9 December 2025 · GB notes
GB VAT and subscription metrics
If one report is gross of VAT and another is net, your NRR is a conversation about tax, not about customers.
Utilityanchorbase asks every GB student to declare a convention in week one: metrics are net of VAT unless a footnote says otherwise. Stripe exports often show amounts customers paid. Xero may show net. Mixing them produces a fake expansion when you “clean up” the stack.
Mixed-rate catalogues — standard-rated software plus zero-rated add-ons, or the reverse in rarer cases — break a naive ARPU. Split SKUs before you average.
Reverse charge on B2B sales to EU buyers after Brexit-era rules still confuses packs we see. The cash collected and the VAT line are not a churn event. Label them.
This journal note is teaching commentary, not tax advice. Your accountant remains the authority. Our only claim is that Subscription Revenue Analytics cannot ignore the VAT grain if the company bills from the United Kingdom.
In public-sector electives we also flag that some awards are quoted inclusive of VAT and some exclusive. Copying the quote into MRR without checking the contract is how a “logo win” becomes an audit finding.