A battle to persuade HM Revenue & Customs that video installations and light sculptures are works of art has been won, reducing the amount of VAT and customs duties payable on them when they enter the UK.
The dispute began when works by the American artists Bill Viola and Dan Flavin were imported by the Haunch of Venison gallery in London last September. HMRC classified them as “electrical devices” that would be subject to both customs duty and the full rate of VAT (currently 15 per cent). Sculptures are charged at a reduced rate of 5 per cent VAT and are not liable for customs duties.
Pierre Valentin of law firm Withers LLP, which represented Haunch of Venison, said that the decision was a landmark one and would benefit everyone involved in the contemporary art market in the UK.
Via (The Telegraph)
