Is Printing VATable? UK VAT on Print Explained
Print Guide
VAT on Print, Explained
A plain-English walkthrough of which printed products are zero-rated, which carry 20% VAT, and the odd grey areas in between. Written for small business owners and marketing teams who just want a straight answer.
The short answer
Read it, bin it = zero VAT. Leaflets, flyers, booklets, brochures, magazines, menus, catalogues.
Keep it, write on it, display it = 20% VAT. Business cards, letterheads, posters, calendars, stickers, postcards, compliment slips.
The full lists and the edge cases are below.
Zero-rated print (no VAT)
These items don't carry VAT. HMRC treats them as printed matter for reading.
Order a 24-page stapled booklet, an A5 leaflet for a campaign, or a pile of printed flyers for a launch and the price you're quoted is the price you pay. No VAT line at the end.
Standard-rated print (20% VAT)
These are standard-rated. HMRC views them as stationery, advertising, or items designed to be written on or kept rather than read.
A box of business cards, a pad of letterheads, a stack of compliment slips, a print run of posters, or a sheet of stickers all attract 20% VAT on top of the listed price.
Quick reference table
| Product | VAT rate | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Booklets, brochures, catalogues | 0% | Printed matter for reading |
| Leaflets and flyers (standard) | 0% | Information for the reader |
| Books and manuals | 0% | Printed matter for reading |
| Magazines, newsletters, newspapers | 0% | Periodicals |
| Menus, programmes, price lists | 0% | Information for the reader |
| Business cards | 20% | Stationery |
| Letterheads, compliment slips, envelopes | 20% | Stationery |
| Posters | 20% | Display and advertising |
| Calendars and diaries | 20% | Designed to be written on |
| Greetings cards, invitations, postcards | 20% | Designed to be written on |
| Stickers and labels | 20% | Not "printed matter" |
| Forms, certificates, delivery notes | 20% | Designed to be filled in |
The grey areas
A leaflet is zero-rated, but only as long as it's actually a leaflet in the HMRC sense. There are a few traps that catch people out, and the rules sit in HMRC VAT Notice 701/10.
The 25% writing-area rule
A leaflet, brochure or pamphlet stops being zero-rated if more than 25% of the total area is set aside for writing on, filling in, or detaching and returning.
The classic example is a flyer with a big tear-off reply slip. If the writable bit takes up more than a quarter of the page, HMRC treats the whole thing as standard-rated.
Use matters as much as design
The same physical item can land on different sides of the line depending on what you actually do with it. An A4 flyer handed out on the street is a handbill (zero-rated). The same A4 sheet pinned up as a display is a poster (20%). HMRC looks at how the item is used, not just what it's called.
A leaflet also loses zero-rating if its main job is to act as an admission ticket, a discount voucher, a calendar, or an order form. Function over form.
Laminated items
Lamination usually pushes an item into standard-rated territory. HMRC reads it as a sign the item is meant to be kept and reused rather than read and binned.
There are edge cases, so if lamination is central to your job it's worth asking us before you order.
Postcards
Postcards are usually standard-rated. The back is reserved for an address and a message, so HMRC treats them as items to be written on, not read.
E-books and digital
Worth knowing if you publish: e-books have been zero-rated since May 2020, matching printed books. This guide is about physical printed matter, so it doesn't change anything for physical orders, but the old "digital is always 20%" rule no longer applies to books.
If you're not sure where your job sits, ask us before you order, or check directly with HMRC. We'll tell you honestly which side of the line we think it falls on.
How Apprintable handles VAT
Two things to know.
- Prices on product pages are shown excluding VAT. The number you see is the net price.
- VAT is added at the checkout based on the product. Order a booklet and the VAT line is £0. Order business cards and you'll see 20% added.
Mixed orders
If your basket has both zero-rated and standard-rated items in the same order, each line is calculated separately. The flyer line carries no VAT, the business card line carries 20%, and the invoice totals them up.
A quick worked example
500 A5 flyers at £45 leaves you with a bill of £45.
500 business cards at £25 comes out at £30 including VAT (£25 net plus £5 VAT).
Same £70 of print, but one side is reclaimable on your VAT return and the other isn't, depending on your status.
Your VAT invoice
A VAT invoice is sent by email with every order confirmation. It shows the net, the VAT and the gross, which is what your accountant or bookkeeper will want.
Need a duplicate? Email hello@apprintable.com with your order number and we'll resend it the same day.
If you're a VAT-registered business
Most of our trade customers are VAT-registered, so this is a quick recap. Reclaim works the same as any other supplier invoice.
Take the gross price, log it against your input VAT in the period the invoice is dated, and reclaim it through your normal return. HMRC VAT Notice 701/10 is the legal source if your accountant wants chapter and verse.
If you're not VAT-registered (a sole trader, a small charity, a startup), you can't reclaim the VAT, so standard-rated items effectively cost you 20% more than the headline price. That's a good reason to think about whether a job needs to be a printed flyer (zero-rated) rather than a postcard (standard-rated). Same message, different tax bill.
A note on charities
Registered charities don't automatically get a VAT break on print. If a product is standard-rated, it's still standard-rated for a charity buyer.
There's a genuinely useful exception for advertising supplied to qualifying charities, covered by HMRC VAT Notice 701/58. If you're a charity running a large fundraising or awareness campaign, it's worth asking us or your accountant to look at the specifics before you order.
This guide is general information based on published HMRC guidance, not legal or tax advice. Always check with HMRC or your accountant if you're unsure how the rules apply to your job. Rules and rates can change.
Frequently Asked Questions