Folded leaflets are usually zero-rated (0% VAT) in the UK. HMRC weighs these characteristics together rather than ticking them off: A single sheet, A4 or smaller (or up to A2 printed both sides and folded down to A4); held and read, not hung up or displayed; printed on limp paper, not laminated; at least 50 copies; complete in itself, and either short-lived or supplied with something else; no more than a quarter of it to fill in or tear off, and never returned whole (HMRC VAT Notice 701/10, paragraph 3.3).
PRIVATE & CONFIDENTIAL
Folded three ways.Still zero.I did check each panel.
Folded leaflets
0% VAT
Leaflets are zero-rated. A sheet you pick up, read and bin (or one that comes with a product) is exactly what the zero rate is for.
HMRC VAT Notice 701/10, paragraph 3.3
0% where it's:
A single sheet, A4 or smaller (or up to A2 printed both sides and folded down to A4)
Held and read, not hung up or displayed
Printed on limp paper, not laminated
At least 50 copies
Complete in itself, and either short-lived or supplied with something else
No more than a quarter of it to fill in or tear off, and never returned whole
Need these printed?
Tell Tenfold the quantity, size and deadline. We'll put together a quote for your job.
Folding is the one thing that lets a leaflet be bigger than A4. HMRC's normal size for a leaflet is a single sheet no larger than A4, but it allows publications up to A2 as long as they are printed on both sides, folded down to A4 or smaller, and meet the other leaflet conditions. So a folded A3 or A2 sheet is not a problem in itself. Printing only one side of it is, and so is a fold that leaves the finished thing larger than A4. Folding does not rescue anything else: a folded sheet still has to be held and read rather than displayed, be on limp paper, and keep the space for filling in or tearing off to a quarter or less.
What decides it?
Both sides printed, and folded down to A4 or smaller. Miss either and the size allowance goes with it.
When would folded leaflets be charged at 20% VAT?
HMRC judges this as a matter of fact and impression, weighing these together rather than ticking them off: a single sheet, a4 or smaller (or up to a2 printed both sides and folded down to a4); held and read, not hung up or displayed; printed on limp paper, not laminated; at least 50 copies; complete in itself, and either short-lived or supplied with something else; no more than a quarter of it to fill in or tear off, and never returned whole. Missing one does not settle it by itself, and the further an item sits from them the harder it is to call it a leaflet. Two of them are rules rather than indicators: lamination takes it out, and so does being designed to be returned whole after completion.
Is the design and artwork for folded leaflets zero-rated too?
If your printer does the design, typesetting or finishing as part of the same zero-rated print job, that work can be zero-rated too. Design bought separately from a studio is a standard-rated service.
Where does this come from?
HMRC VAT Notice 701/10, paragraph 3.3, HMRC's guidance on zero rating books and printed matter. See the notices we work from.
Some real jobs
An A3 sheet printed both sides, folded once to A40%
Within the A2 limit, printed both sides, folded down to A4. A leaflet.
An A2 six-page roll fold, printed both sides, finishing at A40%
Still inside the allowance. How many folds it takes is not the test.
An A2 sheet printed one side and folded to A420%
The allowance above A4 only applies when the sheet is printed on both sides.
