fpdteam, Author at Bennetts Accountancy

Have you utilised 2022-23 IHT allowances and reliefs?

2nd February 2023 by fpdteam

We wanted to remind you of the Inheritance Tax (IHT) implications of making cash gifts during the current tax 2022-23 tax year that will end on 5 April 2023.

You can give away up to £3,000 worth of gifts each tax year. This is known as your annual exemption. Any unused part of the annual exemption can be carried forward, but only for one year. So, if you didn’t make any cash gifts in 2021-22, you could gift up to £6,000 this tax year.

There are also generous exemptions for normal gifts made out of your income, but you must be able to maintain your standard of living after making the gift. There are also reliefs available for wedding or civil ceremony gifts. You can gift up to £1,000 per person with higher limits of £2,500 for a grandchild or great-grandchild, £5,000 for a child.

You can also give as many small gifts of up to £250 per person as you want during the tax year but only if you haven’t used another exemption on the same person. There is no IHT to pay on lifetime gifts between you and your spouse or civil partner as long as you both live permanently in the UK.

Other gifts, outside these limits, count towards the value of your estate and should be carefully considered.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 30-01-2023

ATED update

2nd February 2023 by fpdteam

The Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED) came into effect from 1 April 2013. The tax applies to certain Non-Natural Persons (NNPs) that own interests in dwellings valued at more than £500,000. These provisions affect most companies, partnerships with company members and collective investment schemes.

For the purposes of the ATED, it is immaterial whether the company, partnership or collective investment scheme is incorporated or resident in the United Kingdom. HMRC’s technical guidance on the subject states that, a company that is not incorporated or resident in the UK, but which owns land in the UK that constitutes a ‘single-dwelling interest’ is subject to ATED provisions and is required to make returns.

There is no ATED or ATED-related Capital Gains Tax payable if an individual owns a property directly, rather than through a company. There are also reliefs available, for example, if a property is in use for the purposes of a property rental business, run commercially, and with a view to profit (subject to certain exceptions) or held by a charity for its charitable purposes, subject to meeting various conditions.

From 1 April 2023, ATED is chargeable on property valued at:

More than £500,000 but not more than £1 million – £4,150
More than £1 million but not more than £2 million – £8,450
More than £2 million but not more than £5 million – £28,650
More than £5 million but not more than £10 million – £67,050
More than £10 million but not more than £20 million – £134,550
More than £20 million – £269,450

If the relevant property was within the scope of ATED on 1 April 2023, both the return and payment are due by 30 April 2023 for the ATED period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.

There can be penalties for late filings, late payment or for an inaccurate return. Taxpayers can appeal a decision of HMRC, for example against a penalty or determination. Appellants have 30-days from the date of the decision to write and tell HMRC the grounds on which they are appealing.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 30-01-2023

VAT – unpaid tax collectors

30th January 2023 by fpdteam

If you are required to register your business for VAT purposes you are joining that reluctant band of business owners that are obliged to collect tax for HMRC.

The amount of VAT you have added to your sales, less VAT you have paid out on qualifying purchases, will be paid to HMRC at the required intervals, usually quarterly. As long as your customers pay you the VAT added, over time there should be no effect on your profits, but there can be dramatic impacts on cash flow.

Unfortunately, this is not the end of your responsibilities to act as unpaid tax collectors.

If you employ a person, and HMRC considers that their salary should be reduced by Income Tax and National Insurance contributions, it is your legal duty to make these deductions and pay them directly, every month, to the Collector of Taxes.

As with VAT registered traders, there is no increase in costs to an employer if employee contributions (Income Tax and National Insurance) are considered in isolation. However, employers also have to pay a separate National Insurance Contribution (NIC) and these are added to monthly payments to HMRC.

Therefore, these employer NIC contributions are a cost to the employer’s business.

We are not aware of the overall costs to UK businesses of calculating PAYE and NIC to meet these demands, but it must be considerable.

The alternative would be to make employees responsible for calculating Income Tax and NIC deductions and paying their taxes individually instead of receiving wages and salaries net of these deductions.

However, UK business owners need to be aware of these obligations and take them into account as the tax collection activities will take up time or increase overheads.

