fpdteam, Author at Bennetts Accountancy

Check large suppliers payment status

17th March 2022 by fpdteam

The government has been working for a number of years to combat the problem of large businesses abusing their position by making late payments to small businesses. There is a legal requirement (introduced in April 2017) for large businesses to report publicly on their payment practices.

A large business is defined as a company or limited liability partnership that has at least two of the following:

£36 million in turnover
£18 million on its balance sheet
250 employees

Large businesses within the scope of the rules must prepare and publish information about their payment practices and performance in relation to qualifying contracts. There are normally two reporting periods within the business’ financial year. The report must be submitted within 30 days of the end of the reporting period. It is a criminal offence by the business, and every director of the company or designated member of an LLP, if the business fails to publish a report containing the necessary information within the specified filing period of 30 days.

For each reporting period, businesses are required to report on the following in relation to qualifying contracts the statistics on:

the average number of days taken to make payments in the reporting period, measured from the date of receipt of invoice or other notice to the date the cash is received by the supplier
the percentage of payments made within the reporting period which were paid in 30 days or fewer, between 31 and 60 days, and in 61 days or longer
the percentage of payments due within the reporting period which were not paid within the agreed payment period.

You can check a large supplier's status payment status at www.gov.uk/check-when-businesses-pay-invoices#more-information.

Source:HM Government| 14-03-2022

Increased rates for second homes in Wales

17th March 2022 by fpdteam

The Welsh government has announced that it is increasing the maximum amount that local authorities can charge as a council tax premium on second homes and long-term empty properties from 100% to 300%. The new policy is set to come into effect from April 2023 and will enable councils to decide the level which is appropriate for their individual local circumstances. The government has also said that councils will be able to apply different premiums to second homes and long-term empty dwellings.

The government said that it is introducing this change to help councils raise additional funding which will ideally be used to improve the supply of affordable housing.

The Welsh government will also change the criteria for self-catering accommodation being liable for business rates, instead of council tax, from April 2023. Currently, properties that are available to let for at least 140 days, and that are actually let for at least 70 days, will pay rates rather than council tax. The change will increase these thresholds to being available to let for at least 252 days and actually let for at least 182 days in any 12-month period.

Government figures show there were almost 24,000 chargeable second homes in Wales registered for council tax purposes in January 2022. Most local authorities no longer give any discounts to long-term empty or second homes.

Source:National Assembly for Wales| 14-03-2022

Auto enrolment for care workers

17th March 2022 by fpdteam

Automatic enrolment for workplace pensions has helped many employees make provision for their retirement, with employers and government also contributing to make a larger pension pot.

The law states that employers must automatically enrol workers into a workplace pension if they are aged between 22 and State Pension Age and earn more than minimum earning threshold. The minimum threshold has remained fixed at £10,000 since 6 April 2014. The employee must also work in the UK and not be a member of a qualifying work pension scheme. Employees can opt-out of joining the pension scheme if they wish.

These rules apply if you directly employ a care worker to provide you with care and support, often called a personal assistant or a personal care assistant. It is important to note that you will be classed as an employer whether or not you pay using money provided by your local authority or the NHS in the form of direct payments or a personal budget to pay your personal care assistant, or if you use your own money.

The main exception to this rule is if the care worker is provided by an agency, and the agency pays the personal care assistant’s National Insurance contributions. If this is the case, then the agency will be responsible for the automatic enrolment requirements.

Source:Pensions Regulator| 14-03-2022

Tax Diary April/May 2022

15th March 2022 by fpdteam

1 April 2022 – Due date for Corporation Tax due for the year ended 30 June 2021.

19 April 2022 – PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 April 2022. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 April 2022).

19 April 2022 – Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly return for the month ended 5 April 2022.

19 April 2022 – CIS tax deducted for the month ended 5 April 2022 is payable by today.

30 April 2022 – 2020-21 tax returns filed after this date will be subject to an additional £10 per day late filing penalty for a maximum of 90 days.

1 May 2022 – Due date for corporation tax due for the year ended 30 July 2021.

19 May 2022 – PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 May 2022. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 May 2022).

19 May 2022 – Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly return for the month ended 5 May 2022.

19 May 2022 – CIS tax deducted for the month ended 5 May 2022 is payable by today.

31 May 2022 – Ensure all employees have been given their P60s for the 2021/22 tax year.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 14-03-2022

Revoking VAT option to tax land and buildings

10th March 2022 by fpdteam

There are special VAT rules that allow businesses to standard rate the supply of most non-residential and commercial land and buildings (known as the option to tax). This means that subsequent supplies by the person making the option to tax will be subject to VAT at the standard rate.

The ability to convert the treatment of VAT exempt land and buildings to taxable can have many benefits. The main benefit is that the person making the option to tax will be able to recover VAT on costs (subject to the usual rules) associated with the property including the purchase and refurbishment of the property.

However, any subsequent sale or rental of the property will attract VAT. Where the purchaser or tenant is able recover the VAT charged this is not normally an issue. However, where the purchaser / tenant is not VAT registered or not fully taxable (such as bank) the VAT can become an additional (non-recoverable) cost.

