Can tax be simplified? September 16, 2021 ICAS supports tax simplification as a vital part of building an effective and trusted tax administration system but making simplification happen isn’t simple. Why simplify tax? The complexity of UK tax legislation is reflected in complex tax administration systems which are difficult to use and do not facilitate compliance. Compliance is also undermined because many [...]
Hikes to national insurance funds a level of public services we can’t afford September 15, 2021 The government’s plan to increase National Insurance has sparked the predictable furore. The pressures to raise taxes to pay for the level of public services the electorate have come to expect is hardly new. The welfare state was created immediately after the Second World War. For a time, the financial demands were held in check. [...]
Exclusive: UK customs duties shoot up by 42 per cent to record £2.2bn since Brexit September 14, 2021 UK businesses and consumers have paid 42 per cent more in customs duties on goods since Brexit came into force on 1 January of this year, according to new data shared with City A.M. this afternoon. The jump to £2.2billion in customs duties – paid in the year from 1 January to July 31 of [...]
Exclusive: Tax benefits turn luxury watches into investment asset as imports swell to £500m September 13, 2021 A new audience of buyers of luxury watches is increasingly taking the market by storm as they view watches that contain precious metals as a stand-alone investment asset. The value of premium luxury watches imported into the UK increased 43 per cent in the last decade, with £488m worth of imports last year alone, compared to just £276m [...]
HMRC confirms probe into 153 people suspected of aiding tax evasion September 13, 2021 HMRC has confirmed it is investigating 153 suspected ‘enablers of tax evasion’, including unregulated tax advisers. Cracking down on ‘enablers of tax evasion’ has been a key area of focus for HMRC since it established its Fraud Investigation Service in 2015. HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service has been given additional resources to recruit more staff and, as a result, the number of investigations into [...]
Estimating figures: The new normal for tax September 10, 2021 ICAS has sent in its response to HMRC’s consultation on Basis Period reform, but what does it all mean for professional partnerships, seasonal businesses and others brought within the changes? And is there a wider application to the corporate sector? Priming the sat nav with the correct address for the final destination is a useful precaution even [...]
More than half UK SMEs delay adopting IR35 tax reforms September 6, 2021 More than half of the UK’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have not put in formal processes to adhere to changes to the IR35 rules, according to a new survey. A survey from advisory firm BDO found 55 per cent of SMEs using contract workers say they will worry about IR35 reforms when businesses return [...]
Freeports face delay due to ‘lack of tax detail’, experts say September 2, 2021 Tax experts have warned that the opening of England’s eight new freeports would likely be delayed because the government had yet to reveal details of the tax regime for the programme. After the locations for the new free trade zones were announced during March’s Budget the Treasury said that the programme could be up and [...]
Accounting body urges government to scrap tax reform plans September 1, 2021 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has today called for the government to drop tax reform plans which, the accounting body says, “will likely to create as many problems as it might solve”. The ICAEW today published a response to the UK government’s consultation on basis period reform. It reiterated the [...]
Civil investigations by HMRC fell during lockdown August 28, 2021 HMRC civil investigations into suspected tax evasion have fallen during the pandemic compared to pre-pandemic levels, according to FOI data obtained by national accountancy group UHY Hacker Young. The organisation said HMRC opened 278 civil investigations into suspected tax evasion during the first ten months of the pandemic, between 1 April 2020 to 31 January [...]