These updates will all appear in our next web-update - have a sneak preview.

Associated companies: another alert
We have picked up on the fact that a few websites have the new rules slightly confused. More

Accommodation: with travel or temporary workplaces
If you have followed the Tim Healy case (a self employed actor claiming tax relief on the cost of accommodation when appearing on stage away from home) then you will know that to obtain tax relief on such a cost a self employed person must show that the expense was incurred wholly and exclusively for the purposes of the trade. There can be no duality of purpose. so no tax relief if you admit that the real reason you have bought accommodation is because you were too tired to drive home (for further guidance see Self employed: accommodation costs).

For an employee we have a different set of rules (click the title for the full guidance), which mean that if an employee is travelling on business, or is required by their employer to work at a temporary workplace then accommodation costs may be paid by the employer or reimbursed directly and the cost will not be taxable because although the employee was probably too tired to drive home duality of purpose does not apply. 

Quite weird double standards created by our law makers but did you know this? If you have an employee who is working at a temporary workplace and you give him a cash allowance to use to pay for his own accommodation then that will be treated as being tax free. What about NICs you cry? Well, according to HMRC its fine to do that...More

VAT: pre-registration inputs
New businesses be careful when you are refusbishing trade premises, there is a growing body of case law which indicates that you may find your input tax claims blocked.

VAT: furnished holiday letting
Non-resident landlords of UK FHL who do not have a permanent establishment in the UK do not have the benefit of the VAT threshold. Consider using a UK agent if lettings are currently made via an owner's direct website arrangement in the UK.

IHT Business Property relief for Furnished Holiday Letting (FHL)
Those who are active in a FHL business will appreciate that it can take at least six hours a week to clean your average FHL, depending on how the last occupants left it, and that advertising and managing lettings is a time consuming task in the busy months. It is fairly widely agreed that the FHL which featured in the recent Pawson case was on the least actively managed end of the scale for this type of business and so in terms of settting a precident probably all is not lost, since April 2012 a qualifying FHL for income tax purposes needs now to be let for 105 days per year and actively marketed for 210 days. It will be interesting to see whether a tribunal will continue to view this as a business of wholly or mainly holding investment s

Statutory Residence day counting toolkit
You need to be keeping a day counting diary now for the 2014/15 year if you wish to claim non-residence or are likely to be split-year.

Statutory Residence: anti-avoidance
NEW: be aware of the consequences of being treated as temporary non-resident, this may affect CGT as well as income tax.

Intercompany debt write offs
Not all debts fall within the loan relationship or deemed loan relationship rules, our mini-guide explains...More