Repairs or replacement of business assets

Posted on 21st September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

The term 'capital allowances' is used to describe the allowances available to businesses to secure tax relief for certain capital expenditure. The rules that govern the purchase of capital equipment such as computer equipment, vehicles and machinery by businesses are different to those for day to day business expenses that can be deducted from business income when calculating your taxable profits.

However, the fact that capital allowances have been given on the asset as a whole does not prevent a revenue deduction being made for a repair to that asset.

There are special rules for assets that are ‘integral features’.

Integral features are:

electrical systems, including lighting systems
hot and cold water systems (but not toilet and kitchen facilities)
space and water heating systems
air-conditioning and air cooling systems
lifts, escalators and moving walkways
external solar shading

In general, where the expenditure on an integral feature represents 50% or more of the cost of replacing the integral feature, then the whole of the expenditure is to be treated as capital expenditure on the replacement of an integral feature for capital allowances purposes.

Changes afoot at Companies House

Posted on 19th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

Due to new legislation working its way through Parliament, Companies House will be making a number of significant changes. In a recent blog post, they made the following announcement:

We’re approaching a pivotal moment in the history of Companies House. This legislation, The Economic Crime and Transparency Bill, will fundamentally change our role and our purpose and will give us the powers we need to play a more significant role in tackling economic crime. Over time, we’ll become an active gatekeeper of the data on our registers rather than a passive recipient, and we’ll have the tools to go further to prevent the misuse of corporate entities.

It's widely known that the UK has one of the largest and most open economies in the world. However, it’s become increasingly apparent that this openness exposes the UK to criminals who want to use our corporate structures for illicit purposes. This is one of the things the new Bill will address.

The measures in the Bill will make sure the UK continues to be a great place to do business, while enabling us to take a tougher stance against economic crime.

The measures include:

introducing identity verification for all new and existing registered company directors, people with significant control, and those who file on behalf of companies;
broadening the registrar’s powers so that Companies House can become a more active gatekeeper over company creation and a custodian of more reliable data;
improving the financial information on the register so that the register is more reliable and accurate, reflects the latest advancements in digital technology, and enables better business decisions;
providing Companies House with more effective investigation and enforcement powers, and introducing better cross-checking of data with other public and private sector bodies; and
enhancing the protection of personal information provided to Companies House to protect individuals from fraud and other harms.

As more details are published more information will be posted on our newsfeeds.

Calculate tax on company cars

Posted on 14th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

Where an employee with a company car is provided with fuel for their own private use by their employers, the default position is that the employee is required to pay the car fuel benefit charge. The charge is determined by reference to the CO2 rating of the car applied to a fixed amount, currently £27,800. For example, a CO2 rating of 150g/km would create a taxable benefit of £9,730.

The car fuel benefit charge is not applicable when the employee pays for all their private fuel, this includes commuting to and from work. Employees should keep a log of private mileage and can then use the published advisory fuel rates to repay the cost of fuel used for private travel to their employer. In this case, HMRC will accept that there is no car fuel benefit charge, and the employee will save the Income Tax charge on the private car fuel. It will usually be much cheaper to repay your employer for private fuel rather than to pay the Income Tax charge especially if private mileage is relatively low.

The advisory fuel rates are intended to reflect actual average fuel costs and are updated quarterly. However, the use of the advisory fuel rates is not binding if the employer can demonstrate that employees cover the full cost of private fuel by repaying at a lower rate per mile. There is also a lower advisory rate if the company car is fully electric.

Paying tax by debit card or business credit card

Posted on 14th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

It is possible to pay HMRC by corporate credit card or corporate debit cards. The use of these cards is subject to a fee. Payment by personal debit cards is currently fee-free. There is also no charge for payment by Direct Debit, bank transfer or cheque.

HMRC has not accepted personal credit cards since January 2018 when credit card surcharges on personal credit cards were banned.

