Not all penalties levied by HMRC are civil, many cases are serious enough to warrant a criminal investigation. The first post in the “money” section of the gov.uk website in 2020 reflects on this. The title of the post is a give-a-way: “Busted! HMRC reveals biggest criminal cases of year 2019” In what could be seen as a propaganda exercise HMRC are...
Muras Matters: Phishing & Scams
Background HMRC have recently updated their website with new guidance on how to avoid scams and how to tell if a communication from them is actually genuine. The page details exactly when, why and how they might contact taxpayers for a variety of different reasons. They also offer advice on the information taxpayers should or shouldn’t provide if asked for. For those that wish to...
High Street funding announced
High Street rejuvenation funding announced The first 101 places to benefit from up to £25 million each from the Future High Streets Fund were announced over summer. In the latest step of the £3.6 billion investment in towns and high streets, 20 pilot areas across England will lead the way in rejuvenating town centres with expert and tailored support from the...
Still time to file your tax returns
The deadline to file your 2018-19 tax returns is fast approaching, the 31 January 2020. Most of our clients will have the reassurance that we have filed their returns online, but for those who still need to file their 2019 return, it’s time to get into action. If you file after 31 January 2020 late filing penalties will be applied. In...
Too little, too late?
On 13th December, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in collaboration with Office for Product Safety and Standards, issued a cautionary warning to consumers buying toys this Christmas. Leaving aside the late publication of this information – not all of us are last-minute shoppers - it is worth reproducing the twelve points that make up their press release. They...
An end to uncertainty
Whatever your political motivation most of us will be relieved that last week’s election has created a government with a working majority. At last, there is a light at the end of the uncertainty tunnel. Brexit Business readers with any sort of trading platform with the EU need to dot the i’s and cross their t’s regarding post January 2020 changes that...
Land Registry property alert service
Property owners are potentially more at risk from the activities of fraudsters. They have more to lose and there are very real risks that the Land Registry property alert service is set up to counter. Why consider this service? Since 2009, HM Land Registry has prevented 254 fraudulent applications being registered by fraudsters. Common attempts to "steal" property Include selling or mortgaging...
What constitutes profit for tax purposes?
There is no simple answer to this question. We have listed below some of the matters that need to be are considered. As self-employed business owners’ profits are subject to income tax and National Insurance - and limited companies to corporation tax - we have divided our comments accordingly. Before making this distinction it is important to state that profit shown...
Planning holidays for next year?
The following details were recently published on the gov.uk and regional websites. They set out bank holiday dates for Christmas 2019 and 2020. Upcoming Christmas bank holidays in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland 2019 25 December Wednesday Christmas Day 26 December Thursday Boxing Day Upcoming bank holidays in England and Wales 2020 1 January Wednesday New Year’s Day 10 April Friday Good Friday 13 April Monday Easter Monday 8 May Friday Early May bank holiday (VE day) 25 May Monday Spring...
Time is running out for tax planning 2019-20
A reminder that in just a few months the present tax year closes, 5 April 2020. After this date, a whole raft of 2019-20 tax planning options for individuals will cease to be available. These cover a multitude of opportunities to reduce your liability to Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax and National Insurance. These opportunities include, but are not limited to: Remuneration choices...