LATEST TAX TIPS AND COMMENTS FROM CLARKE NICKLIN

Clarke Nicklin have published January’s Tax Tips & News designed to bring you tax tips and news to keep you one step ahead of the taxman.

New Guidance on VAT-MOSS:

On 1 January 2015 the VAT law changed for electronic services that are supplied digitally to non-business customers. Those customers must now pay VAT on the e-service at the rate that applies in the country where they receive the service. It’s up to the supplier to work out the VAT due, and pay that VAT to the local tax authority. There is no minimum threshold of sales below which VAT is not due.

The UK has set up the VAT-MOSS system to collect and pay over the overseas VAT payable by UK based suppliers. However, in order to use the VAT-MOSS system a UK business must first be registered for UK VAT. Read More

Incorporation of a Business:

When a business incorporates and transfers its trade and assets to a company controlled by the seller, the assets must be transferred at open market value for tax purposes. The assets may include “goodwill” which is defined as the business reputation or customer relationships, including the value of continuing contracts.

The transfer of the assets may generate a taxable capital gain in the hands of the seller, as the assets will have appreciated in value during the time they were used or created by the first business. Read More

Shared Parental Leave:

Where a child is due to be born (or adopted) on or after 5 April 2015, its parents will be entitled to share the 52 weeks of maternity leave and 39 weeks of maternity pay or maternity allowance which is currently available only to the mother. (This ability to share parental leave and pay will not apply in Northern Ireland until the Northern Ireland Assembly passes the relevant regulations).

As an employer you need to be ready to deal with claims from employees to share leave and pay, and to report details of shared statutory parental pay in your RTI reports. Read More

Solicitor’s Disclosure:

As a qualified solicitor you need to be very careful not to make mistakes on your tax returns, as a tax investigation could do serious harm to your professional reputation. Taxpayers who make deliberate errors that lead to tax underpayments of £25,000 or more, may have the details of their name, address, amount of tax avoided and penalties paid, published on the internet by HMRC.

HMRC are currently targeting solicitors who have omitted income from their tax returns, and at the same time are offering a chance for solicitors to disclose any errors before they receive the call from HMRC.

This disclosure opportunity is open to solicitors who work within the legal profession as a partner or employee in a legal firm, or within a company. HMRC has promised that it will not publish the details of solicitors using this disclosure campaign. However, to secure this confidentially guarantee the taxpayer must make an accurate disclosure, and co-operate fully with HMRC if asked to supply any further information following the disclosure. Read More

Important Dates financial dates in January 2015

1 – Due date for payment of Corporation Tax for the year ended 31 March 2014

14 – Return and payment of CT61 tax due for quarter to 31 December 2014

19/22 – PAYE/NIC, student loan and CIS deductions due for month to 5/1/2015 or quarter 3 of 2014/15 for small employers

31 – Deadline for filing 2014 Self Assessment personal, partnership and trust Tax Returns – £100 first penalty for late filing even if no tax is due or tax due is paid on time
– Balancing self assessment payment due for 2013/14
– Capital gains tax payment due for 2013/14
– First self assessment payment on account due for 2014/15
– Interest accrues on all late payments
– Half yearly Class 2 NIC payment due
– Further penalty of 5% of tax due or £300, whichever is greater for personal tax returns still not filed for 2012/13
– 5% penalty for late payment of tax unpaid for 2012/13 self assessment