January 2007

Points to Ponder

This is now our Twenty Fifth newsletter – produced during January 2007 and issued in February 2007, to keep you up to date with some of the changes in Income tax, National Insurance and VAT along with compliance regulations for businesses. If you would like a copy of any past newsletters, please call and we can either send or e-mail them to you. In December, to celebrate two years of newsletters, we splashed out on colour and published a photograph of us all on the green outside 100 Gilders, so if you want to match faces to names when you call or drop in, and didn’t get a copy, please let us know.

January News.

Well, we have survived another Self Assessment deadline and first and foremost, we want to say that we are not going to have another December and January like those we have just worked through. As a prelude to the proposed revised Self Assessment deadlines of 30^th November, due to happen in 2008, we are bringing forward our record submission date to 15^th September 2007- it was 24^th October in 2006. Any records received after that date will be subject to a £50 surcharge and if they arrive after the beginning of December, we will not guarantee completing them on time. For once, since the start of Self Assessment, I am determined to have a break over Christmas and see the New Year in at home and not in the office! Please help. With the pressures on last-minute work, we haven’t had much time to research this newsletter, so there may be a bumper issue next month.

1. Company details needed on your Website and e-mails (Call Sue)

Just as on your business stationery, you must now give your company registration number, place of registration, registered office and VAT registration number on your Website and on your e-mails. This was introduced on 1^st January 2007 and non-compliance can attract a fine of up to £1,000. If you set your e-mail headers or footers to be transmitted automatically, this information will now go to every address used by your staff – do you have an Internet-usage policy in place?

2. Smokefree from 1^st July (Call Sue)

As far as I’m concerned, this is good news – I hate going in to smoky places and coming home smelling like an old ashtray. However, from 1^st July, when the ban on smoking in public places comes in to force, everyone will have to display notices on their business premises, to state that they are smoke-free – another sticker for the window.

December News

There have been a large number of handouts and information leaflets from various government departments and the tax press and the media in general. Rather than just give you the headlines here, we have decided to wait until we complete this frantic month of last-minute Self Assessment returns so that we can absorb everything in detail and pass on the relative points. Apologies to non-Construction Industry clients, but we do want to remind those most likely to be at risk that the time left to get employee status checked and in order is getting shorter. Don’t forget we can offer a “Health Check” review of your workers.

November News

1. Standing Order payments (Call Sue, Angela or Bernadette)

If using this method of payment would help you, we would be pleased to discuss a monthly or quarterly arrangement.

2. VAT Flat-rate Scheme (Call Sue)

This scheme can save many VAT-registered traders both time and money, but it is vital that you use the correct rate for your trade and not the one that saves the most money!

3 Bad news for Christmas Cheer

The EU Parliament has been challenged over the UK’s accepted rules that tax and duty are assessable on the point of supply, by considering a British-based application that goods bought over the Internet qualified as goods purchased outside this country but from another member state, and so should only be due for tax at the rate charged in that country. The application has been ruled out of order, so if you want your drink and cigarettes at the lower rates of duty and VAT charged by other member states, it means your Christmas shopping will still have to be bought over the Channel, in person. Mine’s a crate of red wine please!

4. Company Law Changes (Call Angela or Sue)

Many rules and regulations are about to change for companies, most of which will affect our limited company clients. We’ll keep you posted.

October News Summary

1. Yet another scam.

West Midlands Police are investigating a recent scam where a card is posted through your door from a company called PDS (Parcel Delivery Service) saying that they had been unable to deliver a parcel and you should call them on 0906 6611911, which is a premium rate number. DO NOT CALL THIS NUMBER, as this is a mail scam originating in Belize. As soon as you call, you will be billed £15. If you receive a card with these details, contact Royal Mail Fraud on 020-7239 6655 or ICTIS (the premium rate service regulator) at http://www.ictis.org.uk or your local trading standards office.

2. Inland Revenue Business Support Team (call Sue)

3. Worker status review service. (call Sue)

4. Is emigration really the answer?

5. Agency Staff and Worker Status (call Sue)

Although agency staff should be employed on PAYE by the agency, contractors must check the agency’s agreement with them for provision of workers, and ensure that there is a clause that indemnifies them from being deemed a direct employer of the contracted worker.

6. Offshore accounts

The Revenue will be given details so tell us first.

7. Impending fees increase

We have recently reviewed our pricing structure, and to keep in line with rising costs we propose to increase our charge out fees. Due to cost efficient & effective management we have been able to hold our fees for the last 2 years, however, we now have to bring our fees in line with the expense of running the business; we will continue our resolve to provide an efficient, friendly, approachable service to our clients.  We believe our fees will continue to compare very favourably with our competitors

Our review revealed an increase in time being spent on chasing late payment of monies due. We feel it is unfair to pass on these costs to clients who pay on time and so we propose to charge a £10 fee for every letter written to chase payment and we reserve the right to charge interest under the Late Payment of Commercial Debt (Interest) Act 1998.  These costs will be invoiced out on a monthly basis.

2. Home Information Packs.

If you sell your home after June 2007, you will have to supply the purchaser with a Home Information Pack, including an Energy Rating Certificate. Find out more from the Department for Communities & Local Government Public Enquiries on 020-7944 4400.

From July’s and August’s Newsletters

1. Composite Companies

Time to get out from under these “Umbrella” companies. Beware of IR35

2. HMRC Enquiries – Trials of Alternative Interventions

If you receive any of these forms of contact, please let us know immediately.

3. Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005

4. Revenue v Police – access to information.

An opportunity here for underhanded access to records.