At this time of year, we think about New Year’s resolutions. It is also a good time to start planning your tax affairs before the end of the tax year on 5th April. An obvious tax planning point would be to maximise your ISA allowances for the 2023/24 tax year (currently £20,000 each). You might…
Author Archives: Jane Maclachlan
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The sale of shares is an exempt supply for VAT purposes, which means that input VAT on professional fees in connection with the transaction cannot be claimed. However, a recent tax tribunal decision has determined that, under certain circumstances, the input VAT may be claimed. The case concerned the sale of a subsidiary company in…
HMRC have recently published Spotlight 63 which alerts taxpayers to a marketed tax avoidance scheme that claims to help taxpayers reduce the tax payable on their property rental profits. The HMRC view is that the “hybrid” structure involving an LLP with individual and corporate members does not have the tax savings that the scheme promoters…
Since April 2014 members of a LLP are no longer automatically treated as self-employed for tax purposes. A recent case before the Upper Tax Tribunal has examined the tax status of 82 members of an LLP and found that most of them should be taxed as employees not self-employed. LLP members are treated as salaried…
In recent years many accountants have advised their director/shareholder clients that the most tax efficient method of extracting profit from their family company was to pay themselves a low salary, at or around the £12,570 personal allowance, with the balance in dividends. This strategy may need to be revisited with the introduction of higher corporation…
HMRC have recently clarified their view of the tax treatment of the reimbursement of electricity costs where employees charge their electric company cars at home. HMRC now accepts that reimbursing part of a domestic energy bill, which is used to charge a company car or van, is exempt from income tax. Their previous view was…
The chancellor’s announcement of a 2% cut in national insurance contributions (NICs) for employees applies to payments on or after 6 January 2024. That doesn’t allow much time to update payroll software, particularly with the Christmas holidays in between. Note that for employees other than directors, NIC is not calculated on a cumulative basis so,…
Under the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 it will be unlawful for hospitality employers to withhold tips from employees, ensuring that staff receive the tips they have earned. The new law is expected to come into force in 2024 after a consultation and via secondary legislation. The Government believes that tips, gratuities and service…
Employers, please be careful about making deductions from wages that reduce the gross amount below the relevant NMW rate. For example, you may deduct sums for employee uniforms, staff meals, childcare vouchers, or even for places at child nurseries where the employee also works. If you provide such benefits this needs to be done outside…
Recent Tribunal decisions in favour of employing companies and against HMRC has caused many organisations in similar circumstance to make protective claims for the recovery of National Insurance Contributions (NIC) in respect of car allowances paid to employees using their own cars or vans for business journeys. Many employers have a policy of only reimbursing…
