Income Tax

The easiest way to ensure that no car-fuel benefit charge (for private journeys in a company car) is payable, is to use the advisory fuel rates published by HMRC to repay any private fuel costs to your employer. The advisory fuel rates are intended to reflect actual average fuel costs and are updated quarterly.

However, the car-fuel benefit charge will still be payable if it cannot be demonstrated to HMRC that the driver of the car has paid for all fuel used for private journeys, this includes commuting to and from work. To ensure that this does not occur, employees will need to keep a log of private mileage.

The latest advisory fuel rates became effective on 1 June 2022 and the next set will take effect on 1 September 2022. Fuel rates are reviewed four times a year with changes taking effect on 1 March, 1 June, 1 September and 1 December. You can use the previous rates for up to 1 month from the date the new rates apply.

If you have a company car and your employer pays for all your petrol you will need to work out your actual private mileage for 2022-23, multiply this by the appropriate advisory fuel rate, and pay this amount to your employer.

This will avoid being charged the expensive car-fuel benefit – in many cases the tax saved will be more than the amount of your repayment to the employer.

The replacement of domestic items relief has been in place since April 2016. The relief allows landlords the ability to claim tax relief when they replace movable furniture, furnishings, household appliances and kitchenware in a rental property. The allowance is available for the cost of domestic items such as free- standing wardrobes, curtains, carpets, televisions, fridges and crockery.

The amount of the deduction is based on:

• the cost of the new replacement item, limited to the cost of an equivalent item if it represents an improvement on the old item (beyond the reasonable modern equivalent), plus
• the incidental costs of disposing of the old item or acquiring the replacement,
• less any amounts received on disposal of the old item.

There is an important distinction to note if deciding if a new item represents a replacement or an improvement. Where the new item is an improvement on the old item the allowable deduction is limited to the cost of purchasing an equivalent of the original item.

HMRC’s internal guidance provides an example highlighting the fact that a brand new budget washing machine costing circa £200 is not an improvement over a 5 year old washing machine that cost around £200 at the time of purchase (or slightly less, taking into account inflation).

Also, if a replacement item is for a reasonable modern equivalent for example a new energy efficient fridge replacing an old fridge this is not considered an improvement and the full cost of the new item is eligible for relief.

If you are self-employed as a sole trader or as a partner in a business partnership, then you must keep suitable business records as well as separate personal records of your income. 

For tax purposes, the business records must be held for at least 5 years from the 31 January submission deadline for the relevant tax year. For example, for the 2020-21 tax year where online filing was due by 31 January 2022 you must keep your records until at least the end of January 2027. In certain situations, such as when a return is submitted late, the records must be held for longer. 

If you are self-employed, you should also keep a record of:

• all sales and income
• all business expenses
• VAT records if you’re registered for VAT
• PAYE records if you employ people
• records about your personal income
• grant details if you claimed through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme because of coronavirus

You don't need to keep the vast majority of your records in their original form. If you prefer, you can keep a copy of most of them in an alternative format, as long as they can be recovered in a readable and uncorrupted format. For example, a scanned PDF document. 

If your records are no longer available for any reason, you must try and recreate them letting HMRC know if the figures are estimated or provisional. There are penalties for failing to keep proper records or for keeping inaccurate records. 

The marriage allowance can be claimed by married couples and those in a civil partnership where a spouse or civil partner does not pay tax or does not pay tax above the basic rate threshold for Income Tax (i.e., one of the couples must currently earn less than the £12,570 personal allowance for 2022-23).

The allowance works by permitting the lower earning partner to transfer up to £1,260 of their personal tax-free allowance to their spouse or civil partner. The marriage allowance can only be used when the recipient of the transfer (the higher earning partner) does not pay tax at the higher Income Tax rates. This would usually mean that their income is between £12,570 to £50,270 in 2022-23. The limits are somewhat different for those living in Scotland.

This transfer of unused allowances could result in a saving of up to £252 for the recipient (20% of £1,260), or £21 a month for the current tax year.

