There are obvious benefits to your personal wellbeing if you sweat it out at the gym three times a week: improved stamina, enviable muscle tone, endorphin buzz and unwanted pounds shed. But could your business benefit from a similar process? We are not suggesting that business owners and their staff leap to their feet and jog on the spot, beneficial as...
Parliament eases through Finance Act 2019
According to a recent government announcement, 32 million people will be better off as the Finance Bill 2018-19 receives Royal Assent. Treasury pundits who wrote the announcement said: A basic rate taxpayer will payat least £1,200 less income tax than they did in 2010, thanks to the government’s changes, giving people more help with the cost of living. As well as cutting taxes for...
Goodbye 2017-18 and hello to 2018-19
The deadline for filing 2017-18 self-assessment tax returns without paying a penalty for late submission has passed (31 January 2019). But a new and pressing deadline now presents itself: 5 April 2019. As we have outlined in previous posts, most tax planning needs to be considered and actioned before the end of the tax year to be effective. For example, have you...
Goodbye 2017-18 and hello to 2018-19
The deadline for filing 2017-18 self-assessment tax returns without paying a penalty for late submission has passed (31 January 2019). But a new and pressing deadline now presents itself: 5 April 2019. As we have outlined in previous posts, most tax planning needs to be considered and actioned before the end of the tax year to be effective. For example, have you...
What was all the fuss about?
Last year, the 23 May 2018 to be precise, the UK adapted the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). The deadline created a rush of publicity and activity as businesses across the UK pored over their data processing systems, making changes to accommodate the new rules. After the deadline, its as if the curtain came down on GDPR and we moved on...
Happy days
In what amounts to a single-issue mini-budget the Treasury posted a welcome announcement for the manufacturers and consumers of alcoholic products last week. They said: The Chancellor announces that alcohol duties are frozen From today, (1 February 2019) taxes on beer, cider and spirits are frozen for another year, keeping costs down for industry and consumers alike. alcohol duty cuts and freezes...
How to cope with recession
Recession literally means “the act of going back, of receding…” Economic pundits have hijacked the word to mean “a period of temporary economic decline during which trade and industrial activity are reduced…”. It is usually heralded by a fall in Gross Domestic Product (GDP). According to many commentators on the state of the UK economy we are about to revisit recession. The cause...
Tax Diary February/March 2019
1 February 2019 - Due date for Corporation Tax payable for the year ended 30 April 2018. 19 February 2019 - PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 February 2019. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 February 2019) 19 February 2019 - Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly return for the month ended 5 February...
What can you give away before the end of the tax year?
You can give away £3,000 worth of gifts each tax year (6 April to 5 April) without them being added to the value of your estate. This is known as your ‘annual exemption’. You can carry any unused annual exemption forward to the next year - but only for one year. Each tax year, you can also give away: wedding or civil ceremony...
What is the government doing to prepare us for Brexit?
According to a recent announcement on the GOV.UK website, preparations include: Recruitment of 700 new staff to work on EU Exit policy using additional funding allocated by HM Treasury for Brexit preparedness. Passing of new legislation to lay the groundwork for our future outside the EU with 57 out of 63 required statutory instruments required by Exit day, including new laws for...