You have to buy a brand new house to reclaim the vat and you will get a refund of c.13.5% of the purchase price but:
1. you have to charge vat to the tennants every month and make repayments back to the Government until they get their 13.5% VAT back if you sell the house in the meantime they will look for a refund of the difference between what you got and what you paid back
2. You have to keep buying new houses because if you buy a second hand one you can't claim back the vat and you will have to charge vat to your tennants
This idea is a good way to get a interest free loan from the Government although it has to be paid back within the life of your ownership of the property
My reading of this one is that you do have to pay the VAT back to the revenue, but it doesn't have to be charged to the tenant. You would simply pay 13/5% on top of the rental income to the revenue. There is nothing to force you to charge this to the tenant as this would obviously make the property far more difficult to rent. You could therefore simply use the 13.5% VAT as an interest free loan from the government.
It does however make you liable for VAT on all properties and introduces all the paperwork involved in VAT plus the probability of a VAT audit. Much hassle.
You can de-register when the VAT has been repaid.
Is there any way of claiming vat back on the construction costs of a new house .I am a non resident for tax purposes as I live and work in Switzerland. Does it help any if I use the new house as a holiday home or rent it out etc .What are my options if any ?