If you meet the eligibility requirements and have not yet claimed the allowance, you can backdate your claim to 6 April 2018. This could result in a total tax refund of up to £1,220 if you can claim for 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22 as well as the current 2022-23 tax year. If you claim now, you can backdate your claim for four years (if eligible) as well as for the current tax year. In fact, even if you are no longer eligible but would have been in all or any of the preceding years then you can still claim your entitlement.

Some businesses and agents are already keeping digital records and providing updates to HMRC as part of a live pilot to test and develop the Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax Self Assessment (ITSA). Under the pilot, qualifying landlords and sole traders (or their agents) can use software to keep digital records and send Income Tax updates instead of filing a Self-Assessment tax return.

The full introduction of MTD for ITSA is expected to start from 6 April 2024. The rules will initially apply to taxpayers who file ITSA returns with business or property income over £10,000 annually. General partnerships will not be required to join MTD for ITSA until a year later, in April 2025. A new system of penalties for the late filing and late payment of tax for ITSA will also apply. 

HMRC’s guidance on who can use the pilot has been updated. We have listed the main categories of who can and can’t join the pilot below:

You can voluntarily sign up for the service if all of the following apply:

• you’re a UK resident,
• you’re already registered for Self Assessment,
• your accounting period aligns to the tax year — for example, 6 April 2021 to 5 April 2022,
• you have submitted at least one Self Assessment tax return,
• you’re keeping digital records,
• one or more of the following were included in your last return: an existing self-employment income, a UK property source, a foreign property source.
• you’re up to date with your tax records — for example, you have no outstanding tax liabilities.

You cannot sign up yet if you:

• need to report income from any other sources,
• have an Income Tax charge — for example, high income Child Benefit charges or certain pension tax charges,
• have a payment arrangement,
• do not have an up to date address with HMRC,
• are a partner in a partnership,
• are currently, or are going to be, bankrupt or insolvent,
• are a Minister of religion, Lloyds underwriter or foster carer,
• have a third party capacitor, this includes (but is not limited to): trusted helpers, insolvency practitioners, nominees and solicitors.

The option to sign-up as an individual for MTD for ITSA is currently only available to individuals using a recognised provider offering software that is compatible with MTD for ITSA.

31 July 2022 is the final day for families and individuals that receive tax credits to tell HMRC about any changes to their circumstances or income and to renew their tax credit. As in previous years, there is likely to be a huge last-minute rush and it may be difficult to contact HMRC by phone. Renewing a claim online (either on the HMRC APP or GOV.UK) is the preferred method. It is also possible to renew by post or phone. At the beginning of July, there were still 323,700 claims that had to be renewed.

Once the deadline has expired, anyone who has not yet renewed their tax credits should still ensure they do so as soon as possible as otherwise their payments may be stopped, and monies received since last April may have to be repaid. We would strongly advise any of our readers still to renew their tax credits to do so as a matter of urgency.

Over 2.1 million renewal packs were sent out by HMRC between late April and early June. A renewal is required if the pack has a red line across the first page and it says, 'reply now'. If the pack has a black line and says ‘check now’, recipients will need to check the details are correct. If the details are correct the tax credit awards will be renewed automatically.

Taxpayers need to notify HMRC where there have been changes to the living arrangements, childcare costs, number of hours worked and salary (increase or decrease). Details of previous year's income also need to be completed on the form to allow HMRC to check if the correct tax credits have been paid.

As the school holidays fast approach, many parents face having to organise extra school holiday childcare over the summer months. Working families can use the Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) scheme to help if they have children aged up to 11 years old (17 for those with certain disabilities).

The TFC scheme helps support working families with their childcare costs and can be used to pay for accredited holiday clubs, childminders or sports activities during the school holidays. There are many registered childcare providers including school, football, art and tennis clubs signed up across the UK. Parents can pay into their account regularly and save up their TFC allowance to use during school holidays. 

The TFC scheme provides for a government top-up on parental contributions. For every £8 contributed by parents an additional £2 top up payment will be funded by Government up to a maximum total of £10,000 per child per year. This will give parents an annual savings of up to £2,000 per child (and up to £4,000 for disabled children until the age of 17) in childcare costs. 

