-
HMRC ‘hitmen’ watching your spending
Hot on the heels of H M Revenue & Customs (HMRC) going to the extraordinary lengths of advertising on billboards and the back of buses see our previous blog article here, the Inland Revenue have confirmed they are setting up a “crack team” of tax inspectors to review what people are spending. Using data from credit rating agencies,…
-
Seed EIS scheme explained
Investors in higher-risk smaller companies have benefited for a number of years from the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS). The new SEIS is targeted to provide funding for early stage companies who may find it difficult to raise seed capital. Recognising these needs, the SEIS scheme also offers investors higher tax breaks than the existing EIS. The SEIS…
-
MACHINE GAMES DUTY- ARE YOU READY?
On the 1st February of next year income from certain gaming machines will become subject to new form of duty known as Machine Games Duty (“MGD”), which replaces Amusement Machine Licence Duty and VAT. Machines that will be affected are those where at least one of the available prizes is or includes cash more than…
-
HMRC to advertise for Tax Dodgers!
From today, HMRC have taken the unusual step of advertising for people to pay more tax. For the next two weeks, HMRC will be running adverts on billboards, bus shelters and telephone boxes, all in an effort to encourage tax cheats to come forward and declare any undisclosed income. HMRC has set up a website to…
-
VAT reclaim on business mileage claims
Many (most) employers no longer provide company cars, or fuel to their employees so as to avoid the penal, and ever increasing tax charges on them as benefits in kind. It has long been custom where employees use their own vehicles for business journeys to reimburse for the business mileage using fixed mileage rates. In…
-
New Child Benefit Tax Charge
From 7 January 2013, a new tax charge will be imposed on all individuals who receive the Child Benefit and whose income, or their partner’s income, exceeds £50,000 in a tax year. The charge will be proportionately increased until the claimants income exceeds £60,000. At that point, the charge will cancel out the child benefit,…
-
Considering the VAT implication of the FSA’s Retail Distribution Review
A great deal of discussion has taken place over the last year concerning the VAT implications of the RDR. There is a general unease that the move from commission payments to fee-based charging will result in VAT being chargeable on services which would have been VAT exempt pre-RDR. Following an informal consultation process, HMRC has…
-
VAT Cost Sharing Exemption
The new VAT cost sharing exemption has now been introduced into UK legislation. Businesses and organisations often work with others to share costs and resources. Under UK law many of these arrangements result in VAT being charged between the participants. Under the cost sharing exemption, once a cost sharing group is formed it does not…
-
HMRC to target “Affluent”
In an recent announcement HMRC have confirmed that anybody worth more than £1 million faces coming under scrutiny from inspectors in a fresh crackdown on tax avoidance. Expected to bring a fresh wave of attention to more than 200,000 taxpayers HM Revenue and Customs’ affluence unit is to target everyone with assets in excess of…
Understanding your business finances is about far more than meeting your statutory obligations. While many business owners focus on sales and turnover, a deeper understanding of profitability, cash flow and overall financial performance can lead to better decision-making and long-term business success. The financial statements produced by your accountant can …
August 14, 2026
Read more
free making tax digital briefing 