number if there’s a change of business ownership or legal status.
For example, if:
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you take over a company and want to keep using itsâ¯VATâ¯registration number; or
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your business changes from a partnership to a sole trader or becomes a limited company.
This means the business will keep the sameâ¯VATâ¯registration number.
Transferring the VAT number
This can be done by completing a form VAT 68 and submitting it to HMRC along with the VAT 1 application for VAT registration – or within a maximum of 21 days if you do submit it with the VAT 1. Once the
