In these Regulations unless the context otherwise requires—

• “the Act” means the Value Added Tax Act 1994 and any reference to a Schedule to the Act includes a reference to a Schedule as amended from time to time by Order of the Treasury;

• F7“alphabetical code” means the alphabetical prefix as set out below which shall be used to identify the member State —

  • Austria — AT

  • Belgium — BE

  • F8Bulgaria — BG

  • Cyprus — CY

  • Czech Republic — CZ

  • Denmark — DK

  • Estonia — EE

  • Finland — FI

  • France — FR

  • Germany — DE

  • Greece — EL

  • Hungary — HU

  • Ireland — IE

  • Italy — IT

  • Latvia — LV

  • Lithuania — LT

  • Luxembourg — LU

  • Malta — MT

  • Netherlands — NL

  • Poland — PL

  • Portugal — PT

  • F9Romania — RO

  • Slovakia — SK

  • Slovenia — SI

  • Spain — ES

  • Sweden — SE

  • United Kingdom —GB

• “Collector” includes Deputy Collector and Assistant Collector;

• “the Community” means the European Community;

• “continental shelf” means a designated area within the meaning of the Continental Shelf Act 19642;

• “Controller” means the Controller, Customs and Excise Value Added Tax Central Unit;

• “datapost packet” means a postal packet containing goods which is posted in the United Kingdom as a datapost packet for transmission to a place outside the United Kingdom in accordance with the terms of a contract entered into between F4the Post Office company and the sender of the packet; or which is received at a post office F5of the Post Office company in the United Kingdom from a place outside the United Kingdom for transmission and delivery in the United Kingdom F6by that company as if it were a datapost packet;

• F1“fiscal or other warehousing regime” means “fiscal warehousing regime or warehousing regime”;

• “prescribed accounting period”, subject to regulation 99(1), means a period such as is referred to in regulation 25;

• “proper officer” means the person appointed or authorised by the Commissioners to act in respect of any matter in the course of his duties;

• F3“the Post Office” company has the same meaning as in Part IV of the Postal Services Act 2000;

• “registered person” means a person registered by the Commissioners under F2Schedule 1, 2, 3 or 3A to the Act;

• “registration number” means the number allocated by the Commissioners to a taxable person in the certificate of registration issued to him;

• “return” means a return which is required to be made in accordance with regulation 25;

• “specified date” means the date specified in a person’s application for registration for the purpose of VAT as that on which he expects to make his first taxable supply.

A reference in these Regulations to “this Part” is a reference to the Part of these Regulations in which that reference is made.

In these Regulations any reference to a form prescribed in Schedule 1 to these Regulations shall include a reference to a form which the Commissioners are satisfied is a form to the like effect.