You can pay HMRC online using a suitable credit / debit card for:

Self-Assessment
Employers’ PAYE and National Insurance
VAT
Corporation Tax
Stamp Duty Land Tax
Income Tax (because you previously under-paid)
Imported goods you have declared on the Customs Declaration Service
Miscellaneous payments (if your payment reference begins with ‘X’)

When making a payment for Self-Assessment, you should use your 11-character payment reference. This is your 10-digit Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) followed by the letter ‘K’.

HMRC will accept your online debit or credit card payment on the date you make it. This includes payments made on bank holidays and weekends.

Checking your National Insurance record

Posted on 14th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

HMRC offers an online service to check your National Insurance Contributions (NIC) record online. In order to use the service, you will need to have a Government Gateway account. If you don't have an account, you can apply to set one up online.

By signing in to the 'Check your National Insurance record' service you will also activate your personal tax account if you have not previously done so. HMRC’s personal tax account can be used to complete a variety of tasks in real time, such as claiming a tax refund, updating your address and completing your Self-Assessment return.

Your National Insurance record online will let you see:

What you have paid, up to the start of the current tax year (6 April 2023).
Any National Insurance credits you’ve received.
If gaps in contributions or credits mean some years don’t count towards your State Pension (they aren't 'qualifying years').
If you can pay voluntary contributions to fill any gaps and how much this will cost.

In some circumstances it may be beneficial, after reviewing your records, to make voluntary NIC contributions to fill gaps in your contributions record to increase your entitlement to benefits, including the State or New State Pension.

Who is a Scottish taxpayer?

Posted on 14th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

The Scottish rate of income (SRIT) is payable on the non-savings and non-dividend income of those defined as Scottish taxpayers. This means that Scottish taxpayers who also have savings and dividend income need to consider the UK rates as well as the Scottish rates when calculating their Income Tax bill.

Scottish taxpayer status applies for a whole tax year. It is not possible to be a Scottish taxpayer for part of a tax year. The definition of a Scottish taxpayer is generally focused on the question of whether the taxpayer has a 'close connection' with Scotland or elsewhere in the UK. The idea of being treated as a Scottish taxpayer is not based on nationalist identity, location of work or the source of a person’s income, e.g., receiving a salary from a Scottish business.

For the vast majority of individuals, the question of whether or not they are defined as a Scottish taxpayer is a simple one – they either live in Scotland and are a Scottish taxpayer or live elsewhere in the UK and are not a Scottish taxpayer.

More specifically, an individual will generally be defined as a Scottish taxpayer if they satisfy any of the following tests:

They are a Scottish Parliamentarian.
They have a 'close connection' to Scotland, through either:
i) having only a single 'place of residence', which is in Scotland; or
ii) where they have more than one 'place of residence', having their 'main place of residence' in Scotland for at least as much of the tax year as it has been in any one other part of the UK.
Where no 'close connection' to Scotland (or any other part of the UK) exists (either through it not being possible to identify any place of residence or a main residence) – then place of residence will be decided by day counting.

In most cases these tests will help identify a taxpayer's status. However, there is further technical guidance available where the answer is not clear.

What is a trust?

Posted on 14th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

A trust is an obligation that binds a trustee, an individual or a company, to deal with assets such as land, money and shares which form part of the trust. The person who places assets into a trust is known as a settlor and the trust is for the benefit of one or more 'beneficiaries'. The act of transferring an asset – such as money, land or buildings – into a trust is often known as ‘making a settlement’ or ‘settling property’. For Inheritance Tax (IHT) purposes, each asset has its own separate identity.

HMRC’s manuals states the following when describing what is a trust:

The law of trusts is based upon the concept of English law that property rights can be split into:

the legal ownership, and
the beneficial interest.

A person who is the absolute owner of property has both the legal and beneficial interest in it. This means that the owner will show up as legal owner, for example, on a land register or on a company register, and will also enjoy any benefit produced by the property.

