Business owners calling for 'wider conversation' around VAT threshold

Fly-Fit says reaching the £90K taxable turnover means they have to increase customer prices

Business owners in the service industry on the Isle of Man are calling for a ‘wider conversation’ around the VAT threshold.

Aerial sports company Fly-Fit says its rapid growth means it’s having to prepare for registration less than two years after it launched.

Manx businesses providing taxable goods or services with a total value of more than £90,000 over a 12-month period must register for VAT with the Isle of Man Treasury.

Co-owner Jules Hobbs manages the accounts for the company, she said: “Reaching this point less than two years after launching Fly-Fit shows just how much the Manx aerial community has grown and we’re incredibly grateful for the support our Island community has given us.

“But going through this process ourselves has also helped us understand why the VAT threshold has become such an important conversation for small businesses."

Fly-Fit, which opened in 2024 and operates on the first floor of Ellan Vannin Gymnastics, offers a wide range of aerial exercises for people aged from six to 78.

Jules added: “For a service business like ours, a significant proportion of our costs is people and their time, so there can be much less VAT available to reclaim than there might be in a business buying large volumes of VAT-rated goods."

She runs the business with Debs Boylan who said whilst it’s positive the business is doing well, reaching the £90,000 barrier means it’s actually having to put its prices up: