January 19, 2024

Tips for VAT reclaim in media and entertainment

In an industry that’s no stranger thinking outside of the box - how can you maximize your VAT potential without draining critical resources? Here’s a look.
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Lights, camera, action! If only VAT reclaim processes were that straightforward. Businesses across many industries often lose a significant amount of savings due to unrecovered VAT, and the media and entertainment sector is no exception. 

Unfortunately, despite best intentions, navigating reclaim processes comes with almost as many challenges as there are VAT treatment types. So, in an industry that’s no stranger thinking outside of the box – how can you maximize your VAT potential without draining critical resources? Here’s a look. 

Tip 1: Calculate your VAT potential

True, the VAT landscape is challenging, especially when tackling it by yourself. However, one of the most significant reasons that companies aren’t fully maximizing their VAT potential is due to hidden VAT opportunities. VAT recovery, especially within the media and entertainment scope, often only scratches the surface in terms of what you can rightfully reclaim. Be sure to invest intentional time and effort into some lesser-known, but high-value recoverable costs relevant to your business. Examples specifically pertaining to media and entertainment may be travel and entertainment (t & e) expenses such as:

  • Business-related meals and entertainment at social and sports events, restaurant meals, and theater tickets
  • Restaurants/food
  • Taxi fares and other transport services

To ensure that you’re getting the most out of your business and incentive trips, be sure to calculate your overall VAT potential and identify where you could leverage more opportunities for VAT recovery.

Tip 2: Confirm your VAT recovery scope

By scope, we mean focusing on where your business expenses are taking place. Although most businesses may be well-equipped to handle their domestic VAT recovery processes, it becomes increasingly challenging and time-consuming to navigate as a business scales. To maximize your VAT potential, it’s also essential to evaluate your domestic as well as your international VAT recovery scope. For many companies, business and incentive trips or foreign supplier invoices form a significant part of their yearly spend. 

However, just because you’re not VAT registered in a specific country, doesn’t mean you aren’t eligible for VAT recovery on certain eligible expenses. Be sure to clearly define your local and your foreign VAT expenditure and align your VAT processes accordingly. 

Tip 3: Don’t settle for redundant manual processes 

When it comes to maximizing your VAT potential, it’s crucial to identify and start culling processes that are draining critical time and resources. At the end of the day, Reclaiming your VAT shouldn’t come at the expense of resources, your time or patience. Fortunately, we do VAT, so you don’t have to. Our power duo of the decade combines the future of VAT technology with unparalleled human expertise, 

replacing the administrative nightmare of complex VAT treatment with one centralized solution for all your VAT recovery needs – which ultimately boils down to one core goal: effortless, compliant, and maximized VAT reclaim and compliance.

Your guide to VAT reclaim in media and entertainment

Although we believe that you don’t have to be a VAT guru to maximize your VAT potential, gaining some industry insight into the nitty gritty of VAT reclaim in media and entertainment won’t hurt. Head over to our go-to guide on VAT reclaim in media and entertainment to gather a firm understanding of the VAT processes, challenges, best practices and best-kept secrets with VAT IT.

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