The 2012 tax return deadlines – 31/10/12 & 31/01/13
We are rapidly approaching the first tax return deadline of 31st October 2012, which is the deadline for paper tax returns to be submitted. The second deadline of 31st January 2013 applies for online submission of the tax returns, so if the first deadline is missed then a penalty can be avoided if online submission […]
HMRC systems downtime October 2012
As you know, the 31st October Self Assessment filing deadline is approaching. However, HMRC’s systems will be down this weekend: From Friday 12 October 06:00 to Monday 15 October 06:00 Occasionally the downtime overruns, so it may be later than that before online access is restored. It’s another reason why I recommend that people submit […]
ATT – Member Steering Group
This week saw another quarterly meeting of the ATT’s Member Steering Group (formerly the Member and Student Services Committee.) The meeting was held at the ATT’s head office near Westminster. I have been attending these meetings regularly for several years now and it is great to see the growth and development over time. If you […]
James McBrearty, ATT representative for HMRC Working Together
As I reported in my summer summary posting, I have been appointed as the representative for the Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) on the HMRC Working Together project. If you haven’t heard of the project before, Working Together (WT) is a partnership between HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and the six main agent representative bodies […]
Video – The Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT)
You are most likely aware of the Association of Taxation Technicians(ATT), as they set the benchmark in technical education and qualification for taxation technicians. It is the leading professional body for qualified taxation technicians who specialise in complying with UK tax obligations, compliance services and related activities. I have been a member of the ATT […]
Video – What exactly is an accountant?
When you hear the term accountant you may already have an image and think that you know what this is… …however things are not always as they seem, and there can in fact be large differences between them:
Capping income tax reliefs?
There is currently a consultation underway, delivering a cap on income tax relief. People may think that this only applies to High Net Worth taxpayers, as there was a lot of publicity relating to the aspect on charitable giving – however there is in particular one point that could be very relevant to the self-employed. […]
Using the bad weather to beat the taxman
We have had a particular rainy ‘summer’ this year in the UK, which has affected many people’s plans for trips during the holidays. Hopefully the weather will dry out later in the year, however it does present an opportunity to get ahead with your tax now so you can relax later. The deadline for a […]
How often should you post a blog?
Yesterday I covered the point that the length of your blog does not have to be a specific amount. Today I will cover the other point that can put people off – how often should I post a blog? The more often you are posting a blog, the more traffic you should receive to your […]
How long should a blog post be?
One of the things that can put people off blogging is the thought of having to write a set number of words. If you are writing a post for someone else they may have a requirement of say 500 or 1000 words, which can be a struggle for those starting out. The good news is […]
HMRC taskforces targeting London & the South East
HMRC have recently announced several new taskforces that will be concentrating on different trades in different areas throughout the country. For London they will be targeting the property market – covering rentals and property transactions. For the South East the team will be targeting overdue tax returns. The taskforces are teams of tax investigators who […]
Tax tips for the newly self-employed
In the video below I talk about tax tips for the newly self-employed. When starting a business, tax is usually not the most important thing that people are thinking about. This video will provide quick pointers to the most common points missed when people start up. With fines for getting things wrong running into thousands […]