Blog Feed: Because not all accountants are the same

Self-Employed Travel Expenses

Published on 2013-03-13 15:07:00

If you are self-employed you may have a number of customers you go to regularly to work at their premises. This could apply to mobile hairdressers, cleaners, gardeners, and even medical professionals who work at private clinics. The miles you dri

Annual Payroll and RTI

Published on 2013-02-28 12:23:00

Under real time information (RTI) PAYE reporting, a Full Payment Submission (FPS) report is required to be made to HMRC every time an employee is paid, not just once after the end of the tax year as is currently the case. RTI will be compulsory fo

Letting Relief Explained

Published on 2013-02-02 11:51:00

If you have let a property which was once your main home, or was treated as your main home as you lived in job related accommodation, letting relief can help reduce the tax you pay on the eventual sale. This tax relief cannot apply to a buy-to-le

Gifting Assets or Shares

Published on 2012-09-25 15:16:00

If you plan to gift assets or shares to your relatives, there are several taxes you need to consider: Capital Gains Tax You won't make an actual profit or gain when you give away assets or shares, so you may not expect to pay capital gains tax. However, when the gift is made to a person connected to you, such as your son or daughter, UK tax law deems you to have made a transfer of the asset

Whose Fault is Underpaid Tax?

Published on 2012-09-17 15:12:00

Have you received a tax calculation (on form P800) which shows you owe tax that you thought had been collected under PAYE? Every year the Tax Office undertakes a 'PAYE reconciliation' to check whether the tax collected from pensions and salary under PAYE was the correct amount. Where a taxpayer has a number of jobs or several pensions in a year, the PAYE system can get it wrong, leaving

VAT Self-billing

Published on 2012-09-11 14:54:00

'Self-billing' is where the customer in the supplier/customer relationship raises the invoices to themselves for work done or goods provided by the supplier, instead of the supplier raising those invoices. Self-billing helps large organisations that need to pay out lots of small amounts to hundreds of suppliers. It allows their purchase invoices to be standardised which saves costs when

Child Benefit Clawback

Published on 2012-09-07 18:17:00

If your net taxable income last year was £50,000 or more you will shortly receive a letter from the Tax Office about child benefit. You can safely bin this missive if your children are no longer eligible for child benefit, but where you or your partner/spouse claim child benefit you need to pay attention. This is because from 7 January 2013 the higher earner in the family (where that person

Connect with me on LinkedIn

Published on 2012-09-07 16:48:00

If you use LinkedIn and wish to connect on the site with me then please follow the link below:

An introduction to Harries Watkins Jones

Published on 2012-09-07 16:32:00

Restricted losses ahead

Published on 2012-08-23 08:45:00

A lot of businesses have made significant losses in the current recession and will continue to make losses for a while yet. Where those losses are made outside of a company they can generally be set-off against the entrepreneur's other income, or in some cases their gains, without limit. There are restrictions on the use of losses made from a business where the trader is not actively involved.

VAT onlie are you ready?

Published on 2012-08-20 08:37:00

Have you signed-up with the Tax Office to submit your VAT returns online, or agreed that we will do this online filing for you? If neither applies then you will shortly receive a letter from the Taxman reminding you of your online filing obligations. Almost all VAT businesses are now required to submit their VAT returns online for periods starting on and after 1 April 2012. The only

August 2012 Question and Answer

Published on 2012-08-17 08:19:00

Q. Our company is owned jointly by myself and my wife, and we are both directors of the company. I do most of the work and draw a lot of funds out of the business, so my director's account with the company is often overdrawn. My wife has another paid position, so doesn't draw so much from the company. Her director's account with the company is always in credit. Can our two director's accounts

April 2012 Tax Questions & Answers

Published on 2012-04-19 14:17:00

Q. I am about to move abroad, for what I hope will be a permanent relocation. Can I continue to contribute to my tax-free ISAs in the UK? A. To open an ISA you must be resident and ordinarily resident in the UK for tax purposes. This broadly means that you normally live in the UK. There are exceptions for members of the military and government employees who are sent to work abroad. Once

