Is VAT charged on printing in the UK?
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Most printing is standard-rated at 20 % VAT. Some printed matter — booklets, brochures, pamphlets and leaflets that meet HMRC’s conditions — is zero-rated under VAT Notice 701/10. Posters, business cards, stationery, menus, signage and anything on PVC, board or vinyl are always 20 %. Our quotes show prices excluding VAT with 20 % added; where a job qualifies for zero-rating we set that line to 0 % on the invoice — tell us what the print is for when you ask for the quote.
Written by Maciej Antosz, Production Manager at Silver Image London ·
“Is there VAT on printing?” is the second question on most enquiries after the price. The honest answer is it depends on what the print is, not on who prints it. HMRC’s rule (Group 3 of Schedule 8 to the VAT Act, explained in Notice 701/10) zero-rates things that are read — books, booklets, brochures, leaflets — and standard-rates things that are displayed, written on, or used as stationery. Below is how that rule lands on the products we actually print, and the three traps that turn a zero-rated leaflet into a 20 % one.
Which printed products are zero-rated and which are 20 %
| Product | VAT | Why, and the condition that matters |
|---|---|---|
| Saddle-stitched booklets, brochures, catalogues, programmes | 0 % | Booklets and brochures are zero-rated when they are made to be read: several pages of text or pictures, stitched or folded together, supplied complete. |
| Orders of service | 0 % | Listed by HMRC as zero-rated — they are read on the day and not designed to be kept or written on. |
| Flyers and leaflets, folded leaflets | 0 % if they qualify | HMRC describes a leaflet as normally a single sheet no larger than A4 (or up to A2 folded down to A4), printed on limp paper, held in the hand to read, complete, and supplied in a quantity that permits general distribution — its guidance gives at least 50 copies. Lamination counts as “designed to be kept” and takes it to 20 %; stiff card does not exclude it automatically, but HMRC treats heavy card as an indicator that the item has another function, so a card “flyer” is usually 20 %. |
| Price lists printed as a leaflet or brochure | 0 % | A fully printed price list in leaflet or brochure form is zero-rated; a price card or tag is 20 %. |
| Posters, A0–A4 | 20 % | “Sheets intended for public display” are standard-rated whatever they say on them. |
| Business cards, letterheads, compliment slips, envelopes, invoices, forms | 20 % | Stationery is standard-rated. Anything designed to be completed or returned is a form, not a leaflet. |
| Menus, laminated or not | 20 % | Menu cards are on HMRC’s standard-rated list; lamination makes any printed sheet “designed to be kept”. |
| Certificates, invitations, greetings cards, postcards, place cards, badges, labels, stickers, tickets | 20 % | Each is named on the standard-rated list; a ticket or card that gets you in somewhere is never a leaflet. |
| Document printing and photocopies | 20 % | Photocopies are on HMRC’s standard-rated list. A collection of documents permanently bound into covers may be treated as a booklet — that is a judgement on the particular job, not a rule. |
| Banners, roller banners, Foamex, Dibond, Correx, vinyl, canvas, tablecloths, flags | 20 % | Not printed matter in HMRC’s sense at all: PVC, board, textile and film are standard-rated goods. |
| Binders and folders supplied with a zero-rated booklet | 20 % | Charged separately; the booklet inside stays zero-rated. |
Every service on this site, one line each
| Service | VAT | Condition |
|---|---|---|
| Booklet printing | 0 % when it qualifies | Stitched or folded pages made to be read, supplied complete. A notebook, order book or mostly blank booklet is 20 %. |
| Brochure printing | 0 % when it qualifies | Several pages of text and pictures fastened or folded together, supplied complete; single-sheet brochures qualify when they carry substantial text. |
| Order of service booklets | 0 % when it qualifies | Named on HMRC’s zero-rated list — read on the day, not kept or written on. |
| Flyers and folded leaflets | 0 % when it qualifies | Single sheet up to A4 (or folded down to A4), limp paper, to be read, enough copies for general distribution (HMRC gives at least 50), not laminated, no more than a quarter for completion. |
| Perfect binding | Depends on the job | A perfect-bound book or manual made to be read is zero-rated; a bound diary, notebook or workbook is 20 %. |
| Wire binding | Depends on the job | Wire-bound reports and manuals can be zero-rated as booklets when they are complete and made to be read; loose-leaf and blank sections point to 20 %. |
| Document printing | 20 % | Photocopies and loose printed documents are standard-rated; a set permanently bound into covers is judged as a booklet on the job. |
| Confidential documents and presentations | 20 % | As document printing: 20 % for copies and presentations; permanently bound bundles are judged as a booklet on the job. |
| Script printing | 20 % | Loose or comb-bound scripts for rehearsal are standard-rated; a complete bound script made to be read can qualify — ask at quotation. |
| Poster printing | 20 % | Sheets for public display are standard-rated whatever they say. |
| A0, A1, A2 and A3 printing | 20 % | Large-format sheets are display items: 20 %. |
| Canvas printing | 20 % | Printed pictures and reproductions are standard-rated. |
| Business cards | 20 % | Stationery: standard-rated. |
| Invitations and greeting cards | 20 % | Invitation cards and greetings cards are named on the standard-rated list. |
