The introduction of Making Tax Digital (MTD) for VAT is fast approaching. From April 2019, some 1 million businesses with a turnover above the VAT threshold (currently £85,000) will have to keep their records digitally (for VAT purposes only) and

The Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Mel Stride has confirmed that the government will publish Finance (No.3) Bill on Wednesday, 7 November 2018. The Bill is so named as it is the third Finance Bill in the current special two-year session of

The Inheritance Tax main residence nil-rate band (RNRB) came into effect on 6 April 2017. The RNRB is a transferable allowance for married couples and civil partners (per person) when their main residence is passed down to a direct descendent, such

If a taxpayer owns a business as a sole trader or in partnership, a capital gain will be deemed to arise if the business is converted into a company by reference to the market value of the business assets including goodwill. This may give rise to a

A recent Upper Tribunal case examined whether a sole trader operating a skip hire business was entitled to Income Tax relief on irrecoverable loans made to a company. The company was owned by the sole trader’s father. HMRC had rejected the claim for

The annual allowance for tax relief on pensions has been fixed at the current level of £40,000 since 6 April 2014. The previous allowance was £50,000 and prior to 6 April 2011, the annual allowance was as high as £255,000.
The annual allowance is

In a joint statement issued by HM Treasury and the Bank of England it had been confirmed that the £50 note is to continue to be part of the UK currency. The new £50 note will be designed and printed on polymer, a thin flexible plastic that includes a

The Money Laundering Regulations (MLR) are designed to protect the UK financial system and put in place certain controls to prevent businesses being used for money laundering by criminals and terrorists.
Many businesses are monitored by the

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has launched a self-assessment checklist to help small business owners and sole traders to assess their compliance with the GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
The ICO’s interactive online checklist

HMRC has issued an updated version of their online guidance on Genuine HMRC contact and recognising phishing emails and texts. The guidance provides a current list of genuine messages from HMRC. This includes email messages, text messages and