How to Sell Gift Vouchers Online Before Christmas

You can sell gift vouchers online through the booking system you already use, a simple payment link, or an online shop, with a clear page on your website pointing to it. The money is the easy part. What takes thought is what the voucher says, what happens if someone wants their money back, and remembering that every voucher you sell is work you still owe.

This suits anyone selling something people give as a present: salons, groomers, clinics, cafes, driving instructors, makers running workshops. It suits a trade booked weeks ahead less well, because a voucher only adds to a diary that's already full.

How do you sell gift vouchers on your website?

Pick the route that matches how you already take money, then put a clear page or button on your website pointing to it. There are three common routes:

If you take bookings online already, check that system first. A voucher that lives in the same place as your diary is easier to honour than one you track on a spreadsheet. If you don't take bookings online yet, our guide to avoiding double bookings covers what a booking system does and when it's worth having.

What should a gift voucher say?

A gift voucher should say what it's worth, how to use it and when it runs out, in words the person receiving it can read without asking the person who gave it. Put each of these on the voucher and on the page where people buy it:

• The value or the service. Either a sum, such as £50, or a named service, such as one full groom. A sum is more flexible. A named service is clearer if your prices go up.
• A unique code. So you can check it hasn't been used and nobody can print a second copy.
• The expiry date, if there is one. Written as a date, not "12 months from purchase", because the person holding it doesn't know when it was bought.
• How to book or redeem it. Your phone number, your booking link, or "bring this with you".
• The short terms. Whether a balance carries over, whether it can be swapped for cash, and what happens if it's lost.

Your business name, contact details and address belong on the page as well. Gov.uk's guidance on online and distance selling for businesses lists those, along with the price including all taxes and how the customer can pay, as things you must give people before they order. If you want those terms written down properly, our guide on whether you need terms and conditions on your website covers where they go.

Do you have to refund a gift voucher bought online?

Possibly, and the simplest safe approach is to refund any unused voucher if the buyer asks within 14 days. The same gov.uk guidance says that when you sell goods online you must tell customers they can cancel up to 14 days after their order is delivered. It doesn't spell out how that applies to a voucher. Rather than guess, we'd offer the 14 days, say so in your terms, and move on.

If you want a firmer answer for your own business, ask an adviser before you write the terms. What you shouldn't do is write "no refunds under any circumstances" on a voucher page because another business does.

How does VAT work on a gift voucher?

If you're not VAT registered, you can skip this section. If you are, the timing of the VAT depends on which kind of voucher HMRC says you've sold. HMRC's information sheet on face value vouchers splits them in two for vouchers issued from 1 January 2019:

• A single-purpose voucher is one where the place of supply and a single VAT liability for what it buys are known when you sell it. VAT is due when you issue it.
• A multi-purpose voucher is any other voucher. VAT isn't due when it's sold, only when it's spent.

Which one yours is depends on what it can be spent on, so ask your accountant before you sell the first one rather than after the hundredth. HMRC's sheet dates from 2018, so check for anything newer on gov.uk.

A worked example: a salon's Christmas vouchers

Assume a small salon wants to sell vouchers from mid-November, already uses an online booking system with a voucher option, and wants them used in January and February, when the diary is usually quieter. They switch the option on, add a "Gift vouchers" button to the homepage and the services page, and put this on the voucher page:

Change the parts in brackets and cut what doesn't fit. It's plain on purpose. Every condition is there before anyone pays, so nobody gets a surprise in February.

What's the catch with selling gift vouchers?

The catch is that the money arrives before the work does. A voucher sold in December is a treatment you still owe in February, so don't treat December's voucher sales as December's income. Keep a running list of codes, values and expiry dates, and don't sell more than your quieter months can comfortably absorb.

If you're thinking of selling vouchers at a discount around Black Friday, our guide on whether a Black Friday offer is worth it sets out when that helps and the UK rules on how a saving can be described.

What should you do next?

Check whether your booking system or card provider already offers vouchers, decide your expiry and refund terms, and get the page up before people start their Christmas lists. For the wider picture on what to pay for and what to do yourself, start with the website costs and choices guides. And if you'd like a site with a proper voucher page built in, ByRender builds sites from £495 with care from £69 a month, and you see a preview before you pay anything.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sell gift vouchers without a website?

Yes. A payment link sent in a message works, and so does a voucher sold over the counter. A page of your own just gives people somewhere to find the offer, the price and the terms in one place, and something to share when they're asked what you'd like for Christmas.

Should my vouchers have an expiry date?

That's your decision, and it's a trade-off. A date keeps the list of money you owe from growing forever. A long one is kinder to the person who received it. Whatever you choose, say it on the page before anyone pays and print it on the voucher, so nobody finds out at the till.

What if someone wants to spend only part of a voucher?

Decide in advance and say so in the terms. Some businesses carry the balance forward on the same code, others ask for it to be spent in one visit. Either works if the customer knew before they bought it.