News Room

A parent company with a 100% subsidiary is planning to purchase bare land from its wholly owned subsidiary with a view to eventually transferring the land as a distribution in specie to its shareholders; these consist of another company which has 60% of the shares of the parent, and an un-connected individual for whom we […]

A client of mine has recently had quite a few members of staff approach them to ask to move to homeworking permanently. Before the pandemic, they were all in the office, but after moving to homeworking during the lockdowns, they realised how much they prefer it. Some have never returned to the office, whilst others […]

The government has delayed the introduction of Making Tax Digital (MTD) for income tax for landlords and self-employed by two years until 2026 and raised the threshold   To read the full article – CLICK HERE

Overseas entities that own land or property in the UK are required to declare their beneficial owners by 31 January 2023.   To read the full article – CLICK HERE

My client wishes to pay a tax-free retirement bonus to one of their employees who is retiring after 25 years’ service, is this possible?   To read the full article – CLICK HERE

My client has submitted her VAT return late again and knows that a Default Surcharge would normally be applied to her account. However, she has read somewhere that HMRC has changed the penalty regime for late submission & payment; is this correct? If so, when will the changes take effect and what will this mean […]

Two of my clients, a married couple, have jointly held residential investment property. The husband is a higher rate taxpayer and the wife is a basic rate taxpayer and they would like to change the allocation of the property income. They do not want to change their 50/50 capital interest so have decided to form […]

I have a client who bought a van on HP for £50,000 + VAT. They recovered the £10,000 of VAT up front on the basis that it should be treated as a supply of goods. HMRC have queried the client’s VAT recovery because the agreement refers to ‘period of hire’ and has an ‘option to […]

I have a client who was previously self employed making personal pension contributions. Unfortunately, his business has proved unsuccessful, and he has now taken on an employed role. Income from his new employment will be £60,000 per annum. He has asked me about higher rate tax and pension contributions and how pension payments will be […]

My client is a VAT registered business and has been asked to install a ground source heat pump in a domestic property. The client is supplying materials (£2,000 excluding VAT) and labour (£2,000 excluding VAT. The client has been looking at HMRC’s VAT Notice 708/6 on Energy Saving Materials and is unsure if the reduced […]

My client is selling a commercial building which she owns and which is used by her personal trading company. She is looking to use the proceeds from the sale of the building to purchase a property which she will personally operate as a Furnished Holiday Let (FHL). Would she be able to claim Rollover Relief […]

My client went over the VAT threshold in June 21 as she had three holiday cottages which were very popular with the trend for holidays in the UK during Covid. She registered from August but at the end of October she found a buyer for one of the cottages. I understand it was proving expensive […]

A higher rate farming client has been approached about development of an unused parcel of land. The developer has proposed a couple of options. Can you briefly explain the potential tax consequences of each one?   Option 1 – Purchase the land outright from the farmer. Option 2 – Developer acquires the land for a […]

A client has approached me to ask what they need to do for their employees who are observing Ramadan. After two years at home, they are now back to the office. During the time they were working from home, a number of new starters joined the business, some of whom follow the Islamic faith. How […]

Regarding Making Tax Digital, what is meant by functional compatible software? If my turnover is below £85000, when will I be expected to submit my vat returns digitally?   To read the full article – CLICK HERE

My client is the life tenant of an interest in possession trust that was created on his wife’s death. Half of the client’s main residence is in this interest in possession trust and the other half he owns personally. If this property is sold will there be capital gains tax due?   To read the […]

My client has been talking to me about getting ready for the year ahead. They are a retail store, and they want to make sure they have a plan in place for any changes to come (that we know about, at least!). What can we expect in 2022, and how can I help my client […]

The latest Business Confidence Monitor (BCM) shows that business confidence is returning towards pre-pandemic levels. It remains high as is supported by strong domestic sales. As the economy expands, businesses are facing significant challenges with recruitment and skills shortage, transport problems and rising input costs, which could hinder further growth. The results are based on […]

My client is considering replacing his main residence. The prospective property is being marketed as the freehold of a main house with an annexe. The annexe is connected to the main house by a door to the kitchen which is locked but has its own separate external entry too. The annexe is self-contained, and the […]

