Published 7 November 2026
Quick answer: Installers can charge 0% VAT on the work of providing, extending or adapting a bathroom, shower room or wet room when the work is needed to suit the condition of a disabled person or someone with a long-term illness, in their own home. You sign a written declaration; there is no means test. People aged 60 or over who are not disabled can get a 5% rate on a short list of items, such as built-in shower seats, when the installer supplies and fits them.
Last checked: 7 November 2026. What we checked: HMRC VAT Notice 701/7, HMRC’s VAT relief for disabled people manual (VRDP11550), the GOV.UK VAT rates list, GOV.UK’s VAT relief page for disabled people and HMRC’s declaration template page.
Who this is for: anyone planning a walk-in shower, wet room, walk-in bath or accessible toilet who wants to know whether VAT should be on the invoice.
This is general information, not tax advice. The installer decides how to charge VAT and is responsible to HMRC for getting it right.
Two different reliefs, often confused
HMRC runs two separate schemes, and they work very differently for bathrooms.
| Zero rate (0%) | Reduced rate (5%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who | A disabled person or someone with a chronic illness (or a charity) | Anyone aged 60 or over at the time of supply and installation |
| Means-tested? | No | No |
| What it covers in a bathroom | The building work of providing, extending or adapting a bathroom, washroom or lavatory, if needed because of the person’s condition | Only these items, supplied and installed: grab rails, ramps, stair lifts, bath lifts, built-in shower seats (or showers containing them), and walk-in baths with sealable doors |
| General building work | Covered when it is part of the qualifying adaptation | Not covered: HMRC excludes general adaptations in the home of an over-60 |
| Paperwork | Signed eligibility declaration | Signed declaration that you are 60 or over |
The 5% figure comes from GOV.UK’s list of VAT rates, which shows mobility aids for older people at 5% and building work on a bathroom or lavatory for a disabled person in their own home at 0%.
If you are both over 60 and disabled, the zero rate is the one to ask about, because it covers far more of the job. For everything VAT relief covers beyond bathrooms, see our guide to VAT exemption on mobility equipment.
Who counts as eligible for the zero rate
Notice 701/7 sets the test. You qualify if you have a physical or mental impairment with a long-term, substantial effect on everyday activities, or a condition doctors treat as a chronic sickness (diabetes is HMRC’s example). You do not need to be registered disabled, and your income does not matter.
You do not qualify for the zero rate if you are older but not disabled, or if the condition is temporary, such as a broken leg. HMRC will not rule on whether a particular person is disabled; the customer declares it and the installer can ask for more evidence.
A parent, spouse or guardian can arrange the work on the disabled person’s behalf. Anyone can pay, including a relative.
The work has to be in the disabled person’s private residence. HMRC’s definition excludes communal homes such as nursing homes, but says the property does not have to be the person’s only or permanent home.
What bathroom work can be zero-rated
HMRC treats a shower room or wet room as a bathroom for this purpose. The relief covers the installer’s services of providing, extending or adapting:
- a bathroom (including a shower room or wet room)
- a washroom (a room with a toilet and/or basin but no bath or shower)
- a lavatory (a toilet, possibly with a basin)
The condition is that the work is necessary to suit the disabled person’s condition. Building materials and goods the installer supplies as part of that qualifying work can also be zero-rated.
Related work is included too. Notice 701/7 lists preparation and making good, such as ground levelling, utilities and drainage, fitting sanitary ware, and restoring the decoration immediately around the work, including retiling.
Lost space
If adapting a bathroom takes space from another room (say a bedroom shrinks so the bathroom can grow), restoring that lost space can also be zero-rated, but only the exact area or volume lost. Anything bigger is charged at the standard rate, and the installer has to split the bill. Converting a different room to replace the one you lost is standard-rated.
