Following criticism from professional bodies and a number of unsuccessful visits to the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) HMRC has issued a revised version of VAT notice 733 Flat Rate Scheme to update their guidance in accordance with the FTT decisions.

In Colin Bielckus, Mark Arnell and Kevin Taylor v HMRC [2016] TC05044 the addition of voting rights attaching to shares were not enough to make them ordinary shares for the purposes of share loss relief.

In M & E McQuillan v HMRC [2016] TC05074 redeemable non-voting shares carrying no right to a dividend were not counted as ordinary shares for CGT relief on the basis that no right to a dividend amounted to a fixed rate dividend of 0%. This finding is contrary to HMRC's manuals.

In Bernard Bediako v HMRC [2015] TC05054 an accountant's misunderstanding of self assessment and the appeals procedure resulted in a tax penalty for the taxpayer.

The Chairman of the House of Commons Treasury Committee has written an open letter to David Gauke, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, raising concerns about the implementation costs for businesses of the Making Tax Digital proposals.