My client (Peter) and his brother (Fred) jointly own two rental properties but now wish to rearrange their holdings so that they each own a property.  Property A has a market value of £250,000 and has a base cost of £90,000 and Property B has a market value of £230,000 and has a base cost […]

My client runs a catering business. A large part of their work is supplying lunches to local offices, either catering for special events or lunch orders for individual staff members. They have a few delivery drivers who work just delivering these lunch orders they produce so many, and they’re worried about keeping everyone working? To […]

My client has recently looked at an estate return for his father who died over 20 years ago, and he noticed that one of his father’s UK assets was missing from the return and inheritance tax should have been paid at the time, but no tax has been paid. Does my client still have to […]

My client Mike inherited cash and has been using it to make loans to various companies and unincorporated businesses. He’s managed some loans himself; others have been peer-to-peer (‘P2P’) loans managed by a P2P operator. This year, some borrowers have been affected by insolvency and Mike has asked what tax-relief he can have for the […]

Since Brexit we are still confused about the treatment of purchases of services from overseas suppliers. Common expenditure for our VAT registered clients includes software downloads, digital advertising space and online marketplace seller fees. Is there a difference between EU and non-EU purchases and what are the reporting requirements?    To read the full article […]

My client is an SME but has received a grant in relation to the labour costs involved in the project. We have allocated this to cover some of our subcontractor costs from an unconnected third party and so can we just claim 65% of this or is it blocked because its subsidised?   To read […]

My client is a builder who works mainly as a sub-contractor for other VAT and CIS registered building firms. They are registered for VAT on the flat rate scheme as they are predominantly labour-only. Due to the introduction of the domestic reverse charge for construction on 1 March 2021, I am concerned that my client […]

My client has sold her house to a close friend who is apparently willing for my client to remain in the property for as long she wants rent-free. The friend is a wealthy individual who is resident overseas. I am concerned whether there may be a Gift with Reservation for Inheritance Tax purposes.   To […]

Two of my personal tax clients have come to me querying the implications of disposing part of their respective cryptocurrency holdings. Client A has accumulated a large wallet of bitcoin from various purchases made over the last 6 years. Client B has earned some cryptocurrency from mining, they also stored a part of their cryptocurrency […]

I have been advised by my dealership and accountant that I can reclaim VAT on the purchase of a new electric car.  Is this correct as this would be a major consideration in the decision to purchase?   To read the full article – CLICK HERE

My client is in Northern Ireland and is building his own house.  He sourced his kitchen equipment in the Republic of Ireland and because he is a private individual, not VAT registered, has been charged Irish VAT. We did question whether the supplier should be charging UK VAT under the distance selling rules but were […]

My client is a German employer and is looking to employ a UK resident who will work three weeks per month in the UK and the remainder of the month in Germany. The employer has a place of business in the UK and also has a base in Germany. How would my client account for […]

Since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic many of my clients have become involved in providing Covid test kits and Covid testing services. Some clients are selling self-administered test kits, some are providing PCR testing for travellers and other clients are supplying testing services by visiting business premises to test on-site employees. Can you please […]

I have a client who owns 25% of the ordinary voting shares of a close company, but she is not a director or employee nor is she connected to a director or employee of the company. The company has lent her father £25,000 interest-free. As neither her father nor the client is an employee or […]

The trustees of a discretionary trust have transferred a residential rental property to a beneficiary and held over the arising gain under s260 TCGA1992. There was no holdover claim made when the property was transferred into the trust ten years ago. The beneficiary plans to live in the property for a few years and is […]

My client owns several residential properties in her sole name.  Her spouse wishes to buy a buy-to-let property in their own name.  Will Stamp Duty Land Tax higher rates for additional dwellings apply?    To read the full article – CLICK HERE

We have a company which has to pay the Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED) charge as the property is let to the shareholder’s son. Is this an allowable expense for the company?    To read the full article – CLICK HERE

My client owns a pub/restaurant and provides his staff with a meal halfway through their shift, is this a taxable benefit?   To read the full article – CLICK HERE

