HMRC have launched a consultation, 'Modernising and standardising company tax returns'. It seeks feedback on the timeline for the new prescribed format for company tax returns and mechanisms ensuring compliance.

HMRC have launched a consultation, 'Modernising and standardising company tax returns'. It seeks feedback on the timeline for the new prescribed format for company tax returns and mechanisms ensuring compliance.

HMRC have launched a consultation, 'Reporting company payments to participators - modernising the reporting framework'. It proposes new rules that would make the reporting of transactions between close companies and their participators mandatory.

In Putney Power Limited and Piston Heating Services Limited v HMRC [2026] UKUT 00105, the Upper Tribunal (UT) found that Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) relief was not available on shares issued by the companies, as neither was trading before the relevant deadline.

Finance (No. 2) Bill 2025-26 received Royal Assent on 18 March 2026 to become Finance Act 2026. It contains a number of key measures, including the mandatory registration of tax advisers and the reform of Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief.

In CooperVision Lens Care Limited v HMRC [2026] TC09808, the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) found that sums received on the sale of shares were taxable as employment income as the shares fell within the Employment-Related Securities regime.

Hello,
We have a varied update for you this week. We delve into Stamp Duty Land Tax in the context of a towpath beside a dwelling, the meaning of ‘deliberate’ behaviour, pre-registration input VAT and its interaction with the partial exemption rules, the future of Income Tax devolution in Wales and much more.

The first company to be listed on the new PISCES market for private companies has been announced as QPlay, a board game maker. JP Jenkins pipped the London Stock Exchange (LSE) to list the first company under the new scheme aimed at boosting the UK's capital markets.

The Welsh government has published 'Future options for Income Tax devolution in Wales'. The independent report, commissioned by the government, compares keeping the current partially devolved system with moving to full devolution. The authors conclude that while full devolution would provide greater control, it would also carry greater financial risk.

In Alan Wood & Anor v HMRC [2026] TC09791, the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) found that the lower mixed-use rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) applied to the purchase of a riverside property with a public towpath running alongside it. The towpath did not form part of the grounds of the house, meaning the acquisition did not consist entirely of residential property.

In Anthony Outram & Ross Outram v HMRC [2026] TC09784, the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) found that two taxpayers who had participated in an ineffective tax avoidance scheme had not deliberately brought about a loss of tax as they believed their tax returns were correct. This meant that the extended period for HMRC to raise a discovery assessment did not apply.
