03/09/2010 by Neil.
Important. If you are using ”The HMRC employers CDROM” for your PAYE you need to log onto the HMRC website and download an update. visit http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/employers/cdrom/index.htm
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03/09/2010 by Neil.
DO · keep a monthly record of your turnover - late registration can result in severe penalties· notify your local HM Revenue & Custom’s office when major changes take place - changes must be notified within thirty days· retain records for the last six years - these could be demanded by law· obtain and keep VAT invoices - these are your authority to claim back VAT on supplies made to you· charge VAT on supplies to your staff· charge VAT on any equipment or vehicles (except motor cars) that you sell or part-exchange· account for VAT on fuel used for private motoring using the appropriate scale charge DON’T· claim the VAT paid on the purchase of a motor car - it is not recoverable except in some very special cases.· claim the VAT paid on goods or services used for private purposes. Where there is an element of private use (e.g. telephone) an appropriate percentage should be claimed. Special arrangements apply to private use of petrol (see above)· claim the VAT paid on entertaining.· forget to account for VAT on inter-company charges.· charge VAT on the transfer of a business as a going concern (make sure contracts incorporate appropriate VAT provisions)If you need to check you are being given a valid VAT number you can call HMRC’s national advice service on 0845 010 9000 from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday.
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06/04/2010 by admin.
The new rates, which will come into force on 1 October 2010 will be: £5.93 per hour for workers aged 21 and over (a 2.2 per cent increase on the current £5.80 rate); £4.92 per hour for 18-20 year olds (a 1.9 per cent increase on the current £4.83 rate); and £3.64 per hour for 16-17 year olds (a 2 per cent increase on the current £3.57 rate).
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22/03/2010 by admin.
Buy-to-Let landlords and those selling a second property targeted by HMRC.
Land Registry details are being used by the taxman to track down tax dodgers Buy-to-let landlords and people selling off second properties that HM Revenue & Customs is using Land Registry details to match up against those failing to pay capital gains tax on property disposals or income tax on rental income.
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23/01/2010 by Neil.
Small businesses are to be given flexibility over the introduction of the government’s new compulsory workplace pension scheme.The scheme is to be known as the National Employment Savings Trust (NEST), a change from the original Personal Accounts, and is aimed at employees aged over 22, earning between £5,035 and £33,540 and who do not have an occupational pension scheme.The scheme is to commence in October 2012 when the largest businesses – those employing 120,000 staff or more – will begin enrolling workers.However, smaller firms will join the scheme on a phased basis over the next three years. Start-up businesses formed from 2012 won’t be required to implement a NEST fund until 2016. Auto-enrolment is expected to be fully introduced by 2017.Employer contributions will also be implemented on a staggered schedule. Employers will be required to contribute a minimum of 1 per cent of an employee’s gross salary to the fund as from 2012. That will rise to 2 per cent from 2016 before reaching 3 per cent in October 2017.
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23/01/2010 by Neil.
A new HM Revenue and Customs team has been set up to tackle the problem of employers who breach the rules on the national minimum wage. HMRC’s Dynamic Response Team will be tasked with investigating the most high profile and complicated national minimum wage cases. Particular areas to be targeted are those in which employers use migrant labour to undercut competitors by paying employees less than the minimum wage. The team, which will comprise highly-trained specialist officers, is to be backed by £70 million of government funding.
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01/09/2009 by Neil.
Motorcycles are to be excluded from the definition of cars from April 2009. This means that they will qualify as main pool plant and machinery and willbe eligible for consideration for the following allowances:
• the 100% AIA • the temporary FYA of 40%
• a 20% allowance where neither of the above apply. Where there is part non business use of the asset by a self employedperson, it will have to be placed in a single asset pool and a restriction onany allowances will be made for private use
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27/08/2009 by Neil.