The TFC scheme is open to all qualifying parents including the self-employed and those on a minimum wage. The scheme is also available to parents on paid sick leave as well as those on paid and unpaid statutory maternity, paternity and adoption leave. In order to be eligible to use the scheme parents will have to be in work at least 16 hours per week and earn at least the National Minimum Wage or Living Wage. If either parent earns more than £100,000, both parents are unable to use the scheme.

There are tax implications that you will need to consider if you previously left the UK to live abroad and are now either returning to live and work in the UK or are considering such a move.

In most cases, if you have returned to live in the UK you will be classed as resident in the UK and will be required to pay UK tax on your UK income and gains and any foreign income and gains.

Your exact liability to Income Tax will depend on whether you are resident and / or ordinarily resident and / or domiciled in the UK. For example, you may not be liable to UK tax on foreign income and gains if your domicile remains outside of the UK. The domicile rules are complex, and you must give consideration if affected.

When you return to the UK, you will need to register for Self-Assessment if required to do so, for example, if you are self-employed or have income / gains from abroad to report to HMRC. You would not usually be required to register for Self-Assessment if you are returning to the UK to accept a job as an employee and do not have other income to report.

If you had moved abroad and returned to the UK after a period of less than 5 years (temporary non-residence) you may have to pay tax on certain income or gains made while you were non-resident. This does not include wages or other employment income. If you were away from the UK for less than a full tax year then you will usually be liable to pay UK tax on any foreign income for the entire time you were away.

HMRC’s Childcare account can be used to claim 30 hours free childcare or to pay for your Tax-Free Childcare. HMRC’s sign in page for the account states that in order ‘…to keep getting your 30 hours free childcare or Tax-Free Childcare, you must sign in every 3 months and confirm your details are up to date’. There are various eligibility rules that must be met to claim the 30 hours free childcare through the Childcare Account. As a starting point you must be the parents of a child three to four years old and living in England. There are different schemes in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

The Childcare Account can also be used to claim under the Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) scheme. The TFC scheme can help parents of children aged up to 11 years old (17 for those with certain disabilities). The TFC scheme helps support working families with their childcare costs. There are many registered childcare providers including childminders, breakfast and after school clubs and approved play schemes signed up across the UK. Parents can pay into their account regularly and save up their TFC allowance to use during school holidays. 

The TFC scheme provides for a government top-up on parental contributions. For every £8 contributed by parents an additional £2 top up payment will be funded by Government up to a maximum total of £10,000 per child per year. This will give parents an annual savings of up to £2,000 per child (and up to £4,000 for disabled children until the age of 17) in childcare costs. 

The TFC scheme is open to all qualifying parents including the self-employed and those on a minimum wage. The scheme is also available to parents on paid sick leave as well as those on paid and unpaid statutory maternity, paternity and adoption leave. In order to be eligible to use the scheme parents will have to be in work at least 16 hours per week and earn at least the National Minimum Wage or Living Wage. If either parent earns more than £100,000, both parents are unable to use the scheme.

Businesses and self-employed people in financial distress, and with outstanding tax liabilities, may be eligible to receive support with their tax affairs by applying to HMRC’s Time To Pay service.

These arrangements are agreed on a case-by-case basis and are tailored to individual circumstances and liabilities. Agreements reached with HMRC allow businesses and individuals to pay off their debt by instalments over a period of time.

HMRC will usually offer taxpayers the option of extra time to pay if they think they genuinely cannot pay in full but will be able to pay in the future. If HMRC do not think that more time will help, then they can require immediate payment and start enforcement action if payment is not forthcoming.

An online payment plan for Self-Assessment tax bills can be used to set up instalment arrangements for paying tax liabilities up to £30,000. Taxpayers that qualify for a Time to Pay arrangement using the self-serve Time to Pay facility online, can do so without speaking to an HMRC adviser.

Taxpayers that want to use the online option must also have filed their latest tax return, be within 60 days of the payment deadline and intend to pay their debt off within the next 12 months or less.