Over twelve million people are now required to submit a tax return and with that number growing each year, more and more people are coming to the process for the first time. The rise in AirBnB lettings, self-employment, the ‘gig economy’ and people having multiple sources of income are the factors driving more taxpayers to self-assessment.
HMRC has announced that it will be closing its telephone lines for 3 days during December, to redirect staff time into dealing with a backlog of letters and queries. The phone lines are those primarily dealing with VAT and Corporation tax queries but other services may also be affected as the department tries to deal with a backlog that has built up during the pandemic.
When it comes to tax, you want to be paying as little as possible – tax that is. But for many, the cost of completing a tax return can feel like a tax in itself and you may be inclined to try and pay as little as possible. But is that a wise idea? Do […]
As the dust settles on the 2021/22 budget and we absorb another round of tax increases and changes to reliefs and tapers, we are once again reminded of just how complex the UK tax system is. Managing this on an individual level is hard enough, imagine having to control and account for it across an […]
Recent analysis by online pension provider PensionBee has once again highlighted the issue of higher rate pension tax relief not being claimed on pension contributions. The research showed that more than 1 million of Britain’s higher rate tax payers are not claiming pension relief through their personal tax returns. It would appear that eight in […]
September 2021 marked the return to normal business life for many, following the hiatus caused by Covid, multiple lockdowns and the work from home rule. But as we head back into the office, into networking events and even begin entertaining colleagues and clients again, it’s perhaps a good time to remind ourselves of some of […]
In a clear breaking of a manifesto pledge, Boris Johnson has announced a 1.25% tax levy, to be applied through National Insurance (NI) contributions and dividend taxation, to help plug a funding gap in NHS and social care spending. But what does this mean for you? How much extra will I pay? As an employee, […]
Should you take your income as salary or dividends? The question of how to draw earnings from your business when you are an owner director is a perennial one, but in recent years, successive changes in government policy have made the answer slightly more nuanced.
HMRC has announced that self-assessment tax returns for the 2020/21 tax year will contain a question relating to pandemic support as it seeks to recover incorrectly claimed monies. If you are required to complete a self-assessment tax return then you will recently have received a notice reminding you to complete your return for the tax […]
The long-term ambition of Making Tax Digital is to simplify that tax system, speed up calculation and collection and also close loopholes that are estimated to cost the treasury up to £31bn a year in unpaid taxes. Whilst its phased rollout has been subject to delays and changes due to Covid and Brexit, Chancellor Rishi […]
Perhaps it was the lack of wiggle room afforded to him or the fact that today’s Government is like a sieve when it comes to news of plans and ideas circulating around the cabinet table, but the lack of surprise elements in this week’s budget was probably, in itself, not a surprise.
Having picked up the Treasury reins just weeks before the Covid pandemic broke, Chancellor Rishi Sunak has so far had little room to manoeuvre or stamp his own brand on the economic plan for the UK. Despite making numerous announcements and unveiling multiple recovery and support plans, his budget statement on March 3rd 2021 is […]