Finance Act 2011

Supplies of scrap metal — reverse charge.

59.— (1) The Principal Act is amended—

(a) in section 16 by inserting the following after subsection (3):

“(4) (a) In this subsection—

‘dealing in scrap metal’ means the purchase, sale, resale or recovery of scrap metal;

‘recovery’, in relation to scrap metal, means any activity carried on for the purposes of reclaiming, recycling or re-using, in whole or in part, scrap metal and any activities related to such reclamation, recycling or re-use;

‘scrap metal’ includes scrapped metal and metal waste originating from, or extracted from, the processing of metals, metal derived from vehicles, metal derived from construction and demolition waste, machine parts and metal items no longer useable in their original form due to their breaking, obsolescence, shearing, wearing or the like, and also includes goods listed in paragraphs (1) to (3) of Annex VI of the VAT Directive.

(b) Notwithstanding section 56, where a taxable person carries on a business in the State, which consists of or includes dealing in scrap metal (in this subsection referred to as a ‘recipient’) and he or she receives a supply of scrap metal from another taxable person who carries on a business in the State, then—

(i) the recipient shall, in relation to that supply, be an accountable person or be deemed to be an accountable person and shall be liable to pay the tax chargeable as if that recipient made that supply in the course or furtherance of business, and

(ii) the person who supplied the scrap metal shall not be accountable for or liable to pay such tax in respect of that supply.”,

(b) in section 59(2) by inserting the following after paragraph (i):

“(ia) the tax chargeable during the period, being tax for which the recipient (within the meaning of section 16(4)(b)) is liable by virtue of section 16(4)(b) in respect of scrap metal (within the meaning of section 16(4)(a)) received by that recipient, but only where the recipient would be entitled to a deduction of that tax elsewhere under this subsection if that tax had been charged to such recipient by an accountable person,”,

(c) in section 66 by inserting the following after subsection (4):

“(4A) (a) Where a taxable person who carries on a business in the State supplies scrap metal (within the meaning of section 16(4)(a)) to a recipient (within the meaning of section 16(4)(b)), the person shall issue a document to the recipient indicating—

(i) that the recipient is liable to account for the tax chargeable on that supply, and

(ii) such other particulars as would be required to be included in that document if that document were an invoice required to be issued in accordance with subsection (1) but excluding the amount of tax payable.

(b) Where the recipient and the person who supplied the scrap metal so agree, section 71(1) may apply to this document as if it were an invoice.”,

and

(d) in section 87(1), in the definition of “second-hand goods”, by inserting “scrap metal within the meaning of section 16(4)(a),” after “but not including”.

(2) Subsection (1) comes into operation on 1 May 2011.