Guides
The questions dealers ask their accountant, answered properly and with the notice number. Written for the UK trade.
General information, not tax or legal advice. Every article says where it is uncertain rather than guessing.
Compliance
Do I need to register as a High Value Dealer?
If you accept or make cash payments of £10,000 or more for goods, you must register with HMRC before you take the money. The threshold changed on 30 June 2026.
8 min · updated
How do I check whether a watch is stolen before I buy it?
Run the serial through The Watch Register before you pay. Buying in good faith gives you no title to stolen goods - you lose the watch and the money you paid.
8 min · updated
Risk and insurance
Selling channels
How do I get my stock listed on Chrono24 from my own system?
Chrono24 pulls an XML or JSON feed from a URL you host, once a day, from two fixed IPs. Setup takes 2-3 weeks. There is no order retrieval coming back.
7 min · updated
What does Chrono24 actually cost a dealer in 2026?
Published listing packages run €199 to €2,199 a month. Dealer commission is dynamic and Chrono24 does not publish it - here's what is verifiable and what isn't.
7 min · updated
VAT
Can I use global accounting for a mixed scrap lot?
Partly. Global accounting is barred for precious metals and stones, so a mixed lot splits into two regimes at intake - and no item may have cost over £500.
8 min · updated
Do I charge VAT on scrap gold?
Sell scrap gold at metal value to a VAT-registered business and you do not charge VAT - the buyer accounts for it. The rule, the wording, the exceptions.
7 min · updated
Selling investment gold: when do I have to tell HMRC?
Within 28 days of your first exempt supply over £5,000, or £10,000 to one customer in 12 months. Plus the register, the ID rules and a 17.5% penalty.
8 min · updated
What is a margin scheme stock book and what must it contain?
The item-by-item record HMRC requires under the VAT margin scheme: twelve mandatory columns, no separate VAT, six years, and what happens without one.
7 min · updated
What is the VAT margin scheme for second-hand watches?
Under the margin scheme you pay VAT on the difference between what you paid for a watch and what you sold it for - not the full price. Rules, records and traps.
8 min · updated