{"id":19086,"date":"2026-10-18T05:02:44","date_gmt":"2026-10-18T03:02:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/consultoriaehero.com\/?p=19086"},"modified":"2026-10-18T09:38:03","modified_gmt":"2026-10-18T07:38:03","slug":"vat-on-food-uk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/consultoriaehero.com\/en\/vat-on-food-uk\/","title":{"rendered":"VAT on food in the UK in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

The VAT on food in the United Kingdom in 2026<\/strong> works the opposite way to Spain: there are no reduced rates for food, but rather a zero rate<\/strong> that covers almost the whole basket \u2014 bread, meat, fish, milk, eggs, fruit, vegetables, pasta, oil and even cakes and biscuits without chocolate \u2014 and a closed list of exceptions that go at the standard 20%<\/strong>: ice cream, chocolate and sweets, bagged crisps, roasted or salted nuts, almost all drinks and alcohol. Everything served in bars and restaurants, and hot takeaway food, is also charged at 20%.<\/p>\n

The legal basis is section 30 of the Value Added Tax Act 1994<\/em> (VATA 1994) and Group 1 of Schedule 8, which has three lists: the \u00abgeneral items\u00bb, which are zero-rated and start with food for human consumption; the \u00abexcepted items\u00bb, which go back to 20%, and a few \u00abitems that override the exception\u00bb and restore the zero rate, such as milk, tea, coffee and cocoa. The 5% reduced rate does not apply to any food: the one for children’s menus was temporary, from 25 June to 1 September 2026, and has already ended. The standard rates and the rules for selling from Spain are in our guide to VAT in the United Kingdom in 2026<\/a>; here is the item-by-item breakdown.<\/p>\n

What VAT applies to each food in the United Kingdom<\/h2>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Food or service<\/th>\nVAT<\/th>\nSchedule 8 Group 1 of VATA 1994<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Bread, bread rolls, pita bread, cakes, sponge cakes and biscuits without a chocolate coating<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pasta, rice, flour, cereals and pulses<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Meat, sausages, fish and seafood<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Milk, milkshakes, butter, cheese and eggs<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1 (milk drinks: no. 6 of the items that override the exception)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Fruit, vegetables, herbs and spices, including canned or frozen<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Olive oil and other cooking oils, table salt, sugar and honey<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Tea, herbal teas, coffee, cocoa and drinking chocolate, for home preparation<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\nnos. 4 and 5 of the items that override the exception<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Chilled or frozen ready meals and cold takeaway sandwiches<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Raw nuts, and roasted or salted nuts sold in their shells<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1 (outside excepted item no. 5)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Nachos, corn chips and vegetable chips that are not potato chips<\/td>\n0%<\/strong><\/td>\ngeneral item no. 1 (outside excepted item no. 5)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ice cream, sorbets, ice lollies and frozen yogurt<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nexcepted item no. 1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Chocolate, chocolates, sweets, chewing gum, cereal bars and chocolate-covered biscuits<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nexcepted item no. 2<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bagged crisps, puffed cereal snacks, ready-made popcorn and peeled, roasted or salted nuts<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nexcepted items nos. 5 and 2 (sweet popcorn)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mineral water, soft drinks, juices, fruit smoothies and syrups<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nexcepted item no. 4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sports drinks, including powdered<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nexcepted item no. 4A<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Beer, wine, cider and spirits; also alcohol-free beer and wine<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nexcepted items nos. 3 and 4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Food supplements and vitamins<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\ndo not count as food (VAT Notice 701\/14, para. 4.2)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Packaged dog and cat food<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nexcepted item no. 6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Flowers and ornamental plants<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\noutside Group 1 (VAT Notice 701\/38)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Food and drink consumed on the premises: bars, restaurants, caf\u00e9s and catering<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nexception (a) and note 3.a<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hot takeaway food and drink<\/td>\n20%<\/strong><\/td>\nnote 3.b and notes 3B to 3D<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/figure>\n