Source:Other| 29-01-2023

Protecting your business capital

30th January 2023 by fpdteam

All business owners, but predominantly retailers, leisure and entertainment trades, will have seen their hard-won capital all but exhausted by the needs to meet fixed costs when income generation has been restricted or eliminated by lock-down directives during the early years of the COVID pandemic, and more recently by the downturn in global trade due to the war in Ukraine, inflation, rising interest rates and increases in energy costs.

In the face of these challenges what can beleaguered business owners do to protect their capital base and be in a position step back into the ring as and when consumers start to edge out of their front doors and start spending?

Here’s a few ideas for you to think about:

List all of your fixed costs, those that you have to pay even if you have no income coming in and cancel as many as you can that can be re-established when markets open up again. Obviously, many will be tied to contracts that cannot be broken. In which case:
Contact suppliers, landlords, service providers etc., and see if you can negotiate a moratorium on payments for a period, a reduction in payments or the cancellation of contracts.
When this work is done rework your business plan for the next year and speak to your bank or other sources to secure any cash required to meet the likely dips in cash resources.
Importantly, start to think about waking up your business when consumer interest in spending starts to increase demand for your goods or services.

And finally, speak to us. There is no substitute for sharing this planning process with your professional adviser. We know your business. We know how you have burned the midnight oil to develop your business and the problems you have overcome along the way. We can, and we want to help. Cal now so we can start to unravel your options.

Source:Other| 29-01-2023

What is a Post Transaction Valuation Check?

30th January 202326th January 2023 by fpdteam

A Post Transaction Valuation Check (PTVC) can be requested from HMRC for an individual to work out a Capital Gains Tax liability or for companies to calculate Corporation Tax liability on chargeable gains. The request for a PTVC should be made using the CG34 form. HMRC’s guidance says the form must be completed and sent to the address on the form at least 3 months before the relevant tax return filing date.

The PTVC is a service offered by HMRC to check valuations after a disposal has been made, including a deemed disposal following a claim that an asset has become of negligible value, but before the completion of a Self-Assessment return. This service is available to all taxpayers, individuals, trustees and companies.

If HMRC agrees with the valuations set out, they will not question the use of those valuations in the return, unless there are any important facts affecting the valuations that have not been disclosed. Agreement to the valuations does not always mean that HMRC agree the gain or loss. When the return is filed HMRC will consider the other figures used.

If agreement cannot be reached, HMRC will suggest alternatives such as using a specialist valuer. The guidance has been updated to include details on the importance of submitting an estimated return if you are waiting on an CG34 valuation to meet the 30-day filing requirement.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 23-01-2023

Five more tax avoidance schemes named by HMRC

30th January 202326th January 2023 by fpdteam

HMRC has powers introduced in the Finance Act 2022 to name tax avoidance schemes and their promoters. Under this legislation HMRC can name avoidance scheme promoters, publish details of the way they promote tax avoidance schemes and name the schemes they promote.

This allows HMRC to warn users and potential users of these schemes at the earliest possible stage, of the risks associated with use of the scheme, and to help those already involved to leave these avoidance arrangements. The latest list was published on 19 January 2023 and includes details of five further tax avoidance schemes.

Three of the schemes make use of complex company structures and directors’ loan accounts to extract profit, providing directors with income where Corporation Tax, Income Tax and National Insurance contributions were not correctly paid. The other two schemes make one payment to users that is close to National Minimum Wage and then another disguised payment, which the promoters claim is non-taxable and Income Tax and National Insurance are not correctly deducted.

HMRC will continue to regularly update this list by publishing the details of other tax avoidance schemes and their promoters. It is important to note that there are other schemes and the fact that a scheme is not included in HMRC’s list does not mean that the scheme works or is in any way approved by HMRC.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 23-01-2023

R&D tax consultation launched

30th January 202326th January 2023 by fpdteam

There are currently two schemes for claiming R&D tax relief – the Small or Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) Scheme and the R&D Expenditure Credit (RDEC) Scheme for large companies. The amount of R&D tax relief available depends on the total qualifying spend on R&D activities.

It was announced as part of the Autumn Statement 2022 measures that the Research and RDEC rate will increase to 20% (from 13%) with effect from 1 April 2023. From the same date, the SME additional deduction will decrease from 130% to 86%, and the SME credit rate will decrease from 14.5% to 10%. These changes will see the two schemes broadly aligned.

