An article on the Apple Store hopes to clear up some confusion regarding the VAT rate being charged by the company.
As our UK-based readers will be aware, the VAT rate (the UK equivalent of Sales Tax) is dropping from 17.5 per cent to 15 per cent on Monday.
With Apple holding a sale, many people are wondering if the price they are paying includes the old or new rate of VAT. A note on the Apple store aims to clear up some confusion.
It turns out that most products on the Apple Store are being charged at the full 17.5 per cent rate of VAT, until the tax fall kicks in at midnight on Sunday.
Mac computers in the one-day shipping event, however, are being taxed at the lower rate of 15 per cent because they will not be shipped until Monday. Although no mention is made of Mac computers not in the sale being taxed at 15 per cent, even though these will also – we presume – not ship until after the tax cut.
Apple also states that any items you order today alongside a Mac will be taxed at the lower rate of 15 per cent, because it will be shipped with the Mac after the tax drop.
The rate on the site will still display 17.5 per cent though. We are presuming that Apple, like many other online retailers, is having to recode its site to display the different tax levels that are incorporated into the final price.
It has been 17 years since the last change in VAT in the UK, and many online retailers have the VAT rate hard-coded into their e-commerce software, requiring a major rewrite of their Web sites.
The note on the Apple Store reads:
"From 00.00 on Monday December 1st the standard rate of Value Added Tax (VAT) in the UK will be reduced by the UK government from17.5% to 15%
All prices displayed on the Apple Online Store during our one-day shopping event are inclusive of VAT at the current rate of 17.5% but exclusive of delivery charges unless otherwise indicated.
If you order a Mac from the Apple Online Store during our one-day shopping event, the price displayed during the checkout process and in your Order Confirmation email will include VAT at the current rate of 17.5%. However, since your order will ship on or after Monday December 1, your order will be subject to VAT at the new rate of 15%.
If you order any additional items at the same time as your Mac, these items will be shipped together with your Mac as a single order, and will also be subject to VAT at the new rate of 15%."
Get four free Mac programs worth 83 and 40 free prints from Jessops with Macworld print magazine. On sale now! Click here for more information.
Apple denies CastCatcher update entry into App Store
Norway consumer body challenges Apple over iTunes
(Reuters)
Eddie Van Halen Pops the Question
(E! Online)