Many of my clients are asking me about “the changes in the EU” from 1st July 2021.  What are they talking about?   To read the full article along with the latest updates – CLICK HERE

My client has started a new business buying second hand commercial vans and converting them into campervans before selling. They also buy existing campervans and repair/refurbish these. My client understands they can use the VAT Margin Scheme for these sales – is this correct?    To read the full article – CLICK HERE

My client is a director and majority shareholder of a successful trading company (“the Company”), and as he is approaching retirement, we are discussing succession issues. The client has had many offers for his business, but he prefers not to sell to a competitor. He wants to realise a capital gain in recognition of his […]

My client supplies digital services to consumers in the EU and runs an e-commerce business selling CDs and MP3 players on their website that are sold in consignments of less than £135/150€. My client was registered for MOSS in the UK and from the 01 January 2021 they registered in the EU for Non-Union MOSS. […]

I have a client that has taxable income for the tax year ended 5th April 2021 of £230,000 of which rental income is around £23,000 and attracts relief for the mortgage interest payments. Their employer has made £15,000 contribution and they have also made personal contribution of £15,000. Would they get caught by the tapering […]

An increasing number of my clients are young people basing their careers on social media platforms, with income as influencers and YouTube contributors and I am familiar with the VAT place of supply issues this raises. I have now been approached by a potential new client who is a “content creator” using the platform OnlyFans. […]

My client is in the process of selling their main residence and has asked me if there would be any capital gains tax to pay on disposal. The property, located in Manchester, was acquired in March 2010 and my client lived there until March 2016 – they had taken a job in London and decided […]

My client is a partnership buying a disused farm building from the owner who has opted to tax it. The client is then converting it into a children’s day nursery. They will occupy the building and run the nursery themselves. Are supplies by a nursery VAT exempt, and can they reclaim any of the input […]

In light of recent headlines surrounding the use of webcams to monitor employees, a client would like to know more about the legalities of this as well as other surveillance methods.   To read the full article – CLICK HERE

It is no longer possible to claim the 4th grant, however, the government has announced the availability of a 5th grant.  It will cover the period from May 2021 to September 2021.   To read the full article along with all updates – CLICK HERE

A client is worried about their employees’ reluctance to return to the workplace after months of working from home. They would like to some advice on how they can handle the situation.   To read further – CLICK HERE

My client is a restaurant which had a major refurbishment of their premises.  They employed a builder to carry out the work.  The job was completed and invoiced with VAT.  The restaurant then claimed the input tax on its next available VAT return and submitted to HMRC.  Given the size of the repayment due to […]

Our practice is getting an increasing number of queries from clients who have bought electric cars which will be used for both business and private purposes. Please could you clarify how to treat input tax recovery on the charging costs for my clients?    To read more, click HERE

My client is a trading company and due to trading difficulties in the current year, they have made a loss in their trade, which they will carry back to the profitable previous year. They also have a rental property in the company that also made a loss, can they carry that loss back against the […]

My client is an online retailer of cinema and theatre e-tickets. Since the announcements across the UK for relaxing COVID related restrictions there has been a surge in sales. The e-ticket is for admission only and can be used in certain cinemas and theatre chains nationwide, irrespective of the regional price differences for admissions. The […]

I want to set up a discretionary trust for my grandchild with £100,000 cash but I have already gifted them £325,000 in cash directly so will I now have to pay inheritance tax if I set up this trust?   To read the full article – CLICK HERE

My client has a limited company that has acquired some land to develop. They are going to develop some high value residential properties that are going to be let out on a commercial basis to third parties. One of the properties is going to be the main residence of the sole director/shareholder of the company […]

Do you need to know more about the Job Support Scheme and what it consists of. Will you be eligible? and how can you apply for it if so? The Job Support Scheme (JSS) will replace the Job Retention Scheme (JRS). You may know that the JRS has been in place since March 2020 to […]

Our managing partner at the 2016 WGCA Annual Dinner. As chair of the district society, Khuram was on hand to ensure the evening ran smoothly with guest speaker Bill Turnbull.