A new consultation has been launched to examine simplifying how R&D relief works. The 8-week consultation, which runs from 13 January 2023 to 13 March 2023, sets out proposals on how a single scheme could be designed and implemented. The new scheme would be designed to simplify the R&D system and provide more information about how much relief businesses will be able to claim from the outset. If implemented, the new scheme is expected to be in place from 1 April 2024.

Source:HM Treasury| 23-01-2023

New business Energy Bills Discount Scheme

30th January 202326th January 2023 by fpdteam

The new business Energy Bills Discount Scheme will replace the current Energy Bill Relief Scheme which is coming to an end on 31 March 2023. The new scheme will offer support to eligible non-domestic energy customers, including UK businesses, the voluntary sector – such as charities – and the public sector – for example, schools and hospitals – from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.

The new scheme has been designed to help support businesses over the next 12 months whilst at the same time limiting the taxpayer’s exposure to volatile energy markets. A cap has been set at £5.5 billion based on estimated volumes.

Under the new scheme, eligible non-domestic customers who have a contract with a licensed energy supplier will see a unit discount of up to £6.97/MWh automatically applied to their gas bill with a price threshold of £107 per MWh and a unit discount of up to £19.61/MWh applied to their electricity bill with a price threshold of £302 per MWh. The relative discount will only be applied if wholesale prices are above the stated price thresholds.

The government has also confirmed that a substantially higher level of support will be provided to businesses in sectors identified as being the most energy and trade intensive – predominately manufacturing industries. These businesses will receive a gas and electricity bill discount based on a supported price which will be capped by a maximum unit discount of £40/MWh for gas with a price threshold of £99 per MWh and £89/MWh for electricity with a price threshold of £185 per MWh. This discount will only apply to 70% of energy volumes.

As with the original scheme, suppliers will automatically apply reductions to the bills of all eligible non-domestic customers.

Source:HM Treasury| 23-01-2023

Corporation Tax changes April 2023

30th January 202326th January 2023 by fpdteam

The Corporation Tax main rate will increase to 25% from 1 April 2023 for companies with profits over £250,000. A Small Profits Rate (SPR) of 19% will also be introduced from the same date for companies with profits of up to £50,000 – ensuring these companies pay Corporation Tax at the same rate as currently.

Where a company has profits between £50,000 and £250,000 a marginal rate of Corporation Tax will apply that bridges the gap between the lower and upper rates. The lower and upper limits will be proportionately reduced for short accounting periods of less than 12 months and where there are associated companies.

The effect of marginal relief is that the effective rate of Corporation Tax gradually increases from 19% where profits exceed £50,000 to 25% where profits are more than £250,000.

The amount of Corporation Tax payable will be found by multiplying taxable profits and gains by the main rate of 25% and deducting marginal relief. For the fiscal year 2023, the marginal relief fraction will be 3/200. HMRC also offers an online calculator that can be used to check basic eligibility for marginal relief. The calculator can be found at www.tax.service.gov.uk/marginal-relief-calculator.

For certain businesses it may be prudent to reconsider associated company relationships before April 2023. This will help avoid partial loss of the lower 19% rate or marginal tapering relief.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 23-01-2023

New Green Freeports for Scotland

30th January 202326th January 2023 by fpdteam

The UK and Scottish governments have jointly announced that Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport and Forth Green Freeport have been successful in their bids to establish two new Green Freeports in Scotland. Each of these Freeports will be granted up to £26 million in funding over the next few years, primarily to address infrastructure gaps which are currently holding back investment.

Freeports are a special kind of port where normal tax and customs rules do not apply. Rather, there are simplified customs procedures and duty suspensions on goods. This announcement builds on the UK Government’s successful Freeport programme in England, where there are currently eight operational Freeports with a further five sites recently being granted final government approval.

After designation, businesses in Freeport tax sites are able to benefit from various tax reliefs including:

an enhanced 10% rate of structures and buildings allowance;
an enhanced capital allowance of 100%;
full relief from Stamp Duty Land Tax;
business rates relief on certain business premises within freeport tax sites; and
employer National Insurance contributions relief, subject to Parliamentary process and approval.

Source:The Scottish Government| 23-01-2023