Unbelievably, it has been illegal to make phone calls or text while driving a car, but not illegal to play games or take photos. Clearly, this loophole is begging to be closed and new legislation proposed, 17 October 2020, will aim to do just that.
More...From 1 January 2021, UK businesses that export, import or transport goods to and from the EU will need to comply with a number of new regulations. Inevitably, some will fall short and these will create delays, in your goods reaching EU customers,
More...The government is moving ahead with plans to build free trade zones - known as Freeports - across Britain after Brexit. Freeports are a special kind of port where normal tax and customs rules do not apply. In their place, simplified customs
More...HMRC is warning new students starting university that they could be targeted by scammers trying to steal their money and personal details. As new students start the academic year they can be particularly vulnerable to tax scams. Coupled with an
More...Home owners and landlords in England can apply for a grant to make their home more energy efficient. The Green Homes Grant will cover at least two-thirds of the cost up to £5,000 per household. For low income households these grants will cover all
More...On 12 October, the Prime Minister announced the introduction of a new three-tier system of local COVID-19 alert levels across England. The new system sets the levels at medium, high and very high based on local transmission rates. The legislation to
More...New VAT rules for building contractors and sub-contractors come into effect from 1 March 2021. The new rules will make the supply of construction services between construction or building businesses subject to the domestic reverse charge. The reverse
More...Company filing deadlines were extended for companies with filing deadlines between 27 June 2020 and 5 April 2021. Companies House is warning of delays in postal submissions and have said it is taking much longer than usual to process paper
More...There are special rules in place for taxpayers who gift land, property or certain shares to charity. This can include Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax (CGT) relief provided all the necessary conditions are met. There is no Income Tax relief on
More...One of the measures announced by HMRC at the start of the coronavirus pandemic was the introduction of emergency measures to help tax payers affected by COVID-19 to use the Time To Pay service. Businesses and self-employed people in financial
More...Our government has introduced a three-tier system for determining the local state of COVID infection and how restrictions in each area of England are to be applied. The grades are instructive. The three categories are: Medium alert level - This
More...The new 3-tier system for classifying local COVID alert status sets out what you should not do depending on the classification of your local area. At present they only apply to England. In summary they are: Local COVID Alert Level - Very High This
More...On Friday 9 October, the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak announced an extension to the Job Support Scheme (JSS). The expanded scheme will include additional support for employees of businesses that are forced to close because of local or national lockdown
More...To ease the financial burden on their employees, some employers may look at paying or refunding transport costs for their employees when they return to work. There are tax implications that should be examined. As a general rule, where an employer
More...The 2019-20 tax return deadline for submitting your paper Self-Assessment returns is 31 October 2020. Due to the impact of coronavirus, taxpayers were able to delay making their second payment on account for the 2019-20 tax year (due on 31 July 2020)
More...Any business that has overclaimed a Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) grant must pay back the overpayment to HMRC. The rules outlined below for paying HMRC back an overclaim also apply to businesses that would like to make a voluntary repayment
More...The Income Tax treatment of coronavirus tests and the provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to employees during the coronavirus pandemic is covered under specific HMRC guidance. The guidance explains how employers should proceed where
More...New guidance has been published on claiming the Job Retention Bonus. The Job Retention Bonus provides for a £1,000 bonus payment to employers that bring back an employee that was furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, and continuously
More...The tax and NIC advantages of certain benefits provided as part of a salary sacrifice arrangement were removed from 6 April 2017. The change effectively removed the Income Tax and employer NIC advantages of certain benefits provided as part of salary
More...The new £2 billion Kickstart scheme will enable employers to offer young people on Universal Credit - and at risk of long-term unemployment - state-subsidised work placements for six months. The Kickstart scheme is available to qualifying 16 - 24
More...The deadline for making a claim under the second round of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) is 19 October 2020. The second grant covers the quarter to 31 August 2020. This grant will provide up to £6,570 for the quarter (£2,190 per
More...HMRC has published official statistics on the number of companies claiming tax relief under the UK Patent Box. The Patent Box allows qualifying companies to apply a lower 10% Corporation Tax rate on profits arising from patent exploitation. The
More...As the EU withdrawal transition period draws to an end (completes 31 December 2020) UK businesses face yet more adjustments in addition to those presented by COVID disruption. Businesses that trade with the EU should by now have matters in hand to
More...The first shipments of UK beef departed for the USA on the 30th September 2020, marking an historic moment for UK farmers and food producers. Following the USA’s longstanding ban on EU beef - introduced in the wake of the BSE outbreak in 1996 -
More...The Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick, has announced that over 100 towns in England will each be given up to £1 million to kick start regeneration projects and give areas a boost. The funding to be received varies between £500k and £1m per town.
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