The case of the missing Budget
It’s been an eventful few years in British politics, but 2019 has been something else again with one jolt after another.
The 29 March deadline for the UK to leave the EU was extended to 31 October and then again until 31 January 2020. Boris Johnson replaced Theresa May as Prime Minister and Sajid Javid succeeded Philip Hammond as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Insider: November 2019
Messages aim to promote pension saving to the self-employed A government-backed pension provider is trialling emotive messages to nudge sole traders to start retirement saving. The messages from NEST aim to persuade the self-employed to sign up for pensions through payment or accountancy platforms or trade and industry bodies. Four messages are being tested to […]
Capital gains tax planning
Capital gains tax planning Tax changes to private residences for 2020/21. From 6 April 2020, HMRC is proposing three significant changes which will potentially increase the capital gains tax paid on the disposal of any residential property by an individual. These changes seek to raise extra revenue from the disposal of residential properties and to […]
Protecting a business from fraud
Protecting your business from fraud Steps to shield your firm from threats. Fraud costs the UK around £190 billion a year, with businesses bearing almost three quarters – £140bn – of those losses. This worrying picture is backed up by the 2019 Fraudscape report compiled by anti-fraud body Cifas, which provides statistics for fraud committed […]
IR35 in the private sector
IR35 in the private sector Key considerations for contractors before April 2020. Large and medium-sized organisations have just six months left to prepare for changes to off-payroll working rules, which are due to extend to the private sector next spring. From 6 April 2020, firms that engage private-sector contractors will be responsible for deciding if […]
Property as an investment for landlords
Property as an investment for landlords With low interest rates, property remains attractive. As the global financial crisis began to bite in 2008, central banks in several nations took action, attempting to shock the world economy back to life by slashing base interest rates. The idea behind this kind of stimulus is to make saving […]
Insider: October 2019
Most VAT-registered businesses are signed up for Making Tax Digital Almost three quarters (74%) of VAT-registered firms signed up for Making Tax Digital (MTD) before the second stagger deadline last month. HMRC’s figures showed that over 230,000 mandated businesses joined the scheme before the 7 September 2019 deadline. Most (94%) signed-up businesses submitted VAT returns […]
Updated Insider to reflect reverse charge VAT delay
Treasury to review tapered annual allowance as dispute rumbles on The Treasury has announced it will review the tapered annual allowance for pensions, following calls to abolish it. The amount of pension contributions that can be made tax-free in 2019/20 stands at £40,000 in most cases, but this is restricted for higher earners by the […]
Insider: September 2019
Treasury to review tapered annual allowance as dispute rumbles on The Treasury has announced it will review the tapered annual allowance for pensions, following calls to abolish it. The amount of pension contributions that can be made tax-free in 2019/20 stands at £40,000 in most cases, but this is restricted for higher earners by the […]
The numerous quirks and foibles of VAT
Insight into VAT’s barnacles of complexity. Are Jaffa Cakes biscuits or, as the name implies, cakes? This question is one of the most famous examples of the kind of debate that happens frequently in the world of VAT because precise definitions can make the difference between sink or swim for businesses that sell the products […]