Rates verified on 9 October 2026 against Schedule 8 Group 1 of VATA 1994 in its consolidated version (legislation.gov.uk<\/a>), the HMRC rates table<\/a>, the UK tax authority, and its notices VAT Notice 701\/14 on food<\/a> and VAT Notice 709\/1 on catering and takeaway food<\/a>, both updated on 8 June 2026.<\/em><\/p>\n

One source nuance: the law excepts \u00abdrinks\u00bb without defining them. HMRC’s definition is a liquid taken to hydrate, quench thirst, refresh or for pleasure. That is why smoothies that replace a meal in a slimming diet do not count as drinks and remain zero-rated.<\/p>\n

Three questions to classify a food in the United Kingdom:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Is it consumed on the premises or delivered hot? It goes at 20%, whatever the food is.<\/li>\n
  2. If not, is it among the excepted items: ice cream, sweets and chocolate, drinks, alcohol, bagged crisps, roasted nuts or pet food? It goes at 20%, unless it is milk, tea, coffee or cocoa.<\/li>\n
  3. If not, and it is food for human consumption, it goes at 0%.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Bars and restaurants: 20%, and hot takeaway food too<\/h2>\n

    In the United Kingdom, hospitality does not have a reduced rate. Everything consumed on the premises goes at 20%<\/strong>, including items that would be zero-rated in a shop, such as a cold sandwich or a glass of milk. The \u00abpremises\u00bb include the terrace and any area set aside for customers to eat, even if shared by several businesses, such as the tables in a shopping centre. Catering for events and delivery of cooked food ready to eat also go at 20%.<\/p>\n

    For takeaway food, temperature is what matters. Cold takeaway is 0%<\/strong>, except for products that are always 20%, such as a bag of crisps or a soft drink. Hot takeaway is 20%<\/strong>, and food is hot if it is delivered above room temperature and meets one of these five conditions: it was heated to be eaten hot, heated to order, kept hot after cooking, delivered in packaging that retains heat, or advertised as hot.<\/p>\n

    That is where counter-service cases come from. A freshly baked loaf that is only cooling down is still zero-rated; a toasted sandwich made to order or a takeaway coffee is 20%. And if the shop provides a microwave for customers, anything sold to be heated there counts as hot food.<\/p>\n

    The service charge on the bill is charged at 20%; a tip left voluntarily by the customer is not subject to VAT. Vending machines follow the product, and everything is 20% if they are in a dining area or restaurant zone. In Spain, hospitality is 10%, drinks included.<\/p>\n

    The cases that cause the most doubt<\/h2>\n

    Biscuits and cakes: the chocolate on the outside decides<\/h3>\n

    Cakes are zero-rated and biscuits too, except those fully or partly covered in chocolate, which go at 20%<\/strong>. Those with chocolate chips in the dough remain zero-rated, as do those filled with chocolate between two biscuits. Jaffa cakes are zero-rated because they are cakes, not biscuits. And a gingerbread man decorated with chocolate goes at 20%, unless the chocolate is just a couple of dots for the eyes. Cereal bars go at 20% as confectionery; flapjacks<\/em>, the baked oat bars that HMRC treats as cakes, are zero-rated.<\/p>\n

    Bagged crisps yes, nachos no<\/h3>\n

    The 20% rate applies to bagged crisps and snacks made from potato or potato starch, puffed cereal snacks and ready-made popcorn. Nachos, corn chips and beetroot or carrot chips go at 0%, as do roasted chickpeas and popcorn kernels for home popping. Roasted or salted nuts go at 20% if sold shelled and at 0% if they keep their shell, like pistachios.<\/p>\n

    Drinks: almost all at 20%, including water<\/h3>\n

    Mineral water, juices, soft drinks and fruit smoothies go at 20%. Milk and milkshakes, tea, herbal teas, coffee and cocoa are exempt, going at 0% when sold as a product, not served or hot. Soy or rice drinks go at 0% only if they contain no flavourings or sugar. Alcohol-free beer and wine go at 20%. In Spain, water is 10%, and soft drinks and juices with sugar or sweeteners are 21%.<\/p>\n

    Gift baskets and hampers<\/h3>\n

    A basket with zero-rated and 20% products is a mixed supply: the price has to be split between the two rates. HMRC allows three shortcuts:<\/p>\n