VAT
In my opinion would BALPA get involved I don’t think so.
My reasons would be which pilots are actually affected by this.
Pilot A who is employed by an airline. Most airlines pay for the Class 1 so the pilot is not out of pocket. The airline would be VAT registered so they can reclaim the VAT.
Pilot B who is a freelance pilot and VAT registered. This pilot will just claim the VAT back on their VAT Return.
That just leaves the following pilots : -
- Student Pilot
- Unemployed Pilot
- Freelance Pilot who is not VAT registered.
The Freelance Pilot can become VAT Registered so he does not pay VAT on his medical.
So with VAT getting charged on medicals the pilots that suffer are the Student Pilot and the unemployed pilot.
Would BALPA get involved for these types of pilots I don’t think so, which sucks really because they are the ones who are trying to save the pennies.