The absolute owner may split the legal interest from the beneficial enjoyment. This can be done by giving the legal ownership to trustees and the beneficial interest to a named beneficiary (or beneficiaries). Alternatively the owner can keep the legal title and make themselves a trustee.

The rules are complex and there are different types of trusts that need to be considered, such as a joint property or bare trust.

Autumn Statement 2023

Posted on 14th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, has announced that he will deliver his Autumn Statement to the House of Commons on Wednesday, 22 November 2023. This move would imply that the annual Budget will not take place until the spring of 2024.

The Autumn Statement is used to give an update on the state of the economy and will respond to the economic and fiscal forecast published by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). The Autumn Statement also presents an opportunity for the government to publish consultations, including initiating early-stage calls for evidence and consultations on long-term tax policy issues.

The OBR has executive responsibility for producing the official UK economic and fiscal forecasts, evaluating the government’s performance against its fiscal targets, assessing the sustainability of and risks to the public finances and scrutinising government tax and welfare spending.

The Chancellor has made it clear that the main focus of the Autumn Statement will be to continue with measures to bring down inflation. We are therefore unlikely to see any major tax cuts that could further fuel inflation.

Tax Diary October/November 2023

Posted on 13th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

1 October 2023 – Due date for Corporation Tax due for the year ended 31 December 2022.

19 October 2023 – PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 October 2023. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 October 2023.)

19 October 2023 – Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly return for the month ended 5 October 2023.

19 October 2023 – CIS tax deducted for the month ended 5 October 2023 is payable by today.

31 October 2023 – Latest date you can file a paper version of your 2022-23 self-assessment tax return.

1 November 2023 – Due date for Corporation Tax due for the year ended 31 January 2023.

19 November 2023 – PAYE and NIC deductions due for month ended 5 November 2023. (If you pay your tax electronically the due date is 22 November 2023.)

19 November 2023 – Filing deadline for the CIS300 monthly return for the month ended 5 November 2023.

19 November 2023 – CIS tax deducted for the month ended 5 November 2023 is payable by today.

Companies House fees increase?

Posted on 12th September 2023 by Solutions Accountancy

Companies House have published information that suggests their fees may be increasing in the near future. And it’s all to do with the ECCT Bill currently passing through parliament.

To give it its full name, The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency (ECCT) Bill will change the role and purpose of Companies House and will provide the powers needed to improve the accuracy of the information on their registers and to play a significant role in tackling economic crime.

Companies House are quoted as saying:

“We want to be ready to take action, and we’re working hard on a number of different workstreams to make sure we’ll be ready to implement many of the measures as soon as possible after the Bill achieves royal assent.”

As a reminder, the measures in the ECCT Bill include:

introducing identity verification for all new and existing registered company directors, people with significant control, and those who file on behalf of companies;
broadening the registrar’s powers to become a more active gatekeeper over company creation and a custodian of more reliable data;
improving the accuracy of financial information on the register so that the register is more reliable and accurate, reflects the latest advancements in digital technology, and enables better business decisions;
providing Companies House with more effective investigation and enforcement powers, and introducing better cross-checking of data with other public and private sector bodies; and
enhancing the protection of personal information provided to Companies House to protect individuals from fraud and other harms.

If implemented in full, Companies House costs will increase to meet the additional functions dictated by the Bill.

Companies House fees are set on a cost recovery basis. This means their fees must cover the cost of the services delivered. They do not make a profit on fees charged.

In a recently published blog post Companies House said:

“We review our fees every year to make sure they’re set at the right level. This year, we’ve taken new future expenditure into account as well as making sure we recover costs from our existing expenditure.

Companies House fees are much lower than the global average and have not changed since 2016. Many believe our fees are too low. During the debates while the ECCT Bill has moved through Parliament, there’s been a focus on the low levels of our fees and on making sure we’re adequately funded in the future.”