Monthly Archives: January 2019

Leaving aside the fact that there were no violins available, it’s interesting to seek a comparison between the supposed musical antics of Nero in AD64 as Rome burned and our government, preoccupied with important political matters as British industry slips ever closer to the cliff edge of a no-deal Brexit. There are just under 60…

What is a disguised employee? Very definitely, it is not an individual holding a clock card in fancy dress. It is contractor, usually in the guise of a limited company, that is undertaking work as if an employee, but more importantly, is being paid as a business contractor: this saves the “employer” paying National Insurance…

HMRC seem to be working on their people skills, either that or they have decided to soften their hard sales approach to tax compliance by injecting a little humour. Last week they published the following responses they had received for late payment of tax and claims for expenses that failed. This what they said: Excuses…

It is hardly surprising that Brexit is fast becoming as big a turnoff as tax. How on earth are we supposed to react or adapt to such far-reaching changes when the exact details of our exit are still undecided just a few weeks before the March 2019 deadline? Businesses that buy or sell goods to…

A bit of history this week but with a practical outcome for 2019. Up to 1582, Europe used the Julian calendar introduced by the Romans in 45BC. Unfortunately, the Julian calendar differed from the solar calendar by 11 ½ minutes; after 500 years this small difference meant that the Julian calendar was 10 days off…

HMRC normally send out a tax statement this time of the year to all self-assessment taxpayers that have submitted a tax return for 2017-18. As we reported last week, this will list any balance of tax due for 2017-18 and the amount of any payment on account required for 2018-19 (if any is due). Both…

The following guidance was published on the GOV.UK website 20 December 2018. Much of the guidance has been updated on the basis of a no-deal Brexit. UK citizens planning a trip to the EU and EEA before 29 March 2019 are not affected by Brexit changes. The following comments assume a no-deal Brexit and would…

1 January 2019 - Due date for Corporation Tax due for the year ended 31 March 2018. 19 January 2019 - PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 January 2019. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 January 2019) 19 January 2019 - Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly…

This article is also relevant to couples who have entered into a civil partnership. For the tax year 2018-19, taxpayers can make tax-free capital gains of up to £11,700. This allowance is available on a per person basis and so married couples (and those in a civil partnership) have a combined CGT allowance of £23,400.…

Named the additional rate, the highest rate of Income Tax is 45%, and some might say 45% is high enough. However, if the rate of tax is measured as the relationship between income and tax plus tax related penalties paid, there are times when this 45% can rise, to as much as 90%. For example,…