UK VAT Change 2026
Effective period: 25 June 2026 to 1 September 2026 (inclusive)
Overview:
ℹ️ This change applies to both new and existing UK-based K-Series merchants.
The UK government (HMRC) is introducing a temporary reduced VAT rate of 5% (down from the standard 20%) for specific children’s supplies and family attractions during the summer school holiday period:
- Children’s meals served on-premises at restaurants, cafés and similar catering establishments where the meal is explicitly marketed and priced as a children’s meal (e.g. on a dedicated children’s menu).
- Children’s admission tickets to cinemas, theatres, concerts, shows and exhibitions.
- All admission tickets to qualifying family attractions (theme parks, zoos, soft play, museums, aquariums, adventure parks, etc.), regardless of the customer’s age.
⚠️Takeaway transactions are not impacted by this reduction and retain their standard rates.
Today and as of September 1st
Default rates
From June 25th to September 1st
Temporary rates
Required actions:
Merchants must perform the following manual setup steps:
- Set up two new Accounting Groups (AG) for kids’ meals, one for cold meals and one for hot meals (for example: “Kids meals – hot” / “Kids meals – cold”), for qualifying children’s items.
- Move all eligible children’s menu items into the respective new Accounting Groups.
- Link these new Accounting Groups to the new system-generated tax profiles (Children Meals Summer ’26tax profile; see details below).
- Note: Customers using Hotsoft, Oracle Opera, or Protel must verify that the references on the AG configuration page are mapped correctly.
- Reload the device configuration on the POS.
ℹ️ Good to know:
- Merchants can make these changes today: the 5% rate will only activate from 25 June automatically.
- They do not need to undo anything after 31 August: rates revert automatically
Profile 1: Children Meals Summer 26 – Hot
- VAT 5%: Applied to Eat-in order profile.
Validity: June 25th 2026 to September 1st 2026. - VAT 20%: Fallback rate for all other order profiles and dates outside the effective window.
Profile 2: Children Meals Summer 26 – Cold
- VAT 5%: Applied to Eat-in order profile.
Validity: June 25th 2026 to September 1st 2026. - VAT 0%: Fallback rate for all other order profiles and dates outside the effective window.
What is the temporary VAT change for Summer 2026?
The UK government is introducing a temporary reduced VAT rate of 5% for specific items during the summer school holidays. This includes children’s meals served on-premises, children’s admission tickets to cinemas/shows, and all admission tickets to qualifying family attractions.
What are the exact dates for this temporary VAT rate?
The 5% rate is effective from 25 June 2026 to 1 September 2026 (inclusive).
Are takeaway kids’ meals included in the 5% reduction?
No. The reduced rate only applies to children’s meals served on-premises (Eat-in). Takeaway meals are not impacted and will remain at the standard 20% VAT rate.
Does this apply to all items on my menu?
No. For restaurants, this only applies to meals that are explicitly marketed and priced as children’s meals (e.g., items on a dedicated children’s menu) and consumed on-premises.
Will Lightspeed automatically apply this to my kids’ menu items?
Lightspeed will automatically add a new tax profile named ‘Children Meals Summer ‘26’ to your account. However, you must manually create a new accounting group with all your kids’ items and link that accounting group to this new tax profile.
Can I already create the new accounting group and link it to the new tax profile before the start?
Yes. Before the deadline it will stay at 20% and it will automatically go to 5% when the date is reached. Also after September 1st, you can leave these items and accounting group; it will automatically go to 20%.
