Companies House is expected to charge higher fees when it is granted new powers. The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency (ECCT) Bill is already making its way through Parliament. This legislation will change the role and purpose of Companies House to make it a more active gatekeeper over company creation. This would include new powers to check, remove or decline information submitted...
Retirees set for second bumper State Pension hike as pay inflation soars
State Pensions are expected to rise by 8.5 per cent in April 2024 in line with rocketing wage growth. The Triple Lock policy means the increase in the State Pension is set at the highest of average earnings, inflation or 2.5 per cent. The latest statistics from the ONS recorded growth of average earnings – total pay including bonuses - at 8.5...
Muras Matters: Trust Registration Service (TRS) Update
Background Under the Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive which was adopted in October 2020 H M Revenue & Customs (HMRC) expanded the requirement to register a trust to include non-taxable relevant trusts and all reportable trusts created on or before 6 October 2020. The trustees of all relevant trusts have to provide certain information to HMRC including details about the settlor(s), trustees and...
Clampdown on hidden online fees to help shoppers cut costs
Rules on hidden online fees, known as drip pricing, will be tightened to boost transparency for stretched families. The Government is proposing a crackdown on extra charges such as booking or processing fees in products ranging from train tickets and concerts to food deliveries. It comes after research confirmed drip pricing – where the price paid at checkout is higher than originally...
One in five strips back pension contributions or halts them altogether
One in five people have reduced their pension contributions or stopped saving for retirement altogether due to cost-of-living pressures. As household budgets continue to tighten, new research suggests 14 per cent of people have stopped paying into their pensions while eight per cent have cut their contributions. Men are more likely to have taken the action than women, as well as wealthier...
Trying to track down a pension? Help is at hand
Moving from job to job and starting a new pension each time can present a headache when the time arrives to think about retiring. Few of us can recall every pension provider we have ever had and unless you have carefully filed all the relevant paperwork, you will need help tracking them all down. But there is no need to panic. The...
Plan ahead to file accounts on time and avoid penalties
If you have a September deadline for filing your accounts, leaving it until the last minute risks being hit with a fine. All limited companies, whether they trade or not, must deliver annual accounts to Companies House each year. Directors are advised to file early, rather than leaving it until the 11th hour, when unforeseen circumstances could prevent you from being...
Corporation Tax Group Payment Arrangements
A Corporation Tax Group Payment Arrangement (GPA) is a special arrangement that allows groups of companies to make joint payments of Corporation Tax. This type of arrangement can reduce the administration and costs associated with making a large number of individual payments. A GPA can also let members of the group mitigate any potential differential interest charge by allowing the...
Searching for details about property
There are a number of online tools available to help find information about a property in England or Wales, even if you do not own it. The service is available on GOV.UK and allows users to search for property by postcode, map, title number or INSPIRE ID. Once a property has been located, users can download copies of the property summary,...
Overview of private pension contributions
You can usually claim tax relief for your private pension contributions. There is an annual allowance for tax relief on pensions of £60,000 for the current 2023-24 tax year. The annual allowance was £40,000 in 2022-23. There is a three year carry forward rule that allows you to carry forward any unused amount of your annual allowance from the last three...