Once an option to tax has been made it can only be revoked under limited circumstances so proper consideration of the issue is important. This includes:

within a specified 'cooling off' period in the first 6 months,
an automatic revocation where no interest has been held for more than 6 years, and
after 20 years has elapsed.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 07-03-2022

Definition of VAT partial exemption

10th March 2022 by fpdteam

A business that incurs expenditure on taxable and exempt business activities is partially exempt for VAT purposes. This means that the business is required to make an apportionment between the activities using a 'partial exemption method' in order to calculate how much input tax is recoverable.

HMRC’s guidance explains that as a VAT-registered business, you can recover the VAT on your purchases which relate to taxable supplies that you make or intend to make. There are some items where input tax recovery is ‘blocked’. Supplies that are made outside the UK that would be taxable if in the UK and certain exempt supplies to non-UK customers also give the right to recover VAT, but there are special rules. In principle, you cannot recover VAT that relates to any exempt supplies, although you may be able to if the VAT is below certain limits.

There are a number of partial exemption methods available. The standard method of recovering any remaining input tax is to apply the ratio of the value of taxable supplies to total supplies, subject to the exclusion of certain items which could prove distortive. The standard method is automatically overridden where it produces a result that differs substantially from one based on the actual use of inputs. It is possible to agree a special method with HMRC. The VAT incurred on exempt supplies can be recovered subject to two parallel de-minimis limits.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 07-03-2022

Limits to loss relief claims against income or capital gains

10th March 2022 by fpdteam

There are a number of tax reliefs available for self-employed taxpayers that make a trading loss. This includes a partners' share of partnership trading losses.

There may also be restrictions if the claimant:

worked for less than 10 hours a week on average on commercial activities of the trade
is a limited partner or a member of a limited liability partnership
has a trade which is carried on wholly overseas
has claimed certain capital allowances,
has income from oil extraction activities or oil rights

There is also an overall cap on certain income tax reliefs. The cap is set at 25% of income or £50,000, whichever is the greater. There is a separate type of loss relief available for those operating under the cash basis. No loss relief is available if the trade is not run commercially and for profit, for example if a trade is run as a hobby.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 07-03-2022

Transferring assets during separation and divorce

10th March 2022 by fpdteam

When a couple separate or divorce it is unlikely that they are thinking about any tax implications. However, apart from the emotional stress, there are also tax issues that can have significant implications.

For example, when a couple are together there is no Capital Gains Tax (CGT) payable on assets gifted or sold to a spouse or civil partner. However, if a couple separate and do not live together for an entire tax year or get divorced, then CGT may be payable on assets transferred between the ex-partners.

This effectively means that the optimum time for a couple to separate would be at the start of the tax year so that they would have up to a year to plan how to transfer their assets tax efficiently. Obviously, in the real world most couples will have far more on their minds than deciding to get separated on a certain day, but these issues should be considered.

It is also important to make a financial agreement that is agreeable to both parties. If no agreement can be reached, then going to court to make a 'financial order' will usually be required. The couple and their advisers should also give proper thought to what will happen to the family home, any family businesses as well as Inheritance Tax implications.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 07-03-2022

SDLT concerns transferring a property to a company

10th March 2022 by fpdteam

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is a tax that is generally payable on the purchase or transfer of land and property in England and Northern Ireland. Wales and Scotland set their own Stamp Duty taxes. It is also payable in respect of certain lease premiums. You may also need to pay SDLT when all or part of an interest in land or property is transferred to you and you give anything of monetary value in exchange.

There are important issues to be aware of if you transfer land or property to a company. HMRC’s guidance on the subject states as follows:

When property is transferred to a company, SDLT may be payable on its market value, not the consideration given. For example, if a property has a market value of £200,000 but the company only pays a consideration of £100,000, SDLT will still be payable on £200,000.

This applies in either of the following situations, the:

person who transfers the property is ‘connected’ with the company – the definition of a connected person covers relatives and people who have some involvement with the company,
company pays for the property with shares in the company (partly or wholly) to the person making the transfer, where that person is connected to the company (but not necessarily the acquiring company).

Holding properties within a limited company can have many advantages such as lower Corporation Tax rates and tax relief on interest payments. However, it is important to be aware of issues that can arise including the payment of SDLT or regional equivalents.

If you are considering transferring property to a company, please take professional advice before completing the transaction.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 07-03-2022

Increase in National Insurance from April 2022

10th March 2022 by fpdteam

We would like to remind our readers that the increases in National Insurance Contributions (NIC) of 1.25% – first announced last year – will take effect from April 2022. These increases will be ring-fenced to provide funding for the NHS, health and social care.

The increases will apply to:

Class 1 contributions (paid by employees) above the primary and secondary thresholds. This is the NIC that is deducted from your earnings by your employer.
Secondary Class 1 (paid by employers). Employer's NIC contributions are paid as part of the regular PAYE/NIC payments unless they are covered by the present £4,000 employment allowance.
Class 4 (paid by self-employed). These contributions are added to your annual Self-Assessment statement.

Employers should ensure that they are prepared for the increase as these changes will increase wage costs from April 2022.

All existing NICs reliefs to support employers will continue to apply. In addition to the employment allowance, this includes the following:

employees under the age of 21
apprentices under the age of 25
qualifying Freeport employees
armed forces veterans

From April 2023, these increases will be incorporated into a new Levy. The Levy will be administered by HMRC and collected by the current channels for NICs – Pay As You Earn and Income Tax Self-Assessment.

Please note, at the time this article was written there has been significant political pressure in parliament to cancel this increase. We will advise if this challenge results in the withdrawal of the 1.25% increase.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 07-03-2022