Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he has made an assessment of the potential merits of applying a VAT exemption to services provided by (a) counsellors and (b) psychotherapists.

The standard rate of VAT applies to most goods and services. Exceptions have always been strictly limited by legal and fiscal considerations.

Many services provided directly or supervised by registered health professionals are exempt from VAT. Registered professionals are those who are enrolled or registered on the appropriate statutory register. This includes registered practitioner psychologists, but means the relief does not apply to professionals who do not have statutory registers, such as counsellors and psychotherapists.

The UK’s approach of linking exemption to statutory registration is a clear and objective criterion for defining ‘health professionals’ for VAT purposes. While we keep all taxes under review, there are no current plans to make changes to these rules.