Employee National Insurance cut announced in the Autumn Statement takes effect (from 6 January). For many years, successive governments have been happy for the public to vaguely believe that national insurance contributions (NICs) are building…
Getting a head start: retirement planning attitudes in 2023
A survey of 6,000 people, aged 18 to 80, revealed starkly different views on retirement across the generations. According to the Office for National Statistics, the median age of the UK population in mid-2021 was…
National Living and Minimum Wages increase
Minimum wage rates will see substantial increases from 1 April 2024 – welcome news for younger workers and apprentices, but not so much for those employers struggling in the current economic climate. Eligibility for the…
WANTED: Insolvency litigation support
I am reaching out to my LinkedIn connection for some direct networking - I have seen an increase in the volume of insolvency work (rescissions, WUP, validation orders) coming through my pipeline in recent months…
Cash basis to become default
From 2024/25, restrictions to the cash basis will be removed, making it the default method for calculating trading profit for the self-employed and most partnerships. The accruals basis is currently the default, with a business…
R&D tax relief schemes set to merge, but concerns remain
The two existing research and development (R&D) tax relief schemes are set to merge, although the newly created scheme will be similar to the R&D expenditure credit currently claimed mainly by large companies. Although the…
Incoming NIC reforms for the self-employed
National insurance contribution (NIC) changes for the self-employed announced in the Autumn Statement come in from 6 April 2024 and will be welcome news. But the reforms don’t go far enough to offset the continuing…
Are we witnessing the decline of trusts?
The number of trusts filing self-assessment tax returns for 2021/22 was 37% lower than for 2003/04. The decline comes as no real surprise given the eroding advantages of using a trust and the recent requirement…
Updated tax guidance for electric company car charging
HMRC has updated its guidance to clarify that there is no taxable benefit when an employer reimburses employees who charge their electric company cars at home. Previously, HMRC maintained that the relevant exemption did not…
Powers of attorney move one step closer to the digital age
The administration of lasting powers of attorney (LPA) is on its way to becoming fully online. In an ideal world, you should have an LPA (or its Scottish or Northern Ireland equivalent) sitting beside your…