Walk-in showers and wet rooms in practice
HMRC does not give a worked example of a bath-to-shower conversion. The test is whether the work adapts the room to suit the person’s condition. HMRC’s internal manual excludes “the straightforward substitution of old sanitary ware for new”, so a like-for-like refit of a bathroom you can already use is unlikely to qualify, even if the new suite looks more accessible. A conversion that removes a barrier the person cannot manage, such as a bath they can no longer step into, is the kind of work the relief describes. Your installer makes the call and carries the risk.
HMRC’s published guidance gives no example for a second bathroom, or for a full refit where only part of the work is an adaptation. If your job includes either, ask the installer in writing how it is treating those parts.
What is not covered
| Usually standard-rated (20%) | Why |
|---|---|
| A straightforward swap of old sanitary ware for new | Excluded in HMRC’s manual (VRDP11550) |
| Kitchens, bedrooms, living rooms, utility rooms, carers’ rooms | Listed as not covered in Notice 701/7, even if they suit the person’s needs |
| Central heating boilers, replacement windows or doors | Listed as not covered |
| Retiling or repairs later, in a bathroom that was zero-rated | Repairs and maintenance are standard-rated unless the item is eligible goods in its own right |
| Architect, surveyor or consultant fees | Standard-rated unless part of a single design-and-build contract |
| Materials you buy yourself for DIY, or for a friend or relative to fit free | Not eligible under Notice 701/7 |
| A care home or nursing home bathroom used by residents | Supplies to residents of communal homes are excluded |
| Anything for an over-60 who is not disabled, other than the six listed items | General adaptations are excluded from the 5% rate |
New homes are handled separately. Notice 701/7 points to HMRC’s construction guidance (Notice 708) for building new dwellings.
The 5% rate for people aged 60 or over
The reduced rate applies only when the business both supplies and installs one of the listed items in your own home, or a home you share with friends or relatives. In a bathroom that means grab rails, a bath lift, a built-in shower seat or a shower that contains one, and a walk-in bath with a sealable door.
You must be 60 or over on the date of supply and installation. Someone else can order and pay. Repairs after installation, and any wider building work (removing the bath, moving the drainage, retiling the room), stay at the standard rate.
How the declaration works
Notice 701/7 places the responsibility on the installer, not on HMRC. HMRC does not issue exemption certificates. Instead:
- The installer gives you a written eligibility declaration. HMRC publishes a template on GOV.UK, and many installers use their own version.
- It must be separate from, or clearly distinguishable from, the order form or invoice. Signing an order is not a declaration.
- If the disabled person cannot sign, a parent, guardian, doctor or another responsible person may sign.
- Electronic declarations are accepted if the installer can show where they came from.
- The installer keeps the declaration with its VAT records.
The declaration confirms your eligibility. It does not make the work eligible. If the job does not qualify, signing a form does not change that. Penalties apply for knowingly accepting a false declaration and for VAT fraud.
If a Disabled Facilities Grant is paying
When the council pays the contractor under a Disabled Facilities Grant, Notice 701/7 says the invoice should state that the work was done for the named disabled person. Our page on bathroom adaptation grants covers the other funding routes.
What installers should do on the invoice
Based on Notice 701/7, a well-run installer should:
- get a signed declaration before the work, kept separately from the order
- show which parts of the job are zero-rated and which are standard-rated, and split them where an extension or lost-space job goes beyond the qualifying area
- for the 5% rate, confirm the item is on HMRC’s list and that it is supplying and installing it
- name the disabled person on the invoice where a council grant pays
- correct its records and refund you if it charged VAT in error. HMRC cannot refund customers directly.
Our check of how 20 UK retailers handle VAT relief shows how differently sellers apply these rules in practice.
Questions to ask an installer about VAT
These sit alongside the wider checks in our guide to choosing a walk-in shower or wet room installer.
- Is your quote shown with or without VAT, and which lines are zero-rated?
- Which part of HMRC’s Notice 701/7 are you relying on for this job?
- Will you send me the eligibility declaration separately from the contract?
- Are any parts of the job standard-rated, such as wider decoration or a boiler, and how much are they?
