HM Treasury has opened Consultation on the abolition of 36 tax reliefs.
A list of reliefs was published by the Office of Tax Simplification in March 2011. The proposal is to abolish 36 of them in 2012.The reliefs selected for removal are either little used or target the wrong taxpayer population.
For example, the Capital Allowances: Flat Conversion Allowance seems to have only been taken up by around 1,000 businesses since its introduction, and the relief for Late Night Taxis is seen as largely benefiting higher paid workers in London.
The reliefs proposed for removal include:
- Payments to mariners to be disregarded for Class 1 NICs
- Grants for giving up agricultural land
- Pool betting duty payments related to safety improvement at football grounds or for the arts
- Mineral royalties
- Cycle to work days - provision of meals
- Late night taxis
- Luncheon vouchers
- Pools payment for football ground improvements
- Pools payment for support for games
- 10. Disregard for certain apprentices and students coming to the UK
- Assistance in identifying lost or stolen credit cards
- Nationalisation schemes
- Tax reserve certificates issued by HM Treasury
- Payments for the benefit of family members
- Class 1A - Exemption for prescribed general earnings
- Class 4 - Allows deduction in next tax year of losses incurred in 89/90 or previous tax year where losses from income other than trade or profession or vocation
- Deeply discounted securities - incidental expenses
- Life assurance premium relief
- Life assurance premiums paid by employers under E-FRBS
- Capital allowances - flat conversion allowances
- Capital allowances - safety at sports grounds
- Certain leases granted by registered social landlords
- Disadvantaged area relief (Stamp duty)
- Exempt Instruments
- Partial relief for company acquisitions
- Shared ownership transactions
- Transfers to registered social landlords
- Visiting forces and allied headquarters
- Disadvantaged area relief (Stamp duty land tax)
- Angostura bitters
- Black beer
- Land remediation relief
- Compensation for mis-sold pensions
- Harbour authorities
- Harbour reorganisation schemes
- Transfers in relation to harbour reorganisation schemes
The Consultation on the abolition of 36 tax reliefs runs until 31 August 2011.
