Robinson Udale

Powers to prevent deliberate non-payment of PAYE

rudale — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 15:14:50 +0000

From 6 April 2012 HM Revenue & Customs will be able to ask employers to pay a security where HMRC consider that there is a serious risk that they won’t pay over their PAYE tax deductions or Class 1 National Insurance contributions (NICs).

The required security will usually be either a cash deposit from the business or director – held by HMRC or paid into a joint HMRC/taxpayer bank account – or a bond from an approved financial institution which is payable on demand.

HMRC have stated that these measures will not affect the vast majority of employers who pay their tax on time and in full, but where security is required it will no doubt put further pressure on businesses already struggling to manage their cash flow.

For assistance with PAYE compliance or cash flow management call Robinson Udale on 01768 892336 or email: rob@robinsonudale.co.uk

Self Employed – Class 2 NIC

rudale — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 09:39:05 +0000

Class 2 National Insurance Contributions change of payment date. From April 2011 payments of Class 2 NIC will become due on 31st January and 31st July, the same dates as the Self-Assessment payments.

For those who pay NIC quarterly there will be 2 payment requests made 6 monthly in October and April showing payments due on 31st January and 31st July retrospectively.

Monthly direct debits will stop for a short period after April 2011 and recommence so that payment dates are in line with Self Assessment. There is also an option to pay direct debit payments 6 monthly.

Budget Tax Data Card

admin — Wed, 04 May 2011 12:22:54 +0000

Provides you with the 2011 Budget and Tax data in a neat table that you can print out for easy reading.

2011 Budget Tax Data Card

HMRC Help to Reduce the Deficit

admin — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:10:25 +0000

HMRC are clearly trying to do their bit to help the government reduce the deficit with a tougher penalty regime for late self assessment tax returns and a new policy of penalising tax payers that don’t keep adequate records (see related news articles) which will no doubt raise significant sums of money for the exchequer from the unwary.

Business and taxpayers should take steps now to ensure that their records are adequate and we will be happy to advice on what records need to be kept.

With HMRC taking a tougher line on record keeping businesses may decide that now is the right time to computerise their accounting records and we can advise on suitable accounting packages that can be tailored to your business needs.

Changes to the penalties for late self assessment tax returns and payments

admin — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 15:08:21 +0000

From October 2011 new late filing penalties are to be introduced in respect of the 2010/11 tax returns which are due for submission by 31st January 2012. There will be no longer be a penalty cap and every late return will incur the £100 penalty. In addition if the tax return is more than 3 months late there will, in addition, be a daily penalty of up to £60 per day. Tax returns submitted more than 6 months and then 12 months late will incur penalties of an additional £300 or 5% of the tax due if this is higher.

The penalties for late payment of the tax will remain as at present with a 5% charge for any balancing payment not paid within 30 days of 31st January and a second 5% penalty if the payment is not made by 31st July. In addition a 3rd 5% penalty will now be charged if the balancing payment has not been made by 12 months after the 31st January due date. These penalties will be charged in addition to any interest due.

Tax Investigations

admin — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:30:03 +0000

HMRC will, from July 2011, be targeting up to 50,000 small and medium sized businesses annually to review their record keeping. HMRC statistics suggest that 40% of small businesses have inadequate records which means that potentially 2 in 5 small businesses are at risk from a random check which up until now have been relatively rare. HMRC can charge penalties of up to £3,000 for inadequate or poor record keeping and with HMRC hoping to raise £600 million it is expected that a large amount will be from penalties. This is in addition to any tax, interest and penalties for any errors on undeclared income which they may discover.

We suspect that initially those businesses which have accounts signed off in the last few weeks before the January 31st tax return deadline will be considered easy targets. We strongly recommend that your records are sent to us at an early date to mitigate the risk of any such potential enquiry by HMRC.