- If you are using the 5% rate, are you supplying and fitting the item yourselves?
- If HMRC later decides VAT was due, who pays it under our contract?
- If you charge VAT in error, will you refund it?
An installer who cannot answer these clearly may not have dealt with VAT relief before. Before you sign, look the company up in our directory of UK mobility companies and read what other customers say, then put two or three quotes side by side with our quote comparison tool. If you are still choosing between layouts, our walk-in bath, walk-in shower and wet room comparison may help.
Grants differ by nation
Notice 701/7 is HMRC’s guidance on these reliefs for VAT-registered businesses. The grants that pay for adaptations do differ by nation: GOV.UK says Disabled Facilities Grants are not available in Scotland, for example.
What to do next
- Decide which relief fits: zero rate if the person is disabled or chronically ill, 5% if they are 60+ and not disabled.
- Ask each installer to quote the VAT treatment line by line.
- Sign the eligibility declaration as a separate document and keep a copy.
- If a grant is involved, wait for council approval before any work starts and check the invoice names the disabled person.
- Check the company’s history and reviews in our directory before paying a deposit.
- If you were charged VAT you think should not apply, ask the installer to correct it in writing.
Frequently asked questions
Is a walk-in shower VAT-free for a disabled person?
It can be. The installer can zero-rate the work of adapting a bathroom into a walk-in shower or wet room if it is needed because of the person’s long-term condition and the home is their private residence. A simple replacement of an existing suite is unlikely to qualify. You sign a separate eligibility declaration, and the installer decides whether the job meets HMRC’s conditions.
Can I get VAT relief just because I am over 60?
Only on a short list of items, and only at 5%, not 0%. The list covers grab rails, ramps, stair lifts, bath lifts, built-in shower seats or showers containing them, and walk-in baths with sealable doors. The business must supply and install the item in your home. Wider work, such as removing a bath or retiling, is charged at the standard rate.
Do I need a letter from my GP?
HMRC does not require one. You declare your eligibility in writing, and HMRC does not issue exemption certificates. The installer may ask for more evidence if your declaration seems inaccurate, and it must not zero-rate the job if it believes the declaration is untrue. A GP letter can help if an installer asks, but the declaration is the document HMRC expects.
Is retiling covered?
Retiling the area around a qualifying adaptation is listed in Notice 701/7 as restoration work that can be zero-rated. Retiling later, as a repair or refresh in a bathroom that was previously adapted, is standard-rated. Tiling other rooms, or redecorating beyond the immediate area of the work, is not part of the relief.
Can a relative sign the declaration?
Yes, if the disabled person cannot sign. HMRC allows a parent, guardian, doctor or another responsible person to sign on their behalf. A relative or friend can also arrange and pay for the work. For the over-60 reduced rate, a relative, partner or other responsible person can sign if the customer is physically unable to.
What if I was charged VAT and think I should not have been?
Go back to the installer in writing. HMRC says a business that charged VAT in error should correct its records and refund the customer, and HMRC cannot refund you directly. If the installer refuses, our guide on how to complain about a mobility company sets out the next steps.
Sources
- Reliefs from VAT for disabled and older people (VAT Notice 701/7) – HM Revenue & Customs, GOV.UK, accessed 7 November 2026
- VRDP11550 – Building alterations [items 8 to 13]: bathrooms, washrooms and lavatories – HM Revenue & Customs internal manual, GOV.UK, accessed 7 November 2026
- VAT rates on different goods and services – HM Revenue & Customs, GOV.UK, accessed 7 November 2026
- Financial help if you’re disabled: VAT relief for disabled people – GOV.UK, accessed 7 November 2026
- Declaration of eligibility for VAT relief (disabled person) – HM Revenue & Customs, GOV.UK, accessed 7 November 2026
- Disabled Facilities Grants: What you’ll get – GOV.UK, accessed 7 November 2026
Published 7 November 2026