Concession on landfill tax for materials used on site
THIS year started with some good news for landfill site operators as HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) announced that it would not be challenging a recent Court of Appeal decision that certain materials entering a landfill site will no longer be subject to landfill tax.
The materials in question are those used by landfill site operators in maintaining and managing their sites (eg materials used for the daily coverage of sites required under environmental regulation, or for the construction of on-site haul roads).
Furthermore, site operators will be able to claim back tax paid on such materials over the past three years. According to tax advice specialists KPMG, for many operators, claims may run into several million pounds.
Barbara Bell, senior manager in the Environmental Tax and Incentives Group at KPMG in the UK, welcomed HMRC’s recent announcement that it would not be seeking leave to appeal to the House of Lords against the Court’s decision in favour of Waste Recycling Group Ltd.
‘The decision to accept the Court’s view is a sensible move on HMRC’s part,’ she said. ‘It emphasizes the intention of Parliament that landfill tax should only penalize those who actually dispose of material to landfill and not those who attempt to recycle material on site.
‘Encouraging as much recycling as possible is surely one of the aims of an effective environmental tax policy and this is a sensible move towards this end.’
