Often when making a donation, a charity will ask whether Gift Aid can be claimed on the donation. There are certain tax advantages and reliefs to making Gift Aid donations, which are explained in more detail below. Basic Operation of Gift Aid Gift Aid is a tax incentive that allows UK registered charities (and charities registered in other EU member states, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein) to claim the basic rate tax (currently 20% in 2018/19) back on the donation from HMRC. For example: Assume a taxpayer wishes a charity to receive a total of £100. The taxpayer will actually give the charity £80 and the charity will then claim back the £20 from HMRC. Tax Relief – Higher Rate/Additional Rate Taxpayers Further tax reli...

The government has recently published a draft of the Finance Bill 2018-19, containing measures that will form a part of the next Finance Bill. Consultation of the draft legislation will run until 31 August 2018, following which the final contents of the Finance Bill 2018/19 will be confirmed in the Autumn Budget 2018. A round-up of some of the key measures is provided below. Increase in Time Limits for Offshore Non-Compliance The current periods that HMRC are able to assess for both on and offshore non-compliance are 4, 6, and 20 years depending upon behaviour - 4 years where the taxpayer took reasonable care, 6 years where a loss of tax has arisen through careless behaviour, and 20 years where a tax loss has arisen through deliberate...

In Pimlico Plumbers Ltd v Smith, the Supreme Court has upheld the decision of the Court of Appeal that former self employed plumber Mr Smith (the taxpayer) was in fact a ‘worker’ of Pimlico Plumbers Ltd (Pimlico), and is therefore entitled to bring claims against Pimlico in relation to his status as a worker for the company. Background The taxpayer, a self employed plumber and heating engineer, worked for Pimlico between August 2005 and April 2011. Pimlico conducts a large scale plumbing business in London. After suffering a heart attack, Mr Smith made a request to Pimlico that his working schedule be reduced from 5 days to 3 days per week. The request was denied, and Mr Smith was subsequently dismissed. The taxpayer issued ...

The submission of an incorrect tax return may result in a penalty if the error was the result of careless or deliberate behaviour. However, where an individual can demonstrate that they took "reasonable care" when preparing their return, then a penalty will not be charged. Tax Avoidance Arrangements Where you entered into a tax avoidance scheme which is later defeated by HMRC resulting in an incorrect tax return, the presumption is that you have not taken reasonable care and will therefore be subject to the penalty. This applies for returns or documents sent to HMRC after 16 November 2017 relating to the 2017/18 tax year onwards. However, it you entered into the arrangement as a result of taking professional advice, then HMRC will gene...

In the case of Christa Ackroyd Media Ltd v HMRC, the First-Tier Tribunal found the that the former ‘Look North’ presenter Christa Ackroyd would have been an employee of the BBC, had she been providing her services directly, rather than through her personal service company (PSC), resulting in additional income tax and national insurance contributions (NICs). Background Ms Ackroyd worked at the BBC as a presenter for ‘Look North’ on BBC 1, pursuant to two fixed term contracts between the BBC and her PSC, Christa Ackroyd Media Ltd, from May 2001 to June 2013. The intermediaries legislation (also known as IR35) was introduced to prevent individuals from providing employment services to clients through an intermediary (e.g. a li...

In the recent case of McGreevy v HMRC, the First Tier Tribunal judge found in favour of the taxpayer, who was held to have a reasonable excuse for not filing their Non Resident Capital Gains Tax (NRCGT) Return within the 30 day deadline. HMRC will allow a taxpayer to appeal a penalty where they have a reasonable excuse, however the requirements that must be met in order for an excuse to be considered reasonable can be stringent. The ruling represents a common sense approach to determining what is a reasonable excuse. Background Where an individual is not a resident in the UK, and disposes of a UK residential property, the disposal must be reported to HMRC on NRCGT Return within 30 days of conveyance. Any tax due is payable by the s...

Trusts and complex estates with tax liabilities or reportable events in 2016/17 are normally required to notify HMRC of this by 5 October 2017. HMRC have now announced that as part of the introduction of the new online Trusts and Estates Register, this deadline has been extended to before 5 December 2017. Trusts and Estates Register The new online register for trusts and complex estates is being introduced as part of the EU’s Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive. The new register is designed to streamline the process by which trustees and personal representatives notify HMRC about their trust/estate.  Previously this process was done by paper.  The new service is also aimed at making it easier for details to be updated re...

The government has published the second Finance Bill of 2017, which contains a number of policies that were dropped from the first Finance Act 2017. The original Finance Bill 2017 was streamlined in order to pass the Bill into Law as a result of the decision to call a snap election in June 2017. The following legislative changes are included in the latest Finance Bill: a reduction of the dividend allowance from £5,000 to £2,000 from April 2018; measures to tighten and clarify the income tax treatment on termination payments (see our blog for more information); regarding pensions, a reduction in the money purchase annual allowance from £10,000 to £4,000 from April 2017; significant changes to the rules on non-...

The decision previously announced by the government to change probate fee charges has now been scrapped. The reason behind this appears to be the snap general election, with the notice from Newcastle District Probate Registry, stating: 'There is not enough time for the Statutory Instrument which would introduce the new fee structure to complete its passage through Parliament before it is dissolved ahead of the general election. This is now a matter for the next Government.' The draft regulations had proposed a new charging structure which would have seen vast increases in the amount payable by larger estates. The changes had been criticised as they were felt to be unfair, unpractical and more akin to a tax than a fee, therefore the scra...

The Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced that the proposed changes to class 4 National Insurance for self-employed individuals, declared in the 2017 Spring Budget, have now been dropped. Changes Proposed in Spring Budget 2017 It was announced in the Spring Budget on 8th March 2017 that the main rate of Class 4 National Insurance (NI) would increase from 9% to 10% in April 2018, and then again to 11% in April 2019. This meant that by April 2019, it would have costed up to £730 more per year to be self-employed, although when combined with the cancellation of class 2 NI, the real cost would be around £590. Update The government has now announced that they will not be going forward with the changes proposed above, and so class 4 NIC...