Business support resources

Business helpline for members

All member centres have access to an independent helpline offering expert advice on HR, health and safety, payroll, PAYE, tax, and other commercial legal issues. The helpline can provide practical advice on your business problems, a second opinion, or a simple explanation of new legislation.

This service is completely free of charge.

> more information on the business support helpline

UK ELT & VAT: guidance for members

There are two pieces of VAT guidance available for members:

General guidance on VAT and ELT

This guidance aims to help members make clear VAT-related decisions. It was prepared in Q1 of 2024 with advice from one of the Big Four accounting firms and follows the VAT webinar for member centres held on Thursday 21 March 2024.
The guidance looks at three scenarios for selling ELT courses and the VAT treatment you should follow in each case.

Member centres who opted into this guidance can email membership@englishuk.com to request a copy.

Guidance on draft legislation on applying VAT to private school fees

The draft legislation for the government's policy of applying VAT on private school fees is now available. English UK's guidance on the legislation aims to answer questions of relevance to members hiring venue space and other services from private schools and also our private school members who offer ELT programmes.

The three questions are:

1) Will private schools that provide additional ELT programmes, such as residential summer courses, have to charge VAT on these programmes?

2) If the private school has set up a separate company to deliver these programmes does this make any difference?

3) If an external language school hires a private school for its own ELT programmes, will the private school have to charge VAT for any of its services?

>>Download English UK's guidance on the draft VAT legislation