With many of us now working remotely from home, making video conference calls, uploading documents and conducting business online, how can firms ensure that their data and systems are secure?
The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) is designed to provide support for self-employed individuals whose businesses have been adversely affected as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The government is providing up to four taxable grants to those who meet the eligibility conditions. Claims for the first grant are now closed. If you want to claim the second grant you must make your claim on or before 19 October 2020.You need to consider whether your business has been adversely (negatively) affected before you apply for the SEISS grants. You need to confirm that your business has been adversely affected as part of the claim process.
Diary of main tax events October / November 2020 – 1/10: Corporation tax for year to 31/12/19, unless quarterly instalments apply
This scheme is for lower income earners who cannot work from home and have lost income as a result. This is an NHS Test and Trace Support payment of £500 and applies to employees who are required to self-isolate.
Advisory fuel rates: These are the suggested reimbursement rates for employees’ private mileage using their company car from 1 September 2020. Where there has been a change the previous rate is shown in brackets.
Considering an electric company car? There is currently a zero P11d benefit for the drivers of electric cars in 2020/21. The legislation for this change is included in Finance Act 2020 which also states that the benefit will be 1% of list price in 2021/22 and then 2% in 2022/23.
Leaving the European Union: The United Kingdom leaves the European Union at 11pm on 31 December 2020 when the transitional period ends. It is still unclear whether a trade deal will have been agreed with the EU by that date, and such an agreement is looking increasingly unlikely.
The Chancellor has announced a new 6 month Job Support Scheme to help businesses and employees survive the winter months. We are still awaiting full details of the scheme that will replace the current “flexible furlough” scheme but the main features are as follows:-
In the current challenging trading environment, many firms are asking more and more of their team. As such, having an effective reward strategy has never been more important.
Virtual meetings: Over the course of the past few months, we have all had to adapt to working remotely. Despite lockdown restrictions, many businesses have found ways to move their operations online, with all staff working remotely.
Diary of main tax events September/October 2020. 1 September: Corporation tax for year to 30/11/19 unless pay by quarterly instalments.
Class 2 National Insurance Contributions (NICs) are currently paid at the rate of £3.05 per week by self-employed earners. A person who is liable to Income Tax
Since 2019, the vast majority of VAT registered businesses with a taxable turnover above the VAT threshold (£85,000) have been mandated to keep digital VAT records and send returns using Making Tax Digital (MTD)-compatible software.
For VAT purposes the definition of a motor car has been amended several times over the years. The current definition states: “Motor car” means any
The calculation of Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme grants has proven to be complex, particularly as HMRC frequently changed the rules and the method of computation. Consequently, many errors have arisen and need to be corrected. The latest Finance Act requires employers to notify HMRC within 90 days where it turns out that they were not entitled to receive the furlough grants and there is a penalty for failure to notify them.
There has been a lot of speculation in the Press that the Chancellor may introduce radical changes to capital gains tax to start to repay the substantial Government borrowings to support businesses and employees affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
1/08
Corporation tax for year to 31/10/19 (unless pay quarterly)
Since 6 April 2020 where UK residential property is disposed of, the resulting capital gain needs to be reported and the capital gains tax paid within 30 days of completion of the disposal.
Although the temporary increase in the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) threshold to £500,000 was aimed at those buying their main residence, it also benefits those buying a second or subsequent property where there is a 3% supplementary charge.
Furlough changes: The government has been paying the wages of more than nine million furloughed workers as part of the coronavirus job retention scheme during the pandemic. Rishi Sunak announced that the scheme would be coming to an end
Small businesses with turnover below £150,000 may join the VAT flat rate scheme which makes their VAT accounting much simpler as they merely pay HMRC a percentage of their VAT inclusive turnover.