The legal aspects of selling online vouchers at your salon

The legal aspects of selling online vouchers at your salon

Selling online vouchers is a great way to ensure financial liquidity during the lockdown, and a flood of bookings once you reopen. Best of all, you don’t have to come face-to-face with your clients in order to sell them. However, there may be a few uncertainties when it comes to this, especially legal aspects.

For hair and beauty professionals, legal paperwork is a thorn in the side during everyday life - lockdown or not. However, selling vouchers is a piece of cake that service providers in this industry just love. Now it is your time to take advantage of this great marketing tool - here’s what you need to know when selling vouchers!

Can you legally sell vouchers?

Although hair and beauty businesses are shut down for the time being, they can still continue to make a profit. On 23rd March 2020, businesses deemed non-essential were forced to close in order to prevent further spread of the coronavirus. However, making a profit from online sales gets around this. There is nothing against selling online vouchers which can be redeemed after the lockdown is lifted. For business owners, implementing this option is a natural course of action.

Selling vouchers online will not have an effect on your eligibility in receiving grants provided by the government, so you have nothing to worry about. Certain grants, such as the Small Business Grant Scheme are automatically distributed to qualified recipients - so there’s no need to fill out any paperwork. For additional links to government-issued grants, see our article here. When you sell vouchers for a specific treatment, the VAT is paid at the point of issue. As for vouchers with a predetermined value, VAT must be paid once the voucher is redeemed for goods or services.

When do I issue a receipt?

Before we answer this question, we need to first look at the types of vouchers. Single-purpose vouchers are those that already include VAT at the time of purchase. Since it’s intended for a specific product or treatment, we know exactly how much the tax will be, and a receipt can be issued upon selling it. When it comes to multi-purpose vouchers, VAT is paid once the voucher is utilised. Since this voucher can be redeemed for any number of products or treatments, it's difficult to assess how much tax must be paid - this amount will only be known upon the realisation of the voucher.

The feature of online gift cards available in Booksy allows you to sell multi-purpose vouchers, which can be redeemed for any number of treatments or products available in your business. You’ll be able to issue a receipt once the voucher has been utilised when you reopen.

Bookings galore once you reopen

The solution available in Booksy not only ensures you financial stability during the lockdown, but also guarantees a flood of bookings once you reopen and in the following months. The system allows you to set gift cards' expiration time or make them never expire, making sure your clients do not necessarily have to book your earliest available slots. You can rest easy knowing that your clients will be making their way to your business once you reopen, keeping you busy for months to come!

We know well that the current situation in our industry is dire, however, with the right tools and support, you can continue to make a profit and retain your customers. We’re stronger together!