What is the VAT threshold in 2026?

£90,000 of VAT-taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months. It has been £90,000 since 1 April 2024 and is unchanged for 2026/27. The deregistration threshold is £88,000.

How does the rolling 12 months work?

At the end of every calendar month, add up your VAT-taxable sales for that month and the 11 before it. If the total is over £90,000 you must register. It is not your accounting year or the tax year: a business can be under £90,000 for its year to 31 March and still go over in October.

When do I have to register once I go over?

Within 30 days of the end of the month in which the rolling total went over £90,000. Your registration takes effect from the first day of the second month after it: go over at the end of November and you must register by 30 December and charge VAT from 1 January.

What is the 30-day forward-look test?

If you expect your VAT-taxable sales in the next 30 days alone to be over £90,000 (a big contract, say), you must register by the end of those 30 days, and you are registered from the day you realised, not the day your sales went over.

Is the VAT threshold based on turnover or profit?

Turnover. A business with £95,000 of sales and £20,000 of profit is over the threshold. Count sales that are standard-rated, reduced-rated or zero-rated; leave out exempt sales (most insurance, finance and education) and sales outside the scope of UK VAT.

What if I only went over because of a one-off?

You can apply to HMRC for an exception from registering if your turnover went over temporarily and you can show it will be no more than £88,000 in the next 12 months. Apply within the same 30 days.

What happens if I register late?

You still owe HMRC the VAT you should have charged from the date you should have been registered, even if you did not charge your customers for it, and HMRC can add a penalty based on the VAT due. Telling HMRC yourself, quickly, keeps the penalty lower.

Where do I find my monthly sales in Xero?

Run the Profit and Loss for the latest whole month and use Compare with: 11 previous periods, by month. The Total Trading Income line gives each month's sales. Take out any income that is exempt or outside the scope of VAT.

What about GST in Australia or New Zealand?

This calculator is for UK VAT. In Australia you must register for GST once your GST turnover is $75,000 or more, current or projected over 12 months. In New Zealand the threshold is $60,000 in any 12 months, past or expected.

Are my figures stored or sent anywhere?

No. The calculation runs in your browser. Nothing you type is saved or sent to our server or anyone else. The only exception is if you ask us to email you the result: then your email address and a short summary of the result are stored, and nothing is sent until you confirm.

VAT threshold calculator (rolling 12 months)

How the calculator works

The test: at the end of every month, add up your VAT-taxable sales for that month and the 11 before it. Over £90,000 and you must register.
The deadline: register within 30 days of the end of that month. You are registered from the first day of the second month after it, and charge VAT on sales from then.
The projection: each coming month, the oldest month drops out and a month at your last 3 months' average comes in. The calculator finds the first month end the total goes over, up to 12 months ahead. It is a straight-line estimate: if your sales are seasonal, check the months your busy season starts.
The forward look: sales over £90,000 in the next 30 days on their own mean registering at once. The calculator reminds you of it but cannot see your order book.

A worked example

A dog grooming business run by a sole trader, growing steadily since it opened. Made-up figures, for the 12 months from October 2025 to September 2026:

Monthly sales: £5,500, £5,800, £6,000, £6,200, £6,500, £6,800, £7,000, £7,400, £7,800, £8,200, £8,600 and £9,000.
Rolling total to 30 September 2026: £84,800, £5,200 under the threshold. No month has come near £90,000 on its own, so it does not feel close.
The last 3 months' average: (£8,200 + £8,600 + £9,000) ÷ 3 = £8,600 a month.
October 2026: October 2025's £5,500 drops out and £8,600 comes in: £87,900.
November 2026: November 2025's £5,800 drops out and £8,600 comes in: £90,700, over the threshold.
Register by 30 December 2026, and charge VAT from 1 January 2027. At 20% on £8,600 a month that is about £1,720 a month to HMRC, less the VAT on costs, so the owner has two months to decide whether prices go up or margin goes down.

Press "Load the worked example" above to see these figures in the calculator.

Getting the 12 months from Xero

Open Accounting › Reports › Profit and Loss and set the date to the latest whole month.
Under Compare with, choose 11 previous periods by month. Profit and loss by month in Xero shows the steps.
Copy each month's Total Trading Income into the boxes above. If you are not VAT registered, Xero shows the sales without tax already.
Take out income that is exempt or outside the scope of UK VAT (rent on a residential let, insurance commission, some sales to customers abroad). Other Income further down (bank interest, grants) is not turnover anyway. Turnover vs profit explains the difference.

Once you are registered, the VAT return in Xero covers filing through Making Tax Digital, and how much to set aside for tax shows how to put the VAT aside from each receipt so the quarterly bill is never a shock. If you trade through a limited company, the corporation tax calculator works out the other big bill.

Questions

What is the VAT threshold in 2026?: £90,000 of VAT-taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months. It has been £90,000 since 1 April 2024 and is unchanged for 2026/27. The deregistration threshold is £88,000.
How does the rolling 12 months work?: At the end of every calendar month, add up your VAT-taxable sales for that month and the 11 before it. If the total is over £90,000 you must register. It is not your accounting year or the tax year: a business can be under £90,000 for its year to 31 March and still go over in October.
When do I have to register once I go over?: Within 30 days of the end of the month in which the rolling total went over £90,000. Your registration takes effect from the first day of the second month after it: go over at the end of November and you must register by 30 December and charge VAT from 1 January.
What is the 30-day forward-look test?: If you expect your VAT-taxable sales in the next 30 days alone to be over £90,000 (a big contract, say), you must register by the end of those 30 days, and you are registered from the day you realised, not the day your sales went over.
Is the VAT threshold based on turnover or profit?: Turnover. A business with £95,000 of sales and £20,000 of profit is over the threshold. Count sales that are standard-rated, reduced-rated or zero-rated; leave out exempt sales (most insurance, finance and education) and sales outside the scope of UK VAT.
What if I only went over because of a one-off?: You can apply to HMRC for an exception from registering if your turnover went over temporarily and you can show it will be no more than £88,000 in the next 12 months. Apply within the same 30 days.
What happens if I register late?: You still owe HMRC the VAT you should have charged from the date you should have been registered, even if you did not charge your customers for it, and HMRC can add a penalty based on the VAT due. Telling HMRC yourself, quickly, keeps the penalty lower.
Where do I find my monthly sales in Xero?: Run the Profit and Loss for the latest whole month and use Compare with: 11 previous periods, by month. The Total Trading Income line gives each month's sales. Take out any income that is exempt or outside the scope of VAT.
What about GST in Australia or New Zealand?: This calculator is for UK VAT. In Australia you must register for GST once your GST turnover is $75,000 or more, current or projected over 12 months. In New Zealand the threshold is $60,000 in any 12 months, past or expected.
Are my figures stored or sent anywhere?: No. The calculation runs in your browser. Nothing you type is saved or sent to our server or anyone else. The only exception is if you ask us to email you the result: then your email address and a short summary of the result are stored, and nothing is sent until you confirm.

This calculator gives an estimate from the figures you enter, using the UK VAT registration threshold of £90,000. It is not tax advice; check GOV.UK or your accountant before you register. Xero is a trademark of Xero Limited. This tool and ReportPilot are independent and are not made or endorsed by Xero.

VAT threshold calculator

Your rolling 12 months