Hello,
If you are just back from your holidays we have lots of updates and refreshers on topical taxes this week. Tax allowances may have been frozen for years but there is much to report. I would personally recommend our Land & Property Advisers' 'What's New 2024/25' guide, which features an in-depth look at the current concerns about s.162 relief.
This week, discussion among the team here has turned to the upcoming Budget on 30 October and what may, or may not, be announced. The portal to make Budget representations to HM Treasury remains open until 10 September 2024, so do make your voice heard on policy issues that affect you or your clients.
The Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) has submitted a representation on concerns around Incorporation Relief. We have taken a detailed look at this as I note. Is there an issue or not? We have included commentary in our subscriber guides. As many of you reading this are not subscribers we have a condensed version in our S.162 At a glance guide.
With the summer break now over for many, this week we feature several more of our ‘What’s new 2024-25’ guides. These provide essential reading to get up-to-date on the latest developments in many key areas, particularly those that may have been missed over the last few months. Do check out our R&D updates too.
Still not a subscriber? If it is because you are stuck in what one of our clients called a 'terrible contract' with that tax information provider that ties you up for years and years or uncontrollably auto-renews? Or tie you into an advisory contract and just quote HMRC's manuals at you? If so, please contact us and we can discuss how we can make our lovely resources available to you.
We hear from firms of all sizes how they are reading our Freeview material in preference to their own resources and those bigger external tax 'libraries', do reach out to us! We are here and listening.
Nichola & the Team
Your Virtual Tax Partner®: online PRACTICAL support for accountants, tax advisers BY accountants and tax advisers.
Quick News
Door remains open for landlords
A 'blip' in HMRC's property rental statistics for 2022/23 indicates that property income received by partnerships appears to have fallen by £3.47 billion between 2021/22 and 2022/23. Despite that, overall property income received by all unincorporated landlords only fell by £1.96 billion, meaning that perhaps 2021/22 was a rogue year in terms of the statistics.
CGT & Incorporation: At a glance
We add a handy summary of the background to the current hot topic.
Make your Autumn Budget representations now
HM Treasury is inviting representations from stakeholders ahead of the 2024 Autumn Budget, which will be held on 30 October 2024. Time is getting short for making representations: the portal closes on 10 September 2024.
Autumn Budget 2024: What might we see?
The Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, will present the first Budget of the new parliament on 30 October 2024. What might we see announced?
Scam Emails now Target Tax Agents
In case you were away last week and missed this: we show tax agents what to spot in phishing emails. Useful for staff training.
Free Study Skills Session: Preparing for Your Tax Exams
Free Study Skills Session: Preparing for Your Tax Exams on 10th September 2024 at noon.
Tax Cases
UT kicks Sky pundit's IR35 case into touch
In HMRC v S & L Barnes Limited [2024] UKUT 00262 (TCC), the Upper Tribunal (UT) remade an earlier decision and found former rugby player Stuart Barnes was within IR35 leaving him exposed to a bill of £695,000.
Editor's Choice
Land & Property: an Adviser's Tax Update 2024-25
UPDATE: Land and Property taxes: a comprehensive review of the sector offering a topical CPD update. Hot topics for Advisers include issues in respect of Incorporation relief, One-to-many letters, Incorporation using hybrid models and changes to the Furnished Holiday Letting (FHL) regime.
Directors' Tax Planning Update: 2024-25
What tax planning opportunities and strategies are available to directors? What's the optimum way to extract profits in 2024/254? What tax reliefs and tax deductions are handy to consider? This planner looks at a range of director tax issues.
Guides & Updates
Self-employed
Website and e-commerce costs
What tax relief is there for the costs relating to designing, creating, and maintaining a website, software or e-commerce development?
Pre-trading expenses (self-employed)
What are pre-trading expenses? What tax relief is available for pre-trading expenses? What are the restrictions to relief? What expenses will not qualify?
Directors & Companies
How to start a company
UPDATE: How do you go about creating a company? What do you need to do to start a company? A practical guide on how to form (incorporate) a private limited company covering the key points that you need to consider.
