Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC) recently published details of a new one penalty system for inaccurate tax documents and returns. This new system replaces the previous wide variety of penalties. The new system relates to returns and documents for the period starting on or after 1st April 20098 which are due to be filed [...]
Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has issued a warning that fraudsters are sending out fake e-mails promising rebates. An estimated five million people filed their tax returns online last month and now many of them are receiving emails which purport to come from HMRC saying there has been an error in calculating their [...]
There has been much publicity and comment about “non doms” – these being persons who whilst resident in the UK are not domiciled there (see here for more information on what this means). The popular belief is that these people are unfairly avoiding tax on income or capital gains made outside the UK by claiming [...]
HMRC have published new regulations relating to the payment of Class 2 and voluntary Class 3 national insurance contributions (NICs) for past years. Class 3 contributions for the 2006-07 tax year which are paid after 5 April 2009 and voluntary Class 2 contributions for the 2006-07 tax year which are paid after 5 April 2008 [...]
HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs) have announced that they are gearing up to mount an attack on Managed Service Companies (MSCs) based in the UK and offshore. Background For many years now HMRC has battled to try and stop what it perceives to be the unacceptable use of limited companies as a way for [...]
In his Pre-Budget Statement on Monday Alistair Darling quietly dumped legislation intended to outlaw income splitting arrangements among individuals that would have effectively forced small, family-run businesses to pay more tax. For some years now the Labour government has tried to take action against income splitting arrangements which it considers “unacceptable tax avoidance”. Leaving aside [...]
Amid much hype and to no-one’s surprise, yesterday Alistair Darling cut the standard rate of VAT to 15% with effect from the 1 December 2008. The cut is temporary and so on 1st January 2010 the standard rate will return to 17.5%. The 15% rate will apply to the supply of goods and services currently [...]
I enjoy watching Question Time on the BBC each Thursday. It can be amusing and entertaining usually because of the crass stupidity of some of the panellists. I don’t object to politicians and celebrities displaying their ignorance and political bias as at least it helps us make an informed opinion about them, but sometimes they [...]
From next month, internet shoppers in the United Kingdom will no longer have to pay customs duty on purchases made from non-European Union websites with a value of under £105. Currently customs duties are payable on goods bought online from non-EU countries worth £18 or more. But from December 1, a new £105 (€150) limit [...]
