Avoid Fuel Benefit Charge

A fuel benefit tax charge arises where the employer meets the cost of fuel for private journeys in a company car. However, this charge can be avoided if the employee ‘makes good’ the cost of fuel for private motoring. Key dates To eliminate the fuel benefit charge, the cost of all fuel used for private … Read more

Impending employer deadlines

If your business provides taxable benefits to directors or staff there are a bunch of reporting deadlines you will need to comply with. They are: Key dates Employees must be given their P60 for 2022/23 by 31 May 2023. They must also be notified of any payrolled benefits by 1 June 2023. Forms P11D and … Read more

Gift Aid carry-back opportunity

The Gift Aid scheme allows the charity to reclaim 25p for every £1 that you donate. In addition, you are able benefit from tax relief on your donation at your marginal rate of tax. You can opt to carry back relief on donations made in the current year to the previous tax year. Key dates … Read more

Records you must keep if taking dividends

A dividend is a distribution made from a company’s retained profits. The dividend must be properly declared. Dividend payments to shareholders must be accompanied by a dividend voucher. If you are not presently recording dividends as a board minute and creating a dividend voucher for each payment, you may be compromising the tax position of … Read more

Holiday Homes? Meeting your tax obligations

HMRC have sent ‘nudge’ letters to individuals who they believe have undeclared income from letting holiday homes and short term lets on sites such as Airbnb and Booking.com. Key dates If you have received income from holidays lets you need to tell HMRC about it by completing a self-assessment tax return. The return must be … Read more

Are you liable to pay tax on Child Benefits?

You are able to claim child benefit if you are responsible for bringing up a child under the age of 16, or under the age of 20 where the child stays in approved education or training. However, some or all of the child benefit that you receive may be clawed by back by the High … Read more

Do you need to pay voluntary NIC by 5 April 23?

Class 3 National Insurance contributions are voluntary contributions which an individual can choose to pay to increase their entitlement to the state pension. Individuals who have gaps in their contribution record for the tax years from 2006/07 to 2015/16 have a limited window in which to take advantage of an extended time limit for making … Read more

HMRC sending text messages

Individual callers to some HMRC helplines from mobile phones may find that rather than speaking with an adviser they are now sent an SMS text message directing them to online services and guidance. Key dates Since 19 January 2023, HMRC have been trialling sending an SMS text message response to some callers to their income … Read more

Action to take before 31 March 2023

Once we pass the end of the current financial year, 31 March 2023 for companies and 5 April 2023 for individuals, the opportunity to take legitimate action to save tax in the 2022-23 tax year will evaporate. I would have to write a book to lists all of these opportunities but have listed below some … Read more

Happy new tax year

Why does our tax year end on 5th April? Like so many of the regulations that govern our lives, the legislative processes underpinning these rules are anachronisms – things that belong to the past. For example, the present tax year ends on 5th April 2022. The reason that our tax year ends on this obscure … Read more