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Businesses that flout their workplace pension duties face being subjected to random spot-checks by the Pensions Regulator. Employers that provide details to HMRC are having that data cross-referenced by the watchdog in an attempt to identify non-compliance with auto-enrolment. The checks are designed to identify businesses that are failing to enrol eligible staff into a…
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Most gifters are ‘unclear on inheritance tax rules’
Most people making gifts of money or assets are unaware of inheritance tax rules that might apply to them. HMRC polled 2,090 people and found that only 25% of those who recently made a gift had a working knowledge of the rules. Less than half (45%) were aware of the rules or exemptions surrounding inheritance…
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HMRC error affects payments on account bills for some taxpayers
Some taxpayers may not receive a bill for payments on account this month, and face paying a higher bill in January 2020. The Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) is advising individuals affected by an error with HMRC’s systems to set aside money to pay the bill in full. Most people who complete self-assessment pay their…
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Identifying inefficiencies in a business
Avoiding waste, maximising profit. Accountants, as a breed, are fans of efficiency. We tend to appreciate optimised systems and abhor waste, whether it’s time, effort or resources being frittered away. The concept of efficiency as we know it today is a product of the industrial revolution. That’s when engineers and manufacturers became obsessed with squeezing…
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The tapered annual pension allowance
How it affects high net-worth individuals. The tapered annual pension allowance for high net-worth individuals was in the headlines again recently. Concerns were raised that its impact on doctors within the NHS pension scheme is prompting high-earning NHS staff to leave their posts or reduce their hours. In December 2018, it was reported that the…
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The scourge of late payments
Outstanding invoices compromise your business’s cashflow. When you supply goods and services, you expect to be paid, and promptly, but Britain has a deeply embedded culture of late payments. Indeed, for some businesses, delaying payment is an essential part of the business model. Outstanding payments are problematic for various reasons. First, there’s the basic problem…
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Tax implications of working from home
Working from home offers all kinds of benefits, from the opportunity to create the perfect environment in which you can be most productive, to the improvements to work-life balance that come with ditching the commute. There are advantages for businesses, too, assuming they trust their employees to work without direct supervision. For example, if only…
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CBI: ‘Unsustainable’ business rates system in need of reform
The business rates system has become “uneconomical” and “unsustainable”, and should be reviewed, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has said. Business rates are a tax on most properties used for business purposes, and are calculated based on an estimate of the property’s open market rental value. The CBI argues that long gaps between rate…
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Govt. urged to introduce stamp duty tax break for downsizing
The Government is facing calls to announce a stamp duty holiday for homeowners who seek to downsize. Saga polled 2,000 people over the age of 50 and found that 73% would support a tax break to help them move into a smaller property. Almost three-quarters (70%) said their motivation for downsizing was because their current…
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Retirees taxed £4bn more than previously thought
Pensioners are paying around £4 billion more in income tax than previously estimated, the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) has claimed. The latest figures published by HMRC show that pensioners paid £17.9bn in income tax on their pensions in 2016/17, which increased to £18.4bn in 2017/18. A footnote in the paper said the method for…
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Small business owners hit out at ‘unfair’ UK tax system
Most small business owners in the UK do not think the tax system treats their business fairly, according to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). In a survey of 1,000 firms, 58% of SME owners said they think the UK tax system is unfair, with different tax rules applying to different types of business. More…
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Risk assessment and contingency planning
How to minimise disruption in your business. It has been a challenging and eventful three years for UK businesses with a series of high-profile incidents highlighting how situations can change suddenly and often without warning. From the continued pressure of uncertainty relating to Brexit, terrorism, fire, extreme weather and cyber-attacks, how would your business cope…
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Accounting for charities
An overview of accountancy issues in the third sector. If you’re in charge of running a charity, you will know how it differs from operating a business and how its motives and goals vary. Non-profit organisations are treated very differently under the law, and managing a charity’s accounts can offer some unique challenges as a…
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Making Tax Digital
More than a million VAT-registered businesses have now been mandated into the Government’s Making Tax Digital (MTD) programme, which came into force on 1 April 2019. Under the scheme, businesses that are registered for VAT with a turnover of more than £85,000 are required to keep digital records and submit their VAT returns using MTD-compatible…
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Landlords feeling the pinch as tax measures begin to bite
Most buy-to-let landlords saw their tax bills increase in 2017/18, suggesting the effects of changes to mortgage interest relief were beginning to be felt one year after they were introduced. In a survey by Paragon, 58% of landlords said their tax bill for 2017/18 was higher than a year before, with an average annual increase…
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Delay to increase in probate fees
Changes to probate fees – due to take effect last month – have been delayed as Parliament wrangles to resolve the Brexit stalemate. Bereaved families currently pay a flat fee of up to £215 to obtain the grant of probate needed in England and Wales to administer estates worth more than £5,000. That system was…
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MPs call for break-up of Big Four’s accountancy services
The UK’s largest accountancy firms should be split into audit and non-audit businesses, according to recommendations from a Government committee. The Big Four accountancy giants conduct 97% of large companies’ audits, while also supplying those companies with other accountancy services. The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee published a report highlighting a potential conflict…
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Personal tax planning – What you need to know for 2019/20.
With the Brexit process rumbling on, Making Tax Digital finally coming into force, and Easter around the corner, now is the time to put your financial plans in place for 2019/20.
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Making Tax Digital – it’s here………
MTD zero-hour is here. The moment has come: if your business has a taxable turnover above the VAT-registration threshold, which is currently £85,000, you’re now obliged to keep records in digital form and to file your VAT returns using HMRC-approved software. You probably got a bit fed up of being reminded about the deadline for…
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Apprenticeship ‘starts’ fall by a quarter
The number of people starting apprenticeships has fallen by 26% since the Government’s reforms to the apprenticeship system, according to a report from the National Audit Office (NAO). In April 2017, the Department for Education (DfE) introduced several changes to the apprenticeships scheme, including a levy on large employers and a co-funding requirement from smaller…
