Did January end with a shock for you? Was your personal tax bill a lot bigger than you expected? Maybe the scenario below sounds familiar? Mark is in his full year of self employment and everything is going well. He did a tax return last year but there was only a few months self employment included so no… Read more »
I’ve heard that travel and subsistence expenses are changing?
In summer 2015 HMRC held a consultation on Employment Intermediaries and Tax Relief for Travel and Subsistence. This dry sounding title was enough to strike fear into many hearts. The consultation was looking at who should be eligible for travel and subsistence expenses, focusing those who are employed through an intermediary such an agency, umbrella… Read more »
Dividends for directors are changing
From April 2016 the way in which your dividends are taxed is going to be changing significantly. It will affect the tax that you pay in order to take profit out of your limited company. This change was announced in the July 2015 budget and became part of the 2015 Finance Act. How do things… Read more »
Lunch is on me! What can I claim for entertaining?
I’ll put it on expenses. Let me take you out to lunch. I’ll get this. I’ll put it through the business. It sounds great and it certainly happens a lot on TV and in films, but what is actually allowed in the real world? There is a lot of confusion between subsistence and entertaining and… Read more »
Why do my accounts show different types of profit?
Your accountant sends over your annual accounts and you open them in anticipation, your eyes scanning down the page for that all important figure. How much profit did I make last year? But wait a minute, there are two profit figures, maybe even three or four. Which profit figure should you be looking at? As… Read more »
Summer budget secrets and what they mean for you.
There was a lot of media coverage over the Chancellor’s summer budget with the usual discussion over average households, who will benefit and who will lose. Flying pretty much under the radar, almost unnoticed through all of this, were some budget changes that will have significant impact on small businesses in the UK. These budget… Read more »
What business clothing can I include in my expenses?
If you are going to dress for success in your business, then surely it is a allowable business expense? Unfortunately not. This is an area that causes a lot of disappointment for our clients as HMRC are very strict about what clothing is allowed. You will probably be surprised by how little business clothing you can actually include. Why… Read more »
What start up expenses can I include for my business?
Can I include business expenses before I have any income? Starting a new business can be expensive, with plenty of costs even before you have made your first sale. When you come to prepare your first year’s accounts for your new business, how do you know which start-up expenses you can include? When is my… Read more »
Why is my director’s salary such a strange amount?
Have you ever wondered why your director’s salary such a strange amount? Why does it change each year and why isn’t it a nice round figure? Where do these odd figures come from? It’s all to do with one of the main advantages you have as a company director. One of the benefits of having a… Read more »
Have you made any new tax year resolutions? 6 ideas to give you a head start.
April, the start of spring and also the new tax year. Have you made any new tax year resolutions? If you are self employed it is your business year end and a great opportunity to think about how things went in the past year and how you plan to do things for the future. If you… Read more »