Autumn Statement Tax Summary

Published on 2011-12-11 11:21:00

  George Osborne did not have great tidings to impart when he presented his Autumn Statement to the House of Commons on 29 November 2011. The best he could offer the ordinary taxpayer was a freeze in road fuel duty until 1 August 2012, when it will increase by 3.02p per litre. Train and tube fares were due to rise by a whopping

November 2011 Tax Questions & Answers

Published on 2011-11-08 07:49:00

Q. I left London on 5 May 2010 to work full time for a Danish company in Copenhagen. My own UK-based company ceased at that time, and I received a capital payment on 30 November 2010. As I received that money after I left the UK permanently, do I have to pay UK tax on the pay-out? A. Unfortunately yes. Although you may be regarded as not resident in the UK for income tax purposes from 5 May 2010

Business Record Checks Update

Published on 2011-10-15 11:30:00

The Taxman believes that a lot of businesses do not pay the right amount of tax because they don't accurately record their business income and expenditure. In other words their business records are not of a high enough standard to produce accurate accounts. We agree that many businesses do not keep perfect records but we work with business owners to help them retain the necessary documents,

Splitting Businesses to Avoid VAT

Published on 2011-10-08 10:19:00

Now that the standard rate of VAT has been raised to 20%, some business owners are increasingly tempted to split their businesses into different entities, so the part with non-business customers or both parts falls under the compulsory VAT registration threshold when split. This enables them not to register to have to charge VAT to those customers. The Taxman is watchful of this type of tax

October 2011 Tax Questions & Answers

Published on 2011-10-02 12:41:00

Q. My cafe was badly damaged in the recent riots, but my loyal customers have collected £3,000 to help me open the business as quickly as possible. How should I treat this sum for tax purposes? Is it a personal gift, or a contribution to be set against my repair costs? A. This gift from your customers should be treated as income for your business for income tax or corporation tax purposes

New Mileage Rates

Published on 2011-09-27 11:28:00

Where your employees use a company car or van, but pay for the fuel themselves, the company can pay a fuel-only mileage rate for business journeys. This fuel-only rate is guaranteed to be tax free when it is equal to or less than the advisory fuel rates set by HMRC. These advisory fuel rates are now revised every quarter. The latest rates applicable from 1 September 2011 are shown below for

Tax Refund Scam Email

Published on 2011-09-20 11:59:00

Today I received an email telling me that I was entitled to a tax refund of £268.50!    Of course this would be very nice, but as I make my living giving professional tax advice, I instantly knew that sadly this was just a scam.  I have seen many of these before, but this is the first that I have been sent directly as the target of a tax refund scam!  A copy of the email is below: Many people

Preferred Advisers for the Commonwealth Judo Championships 2012

Published on 2011-09-07 05:42:00

I am very pleased to announce that Harries Watkins Jones are the preferred adviser to CJC2012 LTD a company formed to arrange and deliver the Commonwealth Judo Championships 2012.  The event will take place in Cardiff, commencing on the 22nd January 2012.  An exciting high profile event for Cardiff and Wales.   To find out more about the event, visit the official website.  The Commonwealth Judo

Jointly Held Property Tax Savings

Published on 2011-09-06 17:37:00

With the threshold for 40% tax reducing every year (£35,000 after deducting allowances for 2011/12), it makes sense to review who pays the higher rates of tax within a family. Can some assets be transferred to the partner who pays a lower tax rate to reduce tax? For example a let property could be transferred from one spouse into the joint ownership of the married couple or civil partners,

Harries Watkins Jones Hits Number 1!

Published on 2011-09-05 07:13:00

The Contractor Supermarket website has a chart of what it rates as the top 100 contractor accountants.  Customers assess accountants in relation to quality, service and satisfaction.  We are pleased to announce that today we have reached the position of number 1 in the chart! You can see the chart here.  We would like to thank everybody that voted for us.  We however are not complacent and are

Web Bots Are Out to Get You!

