Business rates exemptions

Certain property, whether occupied or out of use for a period, may be eligible for exemption from payment of business rates. The GOV.UK website lists the following as potentially eligible: Exempted buildings - certain properties are exempt from business rates. Exemptions include: agricultural land and buildings, including fish farms buildings used for training or welfare of disabled people buildings registered for public religious worship...

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Do you need to fill in a tax return?

HMRC have determined that you must complete a self assessment tax return if any of the following circumstances apply to your personal, financial circumstances:        1.    You're a company director, minister, Lloyd's name or member. Your annual income is £100,000 or more. You have income from savings, investment or property.  If you are an employee or a pensioner and already pay tax through a...

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Construction Industry and tax

All active building contractors and building subcontractors are subject to HMRC regulation. The rules they have to abide by are set out in the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS). Essentially, contractors cannot pay their subcontractors without stopping tax. Only in specific circumstances can payments be made without deduction of tax. The scheme operates a little like the PAYE system with one important...

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European Commission ventures opinion on UK economy

In March 2014 the European Commission published a report entitled Macroeconomic Imbalances United Kingdom 2014. The text includes a few observations on the UK property market that have been greeted with less than enthusiasm by the UK Government. The report includes the following introduction: “The United Kingdom continues to experience macroeconomic imbalances, which require monitoring and policy action. In particular, developments in...

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Small business rate relief

You can get small business rate relief if you only use one property and its rateable value is less than £12,000. Until 31 March 2015 you’ll get 100% relief (doubled from the usual rate of 50%) for properties with a rateable value of £6,000 or less. This means you won’t pay business rates on properties with a rateable value of £6,000...

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Tax fugitive tracked down

A member of the one of the UK’s biggest tobacco smuggling gangs, who fled to Spain to avoid prison, has been returned to the UK to begin his sentence. John Sabin, 58, from Doncaster, was part of an eight-strong gang that transported millions of smuggled cigarettes across the north of England to warehouses, storage yards and farms with the intention of...

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Pension contributions and high income earners

Our previous government enacted legislation that removed the personal allowance for certain high income earners. The present government has made no change to this process. Basically, for every £2 your income exceeds £100,000, your personal allowance is reduced by £1. Take, for example, the case of Joe Smith who has income for 2014-15 of £100,000 and a personal tax allowance of...

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HMRC’s second incomes campaign

On 9 April 2014 HMRC published details of their latest campaign to encourage taxpayers to declare and pay unpaid tax on second incomes. HMRC will expect settlement of any taxes due four months from the date of declaration of untaxed income sources to HMRC. The types of income highlighted by HMRC include: consultancy fees, for example, providing training organising parties and events providing services like...

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VAT online filing relaxed

HMRC has proposed to relax the current online filing of VAT returns. They are going to improve the telephone filing service by making it possible for taxpayers to ring HMRC rather than making an appointment for HMRC to ring them. They are also providing: a dedicated line, and providing a service outside normal working hours. The service will be more...

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The end of Private Residence elections?

At present, taxpayers who own more than one property used as residences by them, can make a formal election to determine which of their properties should be considered their private residence for tax purposes. The election needs to be based on the facts – how has each property been used as a private residence - and HMRC has a right to...

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