Last Monday saw the release of the HMRC’s draft finance bill, detailing the reforms as to how the IR35 legislation must be operated in the public sector from April 2017.There have been strong reactions from industry bodies to the Government’s new ‘Draft provisions for Finance Bill 2017’, nearly 400 pages of new tax legislation setting out the draft provisions for technical consultation, including changes to National Insurance contributions, clampdown on salary sacrifice contracts for new car … [Read more...]
HMRC, are the gloves off? Is there a storm brewing?
Offshore scheme users face requirement to notify HMRC. Contractors can have their say on their incoming requirement to notify the taxman if they use an offshore structure with evasion “characteristics” which its creator failed to declare.Under proposals published last week, the parties behind such “complex offshore arrangements” structures must inform them to HMRC and provide a list of clients using it.But if the creator (or promoter) fails to declare the arrangements -- which the … [Read more...]
Autumn Statement: Hammond heaps on more anti-contractor measures
Philip Hammond seemed to wrong-foot the entire contracting industry in his first Autumn Statement (AS) today, November 23rd 2016, by not stating “IR35” once, neither in his speech, nor in his full report.But at AS 4.11, entitled ‘off-payroll working rules,’ the Treasury confirms that it will shift the responsibility and liability for IR35 in the public sector from PSCs to the ‘paying agents’, from April.It means that an adviser to contractors was right to tell ContractorUK on the eve of … [Read more...]
The door is firmly shut
ContractorUK has recently written that “Temporary staff agencies have avoided hundreds of millions (if not billions) in tax”…………..HOW? By a scheme that far too many agencies are allowing contractors and temporary workers to register with – THIS HAS TO STOP.In simplistic terms, the scheme pairs up all the workers, and routes them through a myriad of smaller Limited Companies. Clearly, these are NOT TRUE Limited companies. These mini employment companies are ultimately exploiting both VAT … [Read more...]
HMRC launches new employment status unit
Recruiters have been urged to review their practices to ensure individuals are not being misclassified as self-employed.The warning comes from employment lawyers after it emerged HM Revenues & Customs is launching a specialist unit to investigate firms suspected of withholding employment protection from workers, by using agency staff or calling them self-employed.The move was confirmed last week in a letter from financial secretary to the Treasury, Jane Ellison, to Labour MP Frank … [Read more...]
Why the future’s not bright for IR35 advice
Caring whether their adviser soon gets stuck between a rock and a hard place isn’t the job of a contractor.But new legislative proposals may mean the upshot of this predicament for advisers is a reluctance for them to assist temporary workers with tax and IR35 advice.This is the realistic prospect of a tabled piece of tax legislation that threatens to drive divisions between adviser (the professional who gives you guidance on IR35, for example) and client (you, the contractor).In the … [Read more...]
New Tax Avoidance Scheme Uncovered
WARNINGNew tax avoidance scheme uncovered with PSC’sHMRC has warned taxpayers against using a new ER-based scheme to reduce tax payable on earnings to 10%.How it worksThe scheme is described in the latest tax avoidance “spotlight” by HMRC: Capital Gains Tax: Entrepreneurs’ Relief tax avoidance scheme. It has three stages:A taxpayer who owns a personal service company (PSC) in the UK sells that company to an organisation based in Cyprus. This sale is correctly taxed as a … [Read more...]
Good News, HMRC announce the Personal Tax account service
Tax accounts for Business owners have been in operation for a number of years to enable the business to keep track of tax paid, payments due, etc. however there has been no provision for a simple easy to use system for the employees. Employees have had to endure long waits to connect to HMRC and lengthy discussions and form filling to ascertain whether there have been under or over payments in tax or simply advise of changes in personal circumstances.Good News, HMRC have announced that … [Read more...]
HMRC chief executive Lin Homer quits
The head of HM Revenue and Customs has quit with a £2.2million pension pot and a promise not to take a job in the private sector which will embarrass ministers. Dame Lin Homer, who has run HMRC since 2012, will leave in April after MPs criticised a series of failings and "abysmal" levels of customer service for members of the public. Dame Lin will not receive a pay off when she leaves HMRC when she leaves the Civil Service after a 36-year career in local and central Government. According to the … [Read more...]