Published on 2011-07-05 10:25:00

The Taxman has announced he is going to start targeting tax evasion by online traders, private tutors, personal trainers and life coaches. In order to find out who is failing to pay tax on all their income the Taxman is to send out web bots (automa

July's Tax Questions and Answers

Published on 2011-07-02 13:00:00

Q. I've always prepared the accounts for my own company and submitted them to Companies House and the Tax Office with no problems. However, this year the Taxman sent back my company's accounts and tax return saying they were in the wrong format. I'm

Tax Efficient Profit Extraction

Published on 2011-07-01 07:42:00

As a company owner you can choose how to extract the profits from your company, and by making the right choices you can minimise the tax and NI paid by you and the company. The Taxman would like you to take all the profits in the form of a salar

Missing Trader Fraud

Published on 2011-06-30 12:51:00

This is a type of VAT fraud that costs the UK millions of pounds every year. It works like this... A VAT registered company based in the UK purchases small high-value goods (such as mobile phones) in another EU country and imports them into the UK

Property Development Issues

Published on 2011-06-28 11:44:00

There are a wide range of tax issues to consider when developing properties. Here we touch on just a few of them... - Your own home is normally free of capital gains tax when you sell it, but this tax exemption does not apply if you purchase a prop

June's Questions and Answers

Published on 2011-06-27 07:33:00

Q. In 2009 my family and I moved out of the home I owned and rented a house near my daughter's school. I have recently sold the original home. Do I qualify for the capital gains tax exemption on that property, even though I wasn't living in it when i

Higher Penalties for Late Tax Returns

Published on 2011-05-19 07:54:00

Your personal self-assessment tax return for the tax year to 5 April 2011 must be submitted to HMRC by 31 January 2012, or by 31 October 2011 if it is submitted in paper form. These deadlines also apply to your separate partnership tax return wher

May's Tax Questions and Answers

Published on 2011-05-03 04:20:00

Q. My business is to become VAT registered from 1 June 2011, but before that I will be taking delivery of a piece of equipment which will be used by the business for a number of years. Can I reclaim the VAT charged on the cost of the equipment eve

New Pensioners to Receive Tax Bills

Published on 2011-04-18 11:33:00

If you first received your state pension after 5 April 2010 you may have to pay an unexpected tax bill. This is because of yet another programming error with the Tax Office PAYE computer. The state retirement pension is taxable but it is paid witho

Plumbers Tax Safe Plan

Published on 2011-04-07 06:41:00

The Taxman has launched a new tax disclosure opportunity called the Plumbers Tax Safe Plan (PTSP). It is aimed at plumbers and heating engineers who have not fully disclosed all of their income on their tax returns in the past. However, anyone in any

April's Tax Questions and Answers

Published on 2011-04-01 03:43:00

Q. I generally invoice about £5,000 per month, some £60,000 per year, so my business is not yet VAT registered. However, from 1 April a new customer will provide an additional £2,000 of sales per month. When exactly will I have to register for

Budget 2011, Tax Summary

Published on 2011-03-24 05:56:00

This article aims to summarise the main tax measures of yesterdays Budget however it is not intended to be comprehensive.   Individuals   Personal Allowances These allowances represent the amount of an individual's income in the tax year that

Traps with the Flat Rate VAT Scheme

Published on 2011-03-09 11:52:00

The VAT flat rate scheme for small businesses is generally straight-forward to operate, but here are a few traps to watch out for. Use the right rate You will be aware that the standard rate of VAT increased to 20% on 4 January 2011. The flat rat

Leaving it to Charity

Published on 2011-03-06 09:37:00

If you haven't made a Will, you should do so without delay. If you don't have any relatives you want to leave your estate to, consider making a Will that leaves most of your assets to specified charities. This avoids the potential problem of intes

Taxation Editor

Published on 2011-03-03 06:42:00

I am pleased to announce that I have accepted the role as Tax Editor on totalinvestor.co.uk.  I am honoured to have been chosen for this position. Total Investor is a multi disciplinary information website for both consumers and professionals.  It

