I think parent is referring to the classic "VAT advance": in most countries, after a business registers for VAT, after 12 to 24 months the State will calculate your "expected VAT turnout" for the following 1 or 2 years, and demand advance payment. This is because some 80% of businesses don't survive the first 24 months anyway, so the State tries to collect every penny before they go bust. Ironically, that advance payment (which is invariably too high) is often a nail in the coffin...
That sounds nuts, but it's nothing like how the system works in the UK. As a small business you complete your VAT return and pay your balance at the end of each quarter. A large business (turnover > £2M) will make payments on account more frequently so they don't get to keep hold of the VAT that has been paid to them as long.
I believe it often happens here in the UK as well, although it does not involve 100% of businesses like in some other countries. It's also a one-off, whereas elsewhere it can, in some circumstances, become a recurring request.
Can you point me to any examples? I ran a small business in the UK for several years and never heard of anything like it. The closest would be the Windfall Tax, but that targeted a small number of privatised utilities that were sold off on the cheap by a previous government. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windfall_Tax_%28United_Kingdom%...
Apologies, I got slightly confused with the "payments on account" scheme, which does not involve VAT in the UK. Elsewhere (I believe in Italy and France), the same approach is used for VAT as well.