The competitive deals currently available on dealers’ forecourts are tempting a number of you to consider changing your car. The tax allowances on new cars changes dramatically on 6th April 2009 and CO2 emissions affect allowances greatly.
the rules can be summarised as:
2008/09 2009/10
CO2 emissions of 110 g/km or less
First Year Allowance 100% 100%
CO2 emissions of 111-160 g/km
Writing Down Allowance 25% 20%
Annual Cap - Maximum claimable £3000 pa £16,000
CO2 emissions of over 160 g/km
Writing Down Allowance 25% 10%
Annual Cap - Maximum claimable £3000 pa £ 8,000
RULES ON CONTRACT HIRE
These are also changed from 6th April 2009. This particularly affects expensive cars. For example – assuming a new car costing £20,000 with emissions of less than 160 g/km can be contract hired for £5,175 including VAT. Should you buy or lease ?? Possible allowances are:
2008/09 2009/10
Purchase the vehicle
Writing down allowance £3,000 £4,000
Or
Contract hire for £5,175pa
Amount Deductible £3,870 £4,838
(including VAT @ 15%)
*Note that the writing down allowance will reduce in subsequent years in line with the written down value over the vehicle’s life.
It is complex. If you are interested in a new car, ascertain all your options then we can help you pick the best one.
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27/08/2009 by Neil.
The period for which National Insurance contributions will need to have been paid in order to secure a full State Pension will reduce in April 2010.
Meanwhile, the cost of buying extra years will increase from 6th April 2009 from £8.10 to £12.05 per week. So people expecting to retire before April 2010 with a contribution shortfall may benefit from making a top-up payment before 6th April 2009.
The first step is to get a benefits forecast from the Pension Service – Tel. 0845 300 0168
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06/08/2009 by Neil.
For many years taxation professionals and anyone who has engaged subcontract labour have been saying that it was the intention of H M Revenue & Customs (and Inland Revenue before it) to have all workers taxed under PAYE. Yet when this point has been put to officers of the department the response has always been that that was not the case. Their intention when undertaking a review of a workers employment status was merely to ensure that the correct employment status was used.Well, as far as the Construction Industry is concerned, that could all be about to change. The Treasury are of the view that there are between 200,000 and 400,000 workers who are working under terms and conditions which are akin to employment but are treated as self-employed and which costs the Treasury some £350m a year. As a result the Treasury issued a Consultation Document on 20 July 2009 in which it set out its proposals to counter what it calls ‘false self-employment’ in the industry.In essence, the proposals are to treat every individual worker engaged to undertake ‘construction operations’ as being in receipt of ‘employment income’ which will be subject to tax and national insurance contributions under PAYE. This will become the default position with only those workers who met one of three criteria being able to continue to be treated as self-employed and paid under CIS. The criteria are:
The subcontractor provides
• Plant and equipment – not just hand tools
• All materials
• Other workers for whom the subcontractor is responsible for paying
This will clearly see the end of self-employed labour-only subcontractors in the construction industry, at least as far as tax and national insurance is concerned.
It is made clear that these are only going to be ‘deeming’ provisions and that any decision to deduct tax and national insurance under PAYE will not confer employment rights on the worker.
Whilst there is no doubt that there have been cases where workers have been reclassified as employees it is a fact that H M Revenue & Customs have been far from successful at the Commissioners and, indeed, the new Tribunals when it has come to defending their view that workers should be reclassified. It would appear in many cases the workers were rightly classified as self-employed. These proposals would appear to be a case of toys being thrown out of the pram as if these proposals are applied to many of the well known tax cases over many years then the decisions that the worker was properly self-employed would be reversed.
Anyone who engages labour only subcontractors should read the Consultation Document, which can be found at:
www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/consult_false_selfemployment_construction.htm and should consider taking up the issue with their accountant or federation. The consultation period finishes on 12 October 2009 and if the Treasury do not receive any negative feedback to the proposals it must be assumed that it will be brought forward into legislation.
CONTRIBUTED BY ANDREW SCRIVENS -CCH TAX CONSULTANT!
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