All the Loops, Lines and VOIP Users to Pay Taxes for Rural Broadband
According to a recent announcement by the government, even unused landlines will be liable for taxation with an additional 50p monthly, in addition to the VAT, in order to provide for funds to subsidise rural broadband in the country. This tax would not depend upon the usage made by the customer.
The Treasury has also clarified the position on mode of collection of taxes, giving the users option to go for payment as component of line rental, an entirely separate factor on the bill, or even as a package charge. This charge will also include all local loops irrespective of the nature of the loop.
The present trend suggests that if the Labour party stays in power even after the next general election, the charge will be made payable by the lines used for internet access as well. However, if the Conservatives come in to power after the elections, the charge will be scraped as soon as possible.
Further, premises with multiple lines will be charged on the basis of individual lines and not collectively. This in turn would mean that the government would be able to collect over £175m and be able to fund their plans of bringing in faster broadband to more than 90% of the country’s population in eight years’ time.
The government consultation precipitated that the duty has been structured in a way that would include broadband services, referring to issues of voice over internet protocol (VOIP) usage by phone users using programs like Skype. This scheme would mean that the users who are not opting for phone service would also have to pay the tax.
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