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Keith Gordon has been named CTA of the Year at the LexisNexis Taxation Awards.CTA of the Year awards those members of The Chartered Institute of Taxation who have made an outstanding contribution to tax and/or the tax community.The judges considered five nominees from across the country. Keith was awarded the title because of his pro bono work, prodigious writing and work for the CIOT's London Branch as well as his day to day work at the Bar.Andrew Hubbard, CIOT President, says: "I am delighted to ... Continue Reading

Tax credits are payments from the government. If you're responsible for at least one child or young person who normally lives with you, you may qualify for Child Tax Credit. If you work, but earn low wages, you may qualify for Working Tax Credit.Who can get tax credits?Nine out of ten families with children get tax credits, but you don't need to have children to qualify. You may also qualify if you are working and earning low pay.Check if you qualify for tax credits - quick questionnaireHow much ... Continue Reading

Mark McLaughlin CTA (Fellow) ATT TEP looks at the proposal to give HMRC Extra-Statutory Concession C16 legislative effect.IntroductionAs indicated in my earlier article Turning Extra Statutory Concession C16 into Law* HMRC are replacing a number of Extra Statutory Concessions (ESCs), by making them law instead. One of these is ESC C16 (‘Dissolution of companies under Companies Act 1985 s 652 and s 652A; distributions to shareholders’), which broadly allows distributions to shareholders on the ... Continue Reading

HMRC outlines the new penalty regime as it applies for Inheritance Tax purposes.HMRC has developed one consistent penalty regime for inaccuracies in tax returns and other tax documents that will apply across almost all the taxes and duties HMRC administer. Under the new regime, if the liable person(s) take reasonable care to gettheir tax right HMRC will not penalise them, even if they do make a mistake.Finance Act 2007 Schedule 24 introduced this new regime for Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax and some ... Continue Reading

A warning by BKL Tax about the reliability of advice given by HMRC's helplines.When is a Helpline not a 'Help'line...?Suppose you run a small company. Suppose you are unsure of the correct VAT treatment of a particular transaction. You might, if you are unable or unwilling to pay for costly professional advice, be encouraged by the HMRC website which promises that "If you can't find the answer to your question on the HMRC website, the quickest and easiest way is to ring the VAT and Excise helpline ... Continue Reading

Procter & Gamble has lost a legal battle with HMRC over its Pringles snack and will now have to face paying tens of millions of pounds in VAT.The Court of Appeal has ruled in favour of HMRC, who have long maintained that Pringles are a potato snack and are, therefore, liable for VAT. This overturns the decision of the High Court last summer, in which the Court ruled that the snack was exempt from the tax.Foods are usually exempt from VAT, but one of the few exceptions is the potato crisp.In ... Continue Reading

HMRC have published National Statistics on finalised tax credit awards for 2007-08.The statistics show that the level of overpayments in 2007-08 was £1 billion compared to £2.2 billion in 2003-04. The number of families entitled to end of year top ups has increased as anticipated last May to 1.29 million (£798 million). This is as a result of one of the components of the package of measures announced in the Pre Budget Report 2005 to reduce overpayments. The statistics also show that in 2007-08:5.98 ... Continue Reading

The 19 May deadline for submitting 2008-09 Employer Annual Returns (P14s and P35) has now passed. However, employers who still haven’t filed their returns, must do so as soon as possible to avoid being charged a late-filing penalty.Employers who have fewer than 50 employees will still be entitled to a £75 tax-free payment if they file the return online, even though the deadline has now passed. For employers with 50 or more employees filing online is already compulsory.Employers will be ... Continue Reading

Mark McLaughlin CTA (Fellow) ATT TEP looks at the income tax relief position in respect of joint loans.IntroductionIt is relatively common for married couples (or civil partners) to borrow funds in joint names (assuming of course that they can still find a bank that is willing to lend them money!). Tax relief may be available for the loan interest paid if the loan is for a qualifying purpose (e.g., to buy an interest in a close company, or to invest in a partnership), and if certain conditions are ... Continue Reading

John Andrews of the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG) highlights problems in the tax and benefits treatment of volunteers' expenses.IntroductionIn its latest report, LITRG shows how inconsistent is the tax and benefits treatment of volunteers’ expenses, and makes recommendations for a simple and coherent approach across Government.Analysis‘Everyone’ agrees that volunteering is a very good thing. The Prime Minister said earlier this month that he envisages new schemes under which ‘all young ... Continue Reading