As your business advisors, we are experiencing a continuous flow of information from the Government. With guidance for employers, employees and businesses on how you should respond to the impact of Covid-19, we have summarised some of the key points to help you and your business. We will continue to update this as more information flows
More...On 26 June 2020, the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak made a further (third) Treasury Direction under sections 71 and 76 of the Coronavirus Act 2020 concerning the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS). There are a number of important changes to the way the revised scheme works that started to come into effect from 1 July 2020, the date that
More...The government has confirmed a further easing of lockdown as pubs, cafes, restaurants, hotels, hairdressers and cinemas have been given permission to reopen in England from 4 July. The launch date has been dubbed as Super Saturday. These changes will see a further move towards the reopening of certain businesses that can operate by
More...The government has announced that an extra £37.8 million will be made available to support debt advice providers during 2020-21. The distribution of the money will be overseen by the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS). MaPS will set out the process for allocating funds in the coming weeks to charities for debt advice and to other
More...The Capital Gains Tax (CGT) reporting and payment date for UK residents that sell a residential property changed from 6 April 2020. This change means that any CGT due on the sale of a residential property needs to be reported and a payment on account of any CGT due made within 30 days of the completion of the transaction. In practice,
More...The government has announced that mandatory MOT tests for car, motorcycle and van owners in England, Scotland and Wales are to be reintroduced from 1 August 2020. This means that all drivers whose vehicle is due for an MOT test from 1 August will be required to get a test certificate to continue driving their vehicle. The government is
More...A trust is an obligation that binds a trustee, an individual or a company to deal with the assets such as land, money and shares which form part of the trust. The person who places assets into a trust is known as a settlor and the trust benefits one or more beneficiaries. The trustees make decisions about how the assets in the trust are
More...It is possible for wealthier taxpayers to take advantage of the IHT exemption for gifts and payments that are paid as normal expenditure out of income. This is a very flexible exemption from IHT as there are no specific requirements, for example, making fixed, regular gifts to the same person. With proper planning this can be a
More...One of the acceptable methods to value stock is at the lower of cost and net realisable value (NRV). NRV is broadly defined as the estimated selling price of an asset less any disposal costs. HMRC provides the following guidance in their Business Income Manual. The realisable value is the expected sale price of the relevant stock in the
More...From 1 August 2020 onwards, it is intended that the shielding programme will be paused in England so clinically extremely vulnerable people will no longer be advised to shield. From an employment perspective, this means that, if they cannot work from home, shielding employees can then return to their workplaces, provided they are
More...You may have come across the terms debit and credit and perhaps wondered exactly what do they mean? Certainly, if you are a bookkeeper or accountant you will or should understand their significance. The first book on the subject was written by Italian mathematicians in 1494. Essentially, double entry means that every transaction that
More...Literally, the word depreciation means a reduction in the value of an asset over time. It recognises the fact that if you buy assets for your business – cars, plant, computers etc – as time marches on the value of those assets will decrease. In double entry bookkeeping terms, the value of an asset is reduced by the amount
More...1 July 2020 - Due date for Corporation Tax due for the year ended 30 September 2019. 6 July 2020 - Complete and submit forms P11D return of benefits and expenses and P11D(b) return of Class 1A NICs. 19 July 2020 - Pay Class 1A NICs (by the 22 July 2020 if paid electronically). 19 July 2020 - PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended
More...The government has announced that the scope of the Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will be extended to help new parents. The newly announced measures are designed to help new parents whose trading profits dipped in 2018-19 because they took time out to have children. The change in the scheme will allow parents, including
More...If you are self-employed – this article does not apply to the directors and shareholders of limited companies – there is often a mis-match between the amount you draw from your business and your tax bill. When times are good profits may be high, but you may have decided to keep your personal drawing from the business to a
More...The option to defer your VAT payments ends on 30 June 2020. The Coronavirus VAT payment holiday gave businesses the chance to defer the payment of any VAT liabilities between 20 March 2020 and 30 June 2020. Businesses that took advantage of deferring their VAT payments should consider the following: Re-establish any cancelled direct
More...All businesses have customers, According to HMRC, even they have customers… Sales are the amount of goods and services that you provide your customers and there are three main features that affect your annual turnover: Number of customers Price Footfall The first is fairly obvious, the more customers you can acquire, the
More...The HM Government guidance titled Working safely during COVID-19 in shops and branches has been updated. The updates relate to managing product handling and returns, the test and trace service, safer travel and managing security risks. The guidance is relevant to all retail stores, bank branches, post offices and other open money
More...The VAT Flat Rate scheme is intended to simplify the way a business accounts for VAT and reduce the administration costs of complying with the VAT legislation. There can also be a decent VAT saving for those using the scheme. The scheme is only open to businesses that expect their annual taxable turnover in the next 12 months to be no
More...The assessment of self-employed or partnerships profits is usually relatively straight-forward if the accounting date, to which annual accounts are prepared, falls between 31 March and 5 April. However, overlap profits can arise where a business year end date is not coterminous with the end of the tax year. Overlap profits can happen in
More...The cash basis scheme helps many sole traders and other unincorporated businesses who benefit from a simpler way of managing their financial affairs. The scheme is not open to limited companies and limited liability partnerships. The scheme allows qualifying businesses to use the cash basis when recording income and expenditure. However,
More...If you are an employee, you must tell your employer as soon as possible if you are showing signs of Coronavirus or someone you live with has symptoms of the disease. Your employer will be able to inform you if you are covered by their sick leave policy. If you are, you may be asked to furnish them with an isolation note that proves you
More...The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) also known as the furlough scheme has been extended until 31 October 2020. There are a number of important changes to the way the scheme works starting from 1 July 2020, when employers can bring back furloughed employees to work part-time, for any amount of time and any shift pattern. One of the
More...The UK has confirmed that it will neither accept nor seek any extension to the Brexit transition period which expires on 31 December 2020. The EU has formally accepted this position. With just over six months to go before the end of the transition period there remains a lot of work to be done if agreement is to be reached. This move could
More...Corporation Tax relief may be available where a company or organisation makes a trading loss. The loss may be used to claim relief from Corporation Tax by offsetting the loss against other gains or profits of the business in the same or accounting period. Where the amount of a trading loss exceeds the profits of the same accounting
More...There are a number of tax reliefs available for self-employed taxpayers that make a loss carrying on their trade, profession or vocation (collectively referred to as a ‘trade’) and for their share of trading losses in any partnerships. For the 2019-20 tax year, trade losses can be relieved in a number of ways. This includes the
More...HMRC has released the latest bi-monthly issue of the 'Agent Update' publication which includes summaries of recent changes and updates that have been announced. The document which is aimed at taxation and accountancy practitioners includes links to more detailed information on each of the topics covered. The topics covered in the
More...Last week, we considered one of the issues that employers will likely need to consider in the coming weeks and months: productivity. This week we have listed other factors that you may need to consider if you presently have staff furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS). From 1 July, it is possible for furloughed
More...While our businesses have been able to maintain or increase profits there has been an unwritten acceptance that we will pay for current taxes out of future cash resources. For example, if you are self-employed, payments on account for self-assessment taxes on current income are made two months before the end of each tax year and four
More...We reported late last month on the extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to 31 October 2020 following the announcement by the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak. At the time, the Chancellor confirmed that further guidance on the workings of the amended scheme, which allows for flexible furloughing from 1 July, would be published on 12
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