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Publishers are equally concerned about this, and its distorting effect on the prices of electronic (particularly electronic-only) journals. However, the reason the industry has actively decided not to raise it at national level is that the cure is highly likely to be worse than the disease - i.e. Govt would slap on VAT onto print products as well, in order to level things up (things never, it seems, get levelled down) Sally Sally Morris, Secretary-General Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers South House, The Street, Clapham, Worthing, West Sussex BN13 3UU, UK Phone: 01903 871686 Fax: 01903 871457 E-mail: [log in to unmask] ALPSP Website http://www.alpsp.org.uk -----Original Message----- From: Martin White <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Date: 16 June 2000 11:57 Subject: e-journals and VAT >I have a strong sense of deja vu on this current discussion. The question of >VAT on electronic services as regards academic institutions seems to have >been rumbling on for some time, certainly since CD-ROMs arrived. However >many publishers worked out a combined package price with the print version >that resulted in a composite rate of VAT that was such a small increment on >the print price that no-one really seemed to be too worried. > >The issue started to gain much more attention when I was working as a member >of the Evaluation Team for the Pilot Site Licence Initiative, under the >direction of John Fielden at CHEMS. Some universities had had discussions >with their local VAT inspector, which in at least one case resulted in two >institutions in the same city taking a different view on how to reclaim VAT >because they each had a different VAT Inspector. We raised the issue of VAT >in the report of the Evaluation Team, and specifically referred to the >problem of the impact this would have on budgets if the 17.5% VAT could not >be reclaimed. In presenting this conclusion to a UKSG meeting in November >1997 I was taken on one side by a distinguished university librarian and >told that I had overstated the problem because there were never going to be >any electronic-only journals! > >To add to the comments from David Ball, the composite VAT rate issue is more >complex than might seem. Where there is a combined print/electronic >subscription the element of the use of the electronic version has to be >taken into account. If the print version is just kept as a long-term >archive and the primary use is of the electronic version then Customs and >Excise may take some convincing that the composite rate should be nearer 0% >than 17.5% > >Going back to the discussions within the PSLI project, a publisher may take >the view of their VAT Inspector and/or finance director, but as I understood >it, this is not binding on the VAT Inspector at the purchaser's end, but I >am happy to be corrected on this viewpoint. > >The VAT situation does need some skilled and urgent attention paid to it >given the current differences of opinion between the USA and the EU about >taxation on e-commerce. > >Martin White, Managing Director, Intranet Focus Ltd >12 Allcard Close, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 5AJ >Tel. 01403 267030 http://www.intranetfocus.com > > > %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%