Latest Business News from Chichester Accountants Evans Weir

November 7, 2018

IR35 in the Private Sector

From April 2020 the IR35 system will be extended to cover businesses using contractors and freelance staff in the private sector. A move which is expected to net the treasury an additional £1bn in tax in its first year. With IR35 a long running bone of contention anyway, there is a great deal of concern amongst business organisations and accounting experts that the move will put a ‘significant burden’ on large and medium-sized companies who will have to review all their contracts with... read more

No VAT Threshold Change until 2022

For around 12 months now there has been much discussion about a review of the point at which companies must register for VAT, the VAT Threshold. Currently set at £85,000 of taxable turnover, the Chancellor was reported as planning a reduction of this figure to around £20,000 as part of his budget statement in November 2017, before making an eleventh-hour U-turn amid representation from business organisations. Instead, the Treasury has conducted a consultation on the proposed revision of the... read more

HMRC to review 30,000 tax returns

Having identified that their calculations may have contained an error, HMRC has announced that it is set to review the tax returns of around 30,000 individuals, to address concerns that some may have been overcharged. The issue is believed to be isolated to tax bills issued in 2016/17 and specifically relating to the personal savings and dividend allowances. The Revenue will be carrying out the review during November and will contact any individuals that received an incorrect tax bill.... read more

October 30, 2018

Budget 2018

As he delivered the Budget 2018, Philip Hammond joked that he had avoided giving his speech on Halloween night itself because it would have been simply too tempting for the caption writers, and had avoided Christmas because he did not want to appear in cartoons disguised as Santa Claus. Even so, he was determined to honour the Prime Minister’s recent declaration that austerity was over. He repeated again and again that ‘the British people’s hard work has paid off’ and the fiscal rigour... read more

October 11, 2018

Chichester Half Marathon 2018

We are delighted to have once again contributed towards the continued success of the Chichester half marathon organised by local charity Children on the Edge. This year’s event, as with other years was a run-away success with over 700 participants crossing the start line, raising plenty of money for Children on the Edge and their important work around the world. Despite stiff competition from fellow Chichester runner, Mike Houston, who set a new course PB, six times winner James Baker... read more

September 20, 2018

How many times have you purchased your mobile phone?

A recent study by Citizens Advice suggests that the customers of Britain's biggest mobile networks, EE, Three and Vodafone, continue to pay for handsets even after the true purchase cost has been paid off. The impact of the inflated charges means that customers could be up to £38 a month worse off, with many not knowing that they are paying a premium to have a phone they already own. On average, the research identified that customers are being overcharged £22 a month, but those on high-end... read more

Inflation on the rise again

The rate of inflation as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rose to 2.7% in August following a CPI figure of 2.5% in July. The year on year comparison figure has been on the rise since 2016, peaking at over 3% in 2017 before falling back at the start of this year and then sitting at around 2.5% during the late spring and summer. The increase, the first in six months, is expected to be a temporary jump as the underlying figures which have fuelled it are ‘largely recreational’... read more

Chancellor scraps plans to abolish Class 2 NI contributions

The Treasury has announced that Chancellor Phillip Hammond is going back on a promise made by his predecessor, George Osborne, to scrap Class 2 NI Contributions. The abolition which was originally planned to come into effect this year, had already been put on ice by the Chancellor citing concerns that it would actually increase the cost of statutory and contributory payments for self-employed people with low profits. Further research by The Treasury seems to support this belief and it is now... read more

August 30, 2018

Auto Enrolment – have you met your obligations?

A gentle reminder that all businesses should now be aware of, if not fully compliant, with Auto Enrolment legislation. If you are an established business with existing staff, you should have passed your staging date, have selected your scheme and be making contributions – with your employees making payments up to the current minimum contribution level. The table below shows the current contribution levels and the planned increases due in April 2019, something you should also be aware of... read more

No-deal Brexit notices published

The Government has published a series of technical Brexit notices about what would happen in the event of no Brexit deal being agreed. For businesses, these are likely to be the most useful pieces of information published to date regarding preparation for Brexit. Whilst the Brexit notices consider the worst possible outcome, if they are used by businesses as a back-stop position, then anything other than a no-deal outcome should be largely catered for. The EU has already published their own... read more