Month: July 2019

It looks increasingly likely that we are heading for a no-deal Brexit. Taken literally, this means that our present relaxed trading relationship with customers and suppliers in the EU will cease at the end of October this year.

Whilst there will be attempts to ease customs congestion and the effects of new tariffs, now is not a good time to sit back and see what might happen.

Many companies have already started a formal risk assessment to clarify how their supply lines and costs would be affected, and this is a process that we would recommend that all businesses consider, and as soon as possible.

Even if your business has no direct trade with the EU, many of your customers and suppliers will, and this indirect linkage will have ramifications for your sales and costs post Brexit.

Trying to double guess the antics in parliament is a seemingly fruitless endeavour. If we are going to survive the disengagement with the EU it would be wise to join the ranks of those businesses that are planning for all eventualities.

If you are still unsure how to proceed with a formal review of your Brexit planning, please call, we can help you consider your options.

New defensive controls recently deployed by HMRC have put an end to fraudsters spoofing the tax authority’s most recognisable helpline numbers.

Fraudsters have increasingly mimicked legitimate HMRC helpline numbers (often beginning with 0300) to dupe taxpayers and steal money. Last year alone, HMRC received over 100,000 phone scam reports.

The ‘spoofing’ scam worked as taxpayers would receive calls and, on checking the numbers online, would find they appeared to belong to HMRC. This often led people to believe fake calls were real and enabled fraud.

The new controls, created in partnership with the telecommunications industry and Ofcom, will prevent spoofing of HMRC’s most used inbound helpline numbers and are the first to be used by a government department in the UK.

Criminals may still try and use less credible numbers to deploy their scams – but that means they will be easier to spot.

1 July 2019 – Due date for Corporation Tax due for the year ended 30 September 2018.

6 July 2019 – Complete and submit forms P11D return of benefits and expenses and P11D(b) return of Class 1A NICs.

19 July 2019 – Pay Class 1A NICs (by the 22 July 2019 if paid electronically).

19 July 2019 – PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 July 2019. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 July 2019)

19 July 2019 – Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly return for the month ended 5 July 2019.

19 July 2019 – CIS tax deducted for the month ended 5 July 2019 is payable by today.

1 August 2019 – Due date for Corporation Tax due for the year ended 31 October 2018.

19 August 2019 – PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 August 2019. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 August 2019)

19 August 2019 – Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly return for the month ended 5 August 2019.

19 August 2019 – CIS tax deducted for the month ended 5 August 2019 is payable by today.

We are often asked to explain if the professional fees you pay, associated with a property transaction, are a tax allowable deduction.

The straight-forward answer is yes, they are, but it is necessary to consider the reason for which a property is purchased to determine which taxes are reduced by such payments.

Simplistically, if you buy a property with the intention to retain it and generate an income from letting the property, then any legal or other professional charges associated with the management of the property will be an allowable deduction. Any legal or other professional charges linked to the purchase or sale of a rental property will not be a deduction for income tax purposes but will be an allowable deduction for capital gains tax purposes when the property is sold.

Alternatively, if you buy and sell properties as a building developer, then all legal and professional charges associated with the purchase, development and sale of such properties will be a deduction for income tax or corporation tax.

HMRC confirm this in their business income manual:

Where taxable trade receipts would arise in respect of the sale of a property, the legal and professional fees incurred in the acquisition, development and sale of the property (including the cost of temporary mortgages or advances) should be allowed as deductions, but should be taken into account in any valuation of the land as trading stock.

The final sentence is worth further comment. Any development work in progress at the end of a trading year needs to be accounted for as stock or work in progress, and the value attributed to such work in progress needs to include the legal or professional fees associated with its purchase or development. This does not deny tax relief; it merely postpones it until the developed property is sold.

Could readers who are still confused by these issues and in need of further clarification and advice, please call.