VAT registration certificate: how to get it.

What the VAT registration certificate is

People use "VAT certificate" to mean the document that confirms a business is registered for VAT. It is the record of the key facts HMRC holds about your registration. You will be asked for it, or for the details on it, by banks, suppliers, marketplaces, landlords and your bookkeeper.

There is no separate fee and no separate form to request it. It comes out of the registration itself. If you have registered and HMRC has accepted your application, the information already exists. Your job is to find it, check it and keep it safe.

What you get from HMRC after you register

GOV.UK says that after you register for VAT, you will get:

• A 9-digit VAT registration number. You must include this on all invoices you raise.
• Information about your business tax account. This explains how to set one up if you do not already have one. You need it to use the VAT online service.
• Information about your first VAT return and payment. This tells you when the first return and payment are due.
• Your effective date of registration. This is the date your registration starts from.

GOV.UK says you get this information by post. HMRC's VAT guide (VAT Notice 700) also says that when it approves special tax periods, it provides a new VAT registration certificate on your business tax account. So there are two places to look: your post, and your HMRC online account once VAT has been added to it.

How to register so a certificate is issued

You can usually register for VAT online. You sign in to HMRC's service, and if you do not have sign-in details yet you can create them when you sign in for the first time. You do not have to finish in one go. You can save your entry and come back to it.

What you need depends on the type of business.

Limited companies

• Your company registration number
• Your business bank account details
• Your Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR)
• Details of your annual turnover and an estimate of taxable turnover for the next 12 months
• Information about Corporation Tax, PAYE and Self Assessment

Sole traders and partnerships

• Your National Insurance number
• An identity document, such as a passport or driving licence
• Your bank account details
• Your UTR, if you have one
• Details of your annual turnover and an estimate of taxable turnover for the next 12 months
• Information about your Self Assessment return, payslips and P60

Some businesses cannot register online and must use the paper form VAT1. GOV.UK lists cases such as applying for a registration exception because turnover went over the threshold only temporarily, joining the Agricultural Flat Rate Scheme, and insolvency practitioners registering a business.

When you have to register

For 2026/27 the VAT registration threshold is £90,000 of taxable turnover. You must register if either:

• Your taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000. You must register within 30 days of the end of the month in which you went over. Your effective date of registration is the first day of the second month after you go over.
• You expect taxable turnover to go over £90,000 in the next 30 days alone. You must register by the end of that 30-day period. Your effective date is the date you realised, not the date turnover went over.

You can also register voluntarily if your turnover is below £90,000. HMRC's notice on registration says you can choose the date your registration starts when you register voluntarily, and that a mistake in that date cannot be changed later for your pre-registration cost calculations. Choose carefully.

If you are not sure whether you are close, our guide to the different VAT schemes covers what happens once you are registered.

A worked example

How long it takes

HMRC has to check your details before it can send your VAT number. HMRC's notice says it will contact you either to tell you the number, or to say there will be a delay because it needs more information.

HMRC also says that if you have not heard anything after 40 working days, you should contact its VAT Registration Service to check your application arrived. It asks you not to contact it before then, as that might slow things down. GOV.UK has a tool to check when you can expect a reply from HMRC, which is updated weekly.

What to do while you wait

Your obligations start from your effective date of registration, not the date your number arrives. You must pay HMRC any VAT you owe from that date. This is where most problems start, because sales keep happening during the wait.

GOV.UK sets out what to do:

• Do not show VAT on invoices yet. You cannot include VAT on your invoices until you have your VAT number.
• You can raise your prices. You can increase prices to cover the VAT you will have to pay to HMRC.
• Reissue the invoices once the number arrives. When you have the number, reissue those invoices showing VAT. Your customer pays nothing extra, but a VAT-registered customer can then reclaim the VAT on their own return.

Keep a simple list of every sale invoiced between the effective date and the day your number arrived. That list makes the reissuing job quick, and it helps the first VAT return add up. If you need a layout, see our guide on how to make an invoice template.

Set up your VAT online account

GOV.UK says you must sign up for a VAT online account as soon as you receive your VAT registration number. You sign in, choose to add a tax, duty or scheme, and then pick VAT and VAT services.

This matters for more than the certificate. HMRC will sign your business up to Making Tax Digital for VAT unless it is exempt or you have applied for an exemption. That means your VAT returns go through software that works with HMRC's systems. Our guide on how to file a VAT return walks through the return itself.

Lost your certificate? How to get a copy

A lost paper letter is not a crisis. Your business tax account is the first place to look. HMRC describes it as the place to check your tax position, make returns and payments, and read secure messages from HMRC. HMRC's VAT guide names the business tax account as where it provides a new VAT registration certificate after a change to special tax periods.

If an accountant or agent deals with your VAT, they can help too. HMRC's service for agents to manage a client's VAT details includes printing VAT certificates for clients.

Once you have a copy, save it as a PDF where the people who need it can find it. Keep your VAT records for the period HMRC requires. Our guide on how long to keep business records covers the rules.

Checking a VAT number and keeping details up to date

Customers and suppliers may want to confirm your number is genuine. GOV.UK has a "Check a UK VAT number" service. It works the other way too: you can use it to check a supplier's number before you reclaim VAT on their invoice.

If your registration details change, you must tell HMRC within 30 days of a change to your business name, trading name or main address, or your accountant or agent. Partnerships must also report changes to partners. You may have to pay a penalty if you do not. Many changes can be made in your VAT online account. A change of special tax periods leads HMRC to provide a new certificate on your business tax account, so always use the latest one.

A certificate of status is a different document

Do not confuse the registration certificate with a certificate of status. A certificate of status confirms you are trading in the UK. You may need one if you are VAT registered in the UK and are claiming a VAT refund from another country's tax authority. You request it from HMRC by email and HMRC sends it by email.

Keeping on top of VAT after registration

Registration is the start, not the finish. From the effective date you need to charge VAT correctly, keep VAT invoices for purchases and send returns on time. Most of that comes down to books that are up to date. If invoices or receipts are missing, VAT you could reclaim may be delayed. Our guide to reclaiming VAT explains what counts as valid evidence.