| Certificate printing | 20 % | Certificates are named on the standard-rated list. |
| Place cards and table names | 20 % | Cards for display and completion: 20 %. |
| Table plan printing | 20 % | A board for display: 20 %. |
| Menus | 20 % | Menu cards are named on the standard-rated list; lamination confirms it. |
| ID badges and name tags | 20 % | Badges are named on the standard-rated list. |
| Strut cards | 20 % | Point-of-sale display on board: 20 %. |
| Vinyl stickers | 20 % | Labels and stickers are standard-rated. |
| Printed and cut vinyl graphics | 20 % | Vinyl is not printed matter: 20 %. |
| Window vinyl | 20 % | Film for glazing: 20 %. |
| Wall and floor graphics | 20 % | Self-adhesive graphics: 20 %. |
| Vehicle graphics | 20 % | Cut and printed vinyl for vehicles: 20 %. |
| Banner printing | 20 % | PVC and mesh are goods, not printed matter: 20 %. |
| Pull-up roller banners | 20 % | Graphic plus hardware: 20 %. |
| Exhibition graphics | 20 % | Panels, boards and fabric for stands: 20 %. |
| Fabric pop-up displays | 20 % | Textile graphic with frame: 20 %. |
| Feather flags | 20 % | Textile and pole: 20 %. |
| Printed tablecloths | 20 % | Textile: 20 %. |
| Foam board printing | 20 % | Rigid board: 20 %. |
| Dibond printing | 20 % | Aluminium composite panel: 20 %. |
| Correx printing | 20 % | Fluted polypropylene board: 20 %. |
| A-board printing | 20 % | Frame and inserts for display: 20 %. |
| Construction hoarding | 20 % | Printed panels for site hoarding: 20 %. |
| Safety signs | 20 % | Signage: 20 %. |
| Wayfinding signs | 20 % | Signage: 20 %. |
| Shop signs | 20 % | Signage and fascias: 20 %. |
| 24 hour printing | Depends on the job | Follows the product: a booklet run overnight is zero-rated if it qualifies, an overnight poster run is 20 %. |
| Same day printing | Depends on the job | Follows the product, not the speed: same-day leaflets can be zero-rated, same-day boards are 20 %. |
| Overnight printing | Depends on the job | Follows the product; overnight production changes the deadline, not the VAT. |
| Next day delivery printing | Depends on the job | Follows the product; courier is a separate line at 20 % unless it forms part of one zero-rated supply. |
The three traps we see on real jobs
Lamination. The moment a leaflet is laminated, HMRC treats it as designed to be kept, so it is 20 %. A 170 gsm silk A5 leaflet in a run of 500 is zero-rated; the same design laminated for a counter is not.
Space to fill in, or to tear off. HMRC accepts a leaflet is not primarily for completion if the blank areas for filling in, plus any part to be detached and returned, together take up 25 % or less of the total area. Over that, it is a form at 20 %. Anything designed to be returned whole after completion is always 20 %, whatever the size of the box.
Too few, too stiff. HMRC expects a leaflet to be supplied in enough copies for general distribution and gives at least 50 as its figure, and it reads heavy card as an indicator that the item is meant to be kept or used rather than read. Ten A5 cards on 400 gsm are almost certainly cards; five hundred A5 leaflets on 130 gsm are leaflets. The decision is about what the item is for, not the paper alone.
How it appears on our quote and invoice
Every quote from us shows each line net, then VAT, then the total; the price list on this site is quoted excluding VAT for the same reason. By default a line carries 20 %. When you tell us at quotation what a booklet or leaflet is for — a programme for an event, a brochure to hand out, an order of service — and the spec meets the conditions above, we set that line to 0 % and the invoice says so. Mixed jobs are itemised: a stitched A5 programme at 0 % and the A1 poster for the same event at 20 % on one invoice.
Courier is a separate line on our quotes and carries 20 % unless it forms part of a single zero-rated supply under HMRC’s rules on delivery charges; on a mixed job we itemise it. If your accounts department needs the VAT treatment confirmed in writing before ordering, ask and we put it on the quote.
Frequently asked questions
Is there VAT on printing in the UK?
Usually yes, at 20 %. The exceptions are books, booklets, brochures, pamphlets and leaflets that meet HMRC’s conditions in VAT Notice 701/10 — those are zero-rated.
Are leaflets and flyers VAT exempt?
Zero-rated rather than exempt, and only when they qualify: normally a single sheet up to A4 (or folded down to A4), on limp paper, to be read rather than kept, in a quantity that allows general distribution (HMRC gives at least 50 copies), not laminated, with no more than a quarter of the area for completion or return. Otherwise 20 %.
Is there VAT on booklets and brochures?
No, when they are made to be read: stitched or folded pages, supplied complete. Booklets that are really stationery — diaries, notebooks, order books — are 20 %.
Is there VAT on business cards, posters and menus?
Yes, 20 % on all three. Business cards are stationery, posters are for display and menu cards are on HMRC’s standard-rated list.
Why does my invoice show 20 % on a booklet?
Either because that booklet does not qualify (a notebook, an order book, a laminated or mostly blank piece), or because the use was not confirmed before the invoice was raised. Tell us the use and the spec at quotation and a qualifying line goes out at 0 %. If an invoice has already been raised at 20 % for a booklet you believe qualifies, ask — we check the classification and re-issue it where the rules support that.
Where is the official rule?
HMRC VAT Notice 701/10, “Zero rating books and printed matter”, on gov.uk. Section 8 lists common items one by one.
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