Until 2015-16, it was possible to apply for a dispensation to exclude certain expenses and benefits provided to employees from the year end returns to HMRC: primarily the submission of forms P11D. These dispensations ceased to be effective from 6 April 2016. From this date many of the expenses covered by dispensations were exempted from the benefits legislation. The sorts...
All change for driving instructors and learner drivers
Driving instructors will have a tough time this year. Many are sole traders and will need to start changing their record keeping to accommodate the challenges of Making Tax Digital, either April 2018 if their turnover is above the VAT registration limit (presently £85,000), or April 2019 if their turnover is below this limit. On 4 December 2017, they will also...
Beneficial loans to employees
In many cases, making loans to your employees or their relatives can create an obligation to report a beneficial loan to HMRC. The deemed benefit would be a taxable benefit in kind for the relevant employee, and would increase the employer’s Class 1A NIC bill at the end of the tax year. However, certain loans are exempt from this reporting obligation....
What are approved mileage payments
Mileage Allowance Payments (MAPs) are the rates used by employers to reimburse employees when they use their own transport for business purposes. The current rates are well-known. They are: Cars and vans – 45p per mile for the first 10,000 miles and 25p thereafter. Motorcycles – 24p per mile Bikes - 20p per mile As long as employers pay at these rates, and no...
Tax Diary May/June 2017
1 May 2017 - Due date for Corporation Tax due for the year ended 31 July 2016. 19 May 2017 - PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 May 2017. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 May 2017) 19 May 2017 - Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly return for the month ended 5 May...
A note for driving instructor clients E and learner drivers
The Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency has released its response to a consultation with the industry to “Improve the car driving test”. In their conclusion they say: “This paper reports the outcome of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) consultation about changes to the car driving test. The consultation was held between 14 July and 25 August 2016. The consultation...
New accounts filing regulations for smaller companies
Companies house recently published the following news story. Changes to UK company law removed the option for small companies to file abbreviated accounts for accounting periods starting on or after 1 January 2016. Small companies If you are a small company, you have 4 options for filing your accounts: 1. Micro-entity accounts You must meet at least 2 of the following: turnover is no more than...
What are your responsibilities to pay the National Minimum Wage
The current state defined wage rates are divided between the National Living Wage (NLW) – this is currently set at £7.50 per hour and only applies to workers aged 25 years and over – and the NMW for workers under 25 years. The NMW hourly rates are currently: Age group 21 to 24 - £7.05 Age group 18 to 24 - £5.60 Age group...
Tax free capital gains
Is there such a thing as a tax-free capital gain? In fact, there is… Every UK resident tax payer is allowed to make tax-free gains of up to £11,300 during the current tax year, 2017-18. Additionally, you can sell personal possessions and make a gain of up to £6,000 without paying capital gains tax (CGT). This includes a sale of the...
Is the State Pension taxable
Short answer, yes it is… The State Pension is worth between £6,359.60 (the old version), and £8,296.60 (the new version), and many pensioners may receive additional payments based on additional contributions made in prior years. In both cases, this pension income is treated the same as earned income for income tax purposes. For 2017-18, every person resident in the UK for tax...