Directors' loan accounts: Toolkit (subscribers)
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) have a director's loan accounts toolkit for advisers. This is our enhanced version with planning points.
Research & Development
R&D: Software, licences, cloud computing & pure maths
NEW: Can expenses for software, data licences, cloud computing services, and pure mathematics qualify for R&D relief? When is expenditure on software, data licences, cloud computing services, and pure mathematics attributable to relevant R&D?
R&D: Is software development a qualifying R&D activity?
UPDATE: Is software development a qualifying activity for Research & Development (R&D) relief?
R&D: Meaning of Research and Development: DSIT Guidelines
UPDATE: What is Research and Development for tax purposes? What is the meaning of Research and Development for Tax? What are the DIST guidelines on Research and Development?
R&D Zone: State Aid and subsidised expenditure
UPDATE: How do grants and state aid impact R&D claims? What constitutes subsidised expenditure? Can clients subsidise R&D expenditure? What R&D relief is available for expenditure which is subsidised?
Land & Property
Abolition of the FHL regime: Briefing
UPDATE: HMRC have published draft legislation and related notes detailing how the abolition of the Furnished Holiday Letting (FHL) rules in April 2025 will operate. We consider the practical impact of the loss of the FHL rules and provide some essential planning points.
Compliance & Investigations
Named tax avoidance schemes, promoters, enablers
UPDATE: HMRC publishes a list of named tax avoidance schemes, promoters, enablers and suppliers. It is not recommended that taxpayers use any of these schemes, as HMRC does not consider that they work and you may end up with a significant tax liability if you engage with the scheme suppliers.
Employers
PAYE Settlement Agreements
What are PAYE Settlement Agreements? How do they work? What can be included?
Private Client & Estate Planning
Trusts & Estates: What’s New 2024/25
UPDATE: HMRC have published a Trusts and Estates Newsletter for August 2024. What is new for trusts and estates? Our enhanced guide includes reminders of recent and upcoming changes.
Capital taxes round-up: 2024-25
A round-up of developments in capital taxes for individuals for 2024-25 including some topical Capital Gains Tax (CGT) and Inheritance Tax (IHT) cases.
Capital Allowances
Capital Allowances: What's new 2024-25
What's new in Capital Allowances for 2024-25? A summary of the different types of capital allowances currently available to UK businesses.
VAT News & Cases
VAT: Agents and principals
UPDATE: A summary of recent legal disputes concerning whether Private Hire Vehicle (PHV) operators are legally required to act as principals and the implications for their VAT liability.
Groups (VAT)
What are the conditions for forming a VAT group? What rules apply once a VAT group is in place?
Opting to tax land and property
What is an option to tax? What do I need to do to opt to tax? What happens if I buy an opted property?
Tax Tools & Calculators
Tax tools & calculators
UPDATE: 2024/25 versions available now. We have a suite of useful tax tools that help agents, business owners and sole traders calculate their taxes.
Calendar of tax deadlines and new tax measures
UPDATE: This is a freeview 'At a glance' rolling calendar of common recurring tax deadlines, new tax measures and other tax-significant events.
CPD for Lunch
Byte-sized chunks of lunchtime CPD for subscribers
- NEW: CPD: Change of basis periods: Transitional rules 2023-24 Returns
- CPD: VAT Penalties Update
- CPD: CGT Reporting and payment deadlines
More at CPD Index
Tax Queries?
UK Agent for registration of Overseas Entities
Do you require assistance in the registration and verification of an overseas entity that owns UK land or property?
Virtual Tax Partner© Support
Have a tax query? Need a second option? Open a ticket and ask a question. A team of tax experts with a wide range of expertise: covering direct and indirect tax, as well as accounting, R&D claims, reorganisations and much more.
Missed the Last Tax Update?
Ross Martin Tax: SME Tax News 29 August 2024
- Scam emails now target Tax Agents
- Agent Update: August 2024
- One-to-many letter for high earners
- Advisory fuel rates from 1 September 2024
- Free Study Skills Session: Preparing for Your Tax Exams
- HMRC error costs £588,700
- No travel or substance for umbrella agency workers
- Employer alert: Savings Scheme breaches NMW ...More
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