Northern Ireland: watch the VAT quirks
Income tax and National Insurance work the same as in the rest of the UK, but Northern Ireland has its own wrinkles — goods trade runs under the Windsor Framework with EU-facing VAT rules, and support comes through Invest NI rather than the English growth hubs. It's specialist territory we handle as standard.
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Belfast has real strength in cybersecurity, fintech and creative industries, and creators and online business owners here don't need a generalist down the road — they need specialists who answer quickly and price fairly. Because we work online, you get exactly that, plus a nudge towards the right local support: Invest NI and the Go Succeed service is a good first stop for grants and advice, and our Swoop-powered funding portal searches 1,000+ lenders and grant schemes on top.
What do Northern Ireland creators need to know about VAT on goods?
For services — sponsorship, ad revenue, subscriptions, brand work — Northern Ireland follows UK VAT rules exactly as Great Britain does, so nothing changes. Goods are the exception. Under the Windsor Framework, Northern Ireland continues to follow EU VAT rules for goods, so selling merch to customers in the Republic, elsewhere in the EU or in Great Britain is treated differently from the way a Manchester seller would treat the same order. Income tax, National Insurance and corporation tax are unchanged. Business support runs through Invest NI and Go Succeed rather than the English growth hub network.
