Is there VAT relief on listed building work

Not as a listed building relief. The zero rate for approved alterations to listed homes was withdrawn from 1 October 2012 and the transitional relief ended on 30 September 2015, so alterations, repairs and maintenance to a listed building are now standard rated at 20%. Work can still be zero or reduced rated under the general reliefs for conversions, long empty homes, energy saving materials and disabled adaptations, and the first sale of a listed building rebuilt behind its retained shell can still be zero rated.

What happened to the zero rate for listed building alterations?

Before 1 October 2012, work done in the course of an approved alteration to a protected building was zero rated. HMRC’s VAT Notice 708, paragraph 9.1.1, records that the zero rate was withdrawn from that date. Finance Act 2012, Schedule 26, removed the relevant items from Group 6 of Schedule 8 to the VAT Act 1994.

Transitional relief kept the zero rate for work covered by a listed building consent applied for, or a written contract with the builder entered into, before 21 March 2012 (paragraphs 9.1.3 to 9.1.5), but only until 30 September 2015 (paragraph 9.1.2). HMRC keeps section 9 in the notice only because the historic rules may still be needed, for example in a dispute about older work. A builder quoting today cannot rely on it.

Does listed building consent change the VAT?

No. Listed building consent is a heritage control, not a VAT certificate; Notice 708, paragraph 9.5.1, notes that it is not the same as planning permission. Even under the old rules, paragraph 9.4 of Notice 708 said alterations carried out for repair or maintenance were always standard rated, even if the work was included in the consent. Now that the alterations zero rate has gone, extensions, new openings, replacement windows, reroofing and like for like repairs to a listed home are all standard rated unless one of the general reliefs below applies to the particular work.

The VAT definition of a protected building is still relevant to the one remaining zero rate. Note (1) to Group 6 defines it as a listed building or scheduled monument that is designed to remain as or become a dwelling or dwellings, or is intended solely for a relevant residential or relevant charitable purpose. Notice 708, paragraph 9.3.2, adds that unlisted buildings in conservation areas and buildings on a council’s local list are not protected buildings for VAT.

Is there any zero rate left for listed buildings?

One. Item 1 of Group 6 zero rates the first grant of a major interest in a protected building by the person substantially reconstructing it. Since 2012, Note (4) says a building only counts as substantially reconstructed if, when the work is finished, it incorporates no more of the original building than the external walls together with other external features of architectural or historic interest. Notice 708, paragraph 10.1.1, explains that the older alternative test, based on three fifths of the cost being approved alterations, was withdrawn.

• A major interest is the freehold or a lease of more than 21 years (in Scotland, the owner’s interest or a lease of not less than 20 years), as paragraph 10.5 explains.
• The relief belongs to the developer who reconstructs and then sells or grants the long lease; it does not zero rate the builder’s invoices to a homeowner.
• Adding an extension is not substantial reconstruction (paragraph 10.4.1).
• A holiday home cannot be zero rated: a sale within three years of reconstruction is standard rated and a later one exempt (paragraph 10.6.2).

Which general reliefs can apply to work on a listed building?

The reliefs below apply to any building that meets their conditions, listed or not. Each has its own rules and evidence requirements.

• Conversions at 5%. Converting premises into a single household dwelling, a different number of dwellings, a multiple occupancy dwelling or a relevant residential building (Notice 708, section 7). Turning a listed barn into a house, or a listed townhouse into flats, can qualify. See residential conversions at the reduced rate.
• Empty homes at 5%. Renovating or altering a dwelling that has not been lived in during the two years immediately before work starts (Notice 708, section 8). See renovating empty homes.
• Energy saving materials at 0%. Installing items such as insulation, draught stripping, heating controls, solar panels and heat pumps in residential accommodation is zero rated from 1 May 2023 to 31 March 2027, reverting to 5% from 1 April 2027 (Notice 708/6). See VAT on energy saving materials.
• Disabled adaptations at 0%. Building ramps, widening existing doorways or passages and providing or adapting a bathroom, washroom or lavatory to suit a disabled person’s condition (Notice 701/7, paragraphs 6.2 and 6.3). See VAT relief for disabled people.
• Mobility aids at 5%. Supplying and installing grab rails, ramps, stair lifts and similar aids in the home of someone aged 60 or over; see VAT on mobility aids for people aged 60 or over.

Are architects’ and surveyors’ fees relieved?

Generally not. Notice 708, paragraphs 3.4.1 and 6.5.1, states that architectural, surveying, consultancy and supervisory services are standard rated. The exception in paragraph 3.4.1 is where those services are only cost components of a contractor’s single supply, as in some design and build contracts, and not supplied on separately to the customer. The specialist heritage consultants that listed building work usually needs will therefore charge 20%.

What about listed churches and other places of worship?

For many years the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme gave grants towards the VAT incurred on eligible repair work to listed places of worship. That scheme is now closed. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport confirmed on 31 March 2026 that it is no longer accepting applications, that all awards within the £23 million budget for 2025 to 2026 have been finalised, and that there will be no further funding rounds. It points instead to the Places of Worship Renewal Fund, delivered by Historic England in England only with £92 million over four years, and to the National Lottery Heritage Fund across the UK. Neither is a VAT relief; congregations should now budget for VAT at 20% on repairs unless another relief applies.

How does this work in practice?

Illustration only. The owner of a Grade II listed farmhouse, who lives in it, has three jobs priced excluding VAT:

Work	Price	VAT rate	VAT
Single storey extension and new window openings	£30,000	20%	£6,000
Loft insulation and draught stripping, installed before 1 April 2027	£5,000	0%	£0
Level access shower room for a disabled family member, with a signed eligibility declaration	£10,000	0%	£0

The listed status changes nothing in the table. If the house had stood empty for more than two years before the work began, the extension and window work could have been charged at 5% instead of 20%, because Notice 708, paragraph 8.4, allows improvements such as an extension carried out during the renovation of an empty dwelling to be reduced rated.

What mistakes come up most often?

• Quoting the pre 2012 zero rate for approved alterations to a listed home.
• Assuming listed building consent, or a conservation area, brings a VAT relief.
• Treating a gutted and rebuilt listed building as zero rated when more of the original than the external walls and features was kept.
• Zero rating architects’ or heritage consultants’ fees.
• Missing a conversion, empty home, energy saving or disabled adaptation relief that applies regardless of listing.
• Planning church repairs on the assumption that the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme will cover the VAT.

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Sources

• GOV.UK: Buildings and construction vat notice 708
• legislation.gov.uk: Act 1994 c. 23, schedule 8
• GOV.UK: Vat rates
• GOV.UK: Vat on energy saving materials and heating equipment notice 7086
• GOV.UK: Reliefs from vat for disabled and older people notice 7017
• GOV.UK: Nearly 5000 churches across the united kingdom benefit from 42 million
• GOV.UK: The listed places of worship grant scheme lpwgs is closed

Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.