Hello

This week we take a look at a controversial new consultation on travel, review a case on dividends and introduce our new guides to Capital Gains Tax reliefs. We have updates on the new proposals for Entrepreneurs' Relief - a rewrite of our Incorporation guide, and we also provide more detail on the proposals for charging CGT on UK residential property and changing CGT Private Residence elections.

HMRC is consulting on various measures ahead of the 2015 Budget in March. We have some positives: a review of Employment Status to see if it is possible to create a statutory employment status test, and also a look at methods of communicating with small companies about R & D. However, we also have some negatives; following the announcement in December of changes to CGT Entrepreneurs' Relief, a new consultation unleashes a controversial plan to amend the employee temporary travel rules in order to restrict tax relief for travel and subsistence expenses by the owner-managers of personal service companies. I think that these look unworkable: if the government thinks it is losing tax in this area then it should reform the rules for everyone rather than on a piecemeal basis.

As always we have lots of updates and news. As well as the new Capital Gains Tax guide to reliefs, my favourite addition, this week's Editor's Choice is our 2015 Finance Bill tax update and rolling planner. As it says in the summary, "Don't ever feel overwhelmed by the huge volume of new tax rules and regulations: our rolling tax update and planner sets out all the key measures, dates and deadlines for you."

It can be quite easy to overlook key changes to the rules. Only recently one of the top accounting firms was taken to court on a professional negligence claim: it had overlooked changes to the Corporation Tax act. If the big firms, with all their resources, can't keep up to date then what chance have small firms got? Well, that's why we are here: our webservice is designed to help you keep up with all the key developments in SME tax. 

Best wishes

Nichola Ross Martin FCA Tax Director

www.rossmartin.co.uk

Your online Virtual Tax Partner®: practical support for accountants, tax advisers and their clients.

Quick News

Lawfully voted dividends cannot be reclassified as earnings
In Richard and Julie Jones v HMRC TC04171 the FTT decided that interim dividends, once lawfully declared could not be reclassified as remuneration subject to PAYE prior to the insolvent liquidation of a company. 

Consultation: temporary workers' travel and subsistence claims
New proposals look to restrict travel claims for those under overarching contracts of employment, controversially, the measures could extend to restrict travel claims for personal service company owner-managers.

Consultation: improving access to R & D tax credits for small business
Time to focus attention on R & D? These ideas look interesting: a raft of new measures following the Autumn Statement announcement that HMRC will provide new support assisting small businesses in their R & D claims.

Capital Gains Tax reliefs
Do you know your roll over relief, from your hold over relief? What are the limits to Entrepreneurs' Relief? What reliefs can you use on incorporation or disincorporation? Who can claim a main residence relief and when do you need to make an election. What happens now if you are a non resident with a UK residential property? Start here for an a glance guide to the key capital gains tax reliefs available to individuals and companies, with links to detailed guides and examples.

Self assessment: deadlines, late filing and late payment
Male Londoners are more likely to file their tax returns late. 

January 2015: key deadlines checklist
Don't forget time limits for certain loss claims and of course, tax credits.

Essential reading - subscription (paid) content

Incorporating a business
It is proposed that CGT Entrepreneurs' Relief will not apply to transfers of goodwill on incorporations made on or after 3 December 2014, so what are the alternative options? This practical tax guide takes you asset by asset through incorporation with worked examples to illustrate the interactions of different CGT and income tax relief.  

CGT: different ways of taxing UK residential property
Companies will be subject to two CGT regimes from 1 April 2015, this guide summarises the new tax regimes for UK and off-shore companies and individuals from 1 / 6 April 2015.

Editor's choice

Finance Bill 2015: tax update and rolling planner
Book mark this page. Don't ever feel overwhelmed by the huge volume of new tax rules and regulations: our rolling tax update and planner sets out all the key measures, dates and deadlines for you. Budget 2015: will take place on Wednesday 18 March 2015. 

CGT: main residence relief
This guide is stuffed full of practical guidance and like all our practical tax guides this one tracks cases in order to illustrate the major tax traps and pitfalls of this relief.

Practical tax notes on the legal formalities and tax treatment of dividends:

Legal or unlawful dividends: Companies Act 2006
Summary of the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 to be followed on paying dividends

Unlawful or illegal dividends: tax
A guide summarising the different tax charges depending on outcomes following an illegal divdend

Dividends: formalities for companies 
A briefing and overview for discussion with directors

Templates

Dividends: board minute

Dividends: tax voucher

See also  our Directors' loan accounts: toolkit and Close companies: tax planning and pitfalls for details of the section 455 tax charge and way that Chapter 6, Part 4 ITTOIA 2005 treats certain benefits and expenses to participators as dividends.

Employee share schemes
Giving shares to a new director or employee? The shares are very likely to be "Employment Related" and there are important income tax and reporting considerations. This practical guide provides an outline of the tax consequences when a company gives shares to an employee or director.

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