‘Any business giving a service should pay Vat of just 5% to 7%’: Baldy barber fights Vat rate

The owner of Cork’s oldest barbershop has joined in the hospitality industry’s calls for the Vat rate to be reduced from 13.5% back down to the previous rate of 9%.

Mick Moriarty, also known as the Baldy Barber, has been a long time campaigner for a reduced Vat rate for businesses providing a service like his.

The 13.5% Vat rate applies to catering, restaurants, hotels, attractions including the cinema, theatre, gallery, amusement parks and open farms, as well as hairdressing services.

Mr Moriarty told The Echo: “Hairdressers and barbers are all attached to hospitality, I don’t know why they’re putting the two together.”

When the VAT rate rose in September of last year by 4.5%, his business shared that they would not be increasing their prices, but keeping them at €16 for a haircut. Mr Moriarty said: “If the hospitality VAT rate goes down to 9%, I hope that hairdressing will go down too. I’d be known as the VAT man in the industry, I’ve been fighting for years to have the threshold increased.”

VAT registration is obligatory when your turnover exceeds, or is likely to exceed, the VAT threshold, which is €37,500 for hairdressing.

“The amount is too low altogether, and everyone renting a premises, no matter what, has to pay VAT,” Mr Moriarty said.

“I’ve been saying this for years, and I maintain that any business giving a service should pay VAT of just 5% to 7%, and the threshold should be abolished.”

The rate increased from 9% to 13.5% the same time as it did for restaurants, and is one of many expenses that has risen recently for business owners, Mr Moriarty explained: “Our electricity was very high up to a few weeks ago, I got bills for €600, which is very expensive for a barbers.”

The Baldy Barber made headlines in January when he shared the news that he would be forced to close after nearly 87 years in business, due to high costs of operating.

He told The Echo at the time: “We charge €16 per haircut, including €1.90 VAT.

“I always said that I would never overcharge a customer, which was part of my reason for closing.”

However, in April of this year, he shared: “Since there hasn’t been interest in buying our business, we’re taking down the ‘For Sale’ sign,” and added that they will continue to be open six days a week.