March's Tax Question & Answers

Published on 2011-03-01 11:50:00

Q. I've been told I will have to pay all my business taxes online very soon. How can I do this if I don't have internet banking? A. It will be compulsory to pay corporation tax electronically from 1 April 2011, and to pay all VAT due electronically

Taxman to Hassle Tax Cheats

Published on 2011-02-25 14:01:00

In addition to 50,000 letters being sent about keeping business records, the Taxman is writing to 12,000 self-employed people who claim Tax Credits, to check whether they have been under-stating their income. As a self-employed person you can clai

Clamp-down on Loan Schemes

Published on 2011-02-07 04:44:00

There are a number of tax saving schemes marketed to freelancers and contractors, but these schemes can be sensitive to changes in the tax law. One such scheme that involves loans made though particular trusts (known as EBTs) has recently been tak

How to Challenge a VAT penalty

Published on 2011-02-05 10:22:00

If you receive a VAT penalty, perhaps because you have submitted your VAT return late, the Taxman should offer an independent review of the penalty. You should certainly take up this offer of a review, as this may be the first time that a human (ra

More PAYE Reconciliations

Published on 2011-02-05 04:21:00

In October and November last year the news was that the Taxman was issuing 6 million tax reconciliations (forms P800), for the tax years 2008/09 and 2009/10. This process is still not complete, but the Taxman has started to issue a further 450,000

Changes to Tax Credits

Published on 2011-02-01 08:39:00

The system of Child and Working Tax Credits is due to be reformed over the next few years, and it is expected a new benefit called Universal Credit will replace the familiar Tax Credits from April 2014. Before then there will be some significant c

February's Questions & Answers

Published on 2011-02-01 06:54:00

Q. My husband inherited a house in 1986 when it was worth £40,000. He gave me a half share in the property in 2009 when it was worth £450,000. We sold the property in December 2010 for £460,000, but we never lived there. How do I calculate my

January's Tax Tips & News

Published on 2011-01-02 12:07:00

Happy New Year & Welcome... To January's Tax Tips & News, our newsletter designed to bring you tax tips and news to keep you one step ahead of the taxman. A reminder that the most immediate issue to deal with for most businesses is of cour

What are Self-assessment tax returns?

Published on 2010-12-19 06:31:00

These are tax returns issued by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) for completion by UK tax payers. The regime was introduced in 1997, with the idea of simplifying the UK tax system and it is certainly debatable if this has been achieved! Who needs

December's Tax Tips & News

Published on 2010-12-02 06:09:00

Welcome... To December's Tax Tips and News, our newsletter designed to bring you tax tips and news to keep you one step ahead of the taxman. Following the Autumn Statement, we thought this would be a good time to also remind you of the main tax c

November's Tax Tips & News

Published on 2010-11-03 06:04:00

Welcome... To Harries Watkins Jones November's Tax Tips & News, our newsletter designed to bring you tax tips and news to keep you one step ahead of the taxman. If you need further assistance just let us know or you can send us a question for

Congratulations to Natalie

Published on 2010-10-29 08:05:00

Congratulations to Natalie Davies who recently qualified as a Chartered Certified Accountant.  Natalie began her training with Harries Watkins Jones in 2006, which consisted of gaining practical professional experience and passing a daunting number

Changes to UK Child Benefit

Published on 2010-10-07 06:16:00

In the political party conferences this Autumn, it is the Chancellor George Osborne's announcement about the changes to Child Benefit that has received the most publicity. The press has jumped upon this with many television headlines and news articl

October's Tax News & Tips

Published on 2010-10-05 10:29:00

Welcome  October's Tax Tips & News, our newsletter designed to bring you tax tips and news to keep you one step ahead of the taxman.  Should you wish to be emailed a copy each month then you can subscribe here. If you need further assistance j

September's Tax Tips & News

Published on 2010-09-04 16:51:00

Cycle to Work Scheme Update The cycle to work scheme allows employers to lend cycles to their employees tax-free, and in some cases the employees can purchase the cycle at the end of the loan period. However, the Taxman is looking carefully at abuses