TVA for gardening

[David]

Due to ill health we are about to employ a new gardening firm to build a fence, and do general gardening jobs for us.  This is a properly registered French firm with a siret number.

However, they want to charge 19.6% TVA, whereas all other artisans we have employed to work on the house charge 5.5% TVA.

Can  anyone tell us what the correct TVA would be for gardening, and is that different from house maintence which, at present anyway, is still 5,5%?

Many thanks,

David in the Deux-Sevres.

[Coco]

The reduced rate  is only available for renovation work, ie replacing an old something (roof, floor, electrics etc) with new, as has been explained to me by most of the artisans doing work for me.  Completely new stuff, or external work on the land is at normal rate.  For example, it was explained to us that if we wanted to replace an old fosse with a new toutes eau it would be charged at 5.5% but to put a new fosse in from scratch would be charged at 19.6%.  Likewise, if we wanted to put a new wooden floor in our barn which previously had an earth floor it would be 19.6% but if you replace a rotten old wooden floor with a new one it's 5.5%.

When we had a lot of landscaping done in our garden last year it was charged at 19.6%.

[chris pp]

I would have thought that it shouldn't be to difficult to find someone registered for gardening that wasn't registered for TVA and as a result wouldn't charge it. Unless it's a big firm doing the work, I can't even see the advantage for the gardener concerned to be registered, it's not obligatory unless you take more than 27,000 Euros a year or whatever the latest sum is. Otherwise 19.6% as has been said.

Chris

[Deimos]

Before seeing this I made a partly relevant post regarding TVA on trees (and having them planted) which might suggest that full rate is applicable.

Ian

[David]

Many thanks for your very prompt and helpful replies, particularly St Amour.

I have now accepted the TVA rate and returned the devis.

Thanks again

David