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VAT Voice by Andrew NeedhamAndrew Needham, Director of VAT Solutions (UK) Ltd, outlines the rules on disclosure of VAT schemes, and the potential implications for businesses.The Budget 2004 saw Customs introduce 'new measures to combat VAT avoidance'. This basically boiled down to making businesses tell him what avoidance schemes they have! Disclose – or else!The rules work like this; businesses with a turnover of £600,000 or more will have to disclose the use of specific avoidance schemes that ... Continue Reading

VAT Voice by Andrew NeedhamAndrew Needham, Director of VAT Solutions (UK) Ltd, explains how to verify an EU VAT number, and looks at how to cope with VAT in the EU.How to verify an EU VAT numberBackgroundWhen you sell goods to a customer in another EU member state, one of the requirements in order to zero-rate the supply is to obtain the customer’s VAT registration number and quote it on your sales invoice. You are responsible for ensuring that the VAT number is a valid one. If the VAT number ... Continue Reading

TaxationWeb by Bob Fraser MBA MA FSFATo mark the launch of TaxationWeb’s ‘Tax Efficient Investments’ section, Bob Fraser, MBA, MA, FSFA, Associate Investment Director of Rensburg Investment Management Limited, outlines some ‘building blocks’ of good investment strategy.Too often investment attention is focused on headline performance statistics, and not the underpinning fundamentals. The aim of this article, therefore, is to re-emphasise the building blocks of a good investment strategy. ... Continue Reading

TaxationWeb by Bob Fraser MBA MA FSFABob Fraser, MBA, MA, FSFA, Associate Investment Director, Rensburg Investment Management Limited, examines the ‘pre-owned assets tax’ (POAT) regime from 6 April 2005, and considers two potential IHT planning approaches.This article is intended to do exactly what the title says – to look at 2 IHT planning approaches post-POAT. These are not the only 2 potential solutions, nor are they suitable for all individuals. As always in financial planning, individuals ... Continue Reading

Tolley's Practical Tax by Andrew FlintAndrew Flint reviews the current tax treatment of private residences.A client’s private residence is likely to be a sensitive issue for most financial advisers, not least for the tax specialist. I suspect there are two main reasons for this. First, the house occupies a special place in the British psyche. The wellworn phrase ‘An Englishman’s home is his castle’ should be extended to indicate that it is also his favourite investment and access to credit. ... Continue Reading

VAT Voice by Andrew NeedhamAndrew Needham, Director of VAT Solutions (UK) Ltd, explains how differences between the VAT and Intrastat systems can result in differences in Intrastat returns against his VAT returns and EC Sales Lists. A client of VAT Solutions contacted us with a problem he had encountered during a Customs VAT visit. Customs had checked his Intrastat returns against his VAT returns and EC Sales Lists, and they did not match. Customs said that he must have made mistakes, and that he ... Continue Reading

Tolley's Practical Tax by Sarah Deeks LLB FCASarah Deeks LLB FCA outlines the pitfalls awaiting the unwary operating in a new market placeEveryone seems to be doing it these days - selling items on the internet auction site e-Bay. The company has been trading in the UK for five years and from students to celebs, ‘e-Baying’ has become a favourite hobby. A successful sale or purchase can quickly become an addiction leading to regular buying and selling. Most of the people selling on auction sites ... Continue Reading

VAT Voice by Steve AllenSteve Allen, Director of VAT Solutions (UK) Ltd, describes how the VAT system can be used to better advantage in assisting traders’ cashflow.Cashflow can be one of the main problems facing businesses these days. This article aims to show you some simple and uncontroversial ways in which your cashflow can be improved using the VAT system. Every three months you have to pay the VAT return, and when money is tight, this can be difficult. There are two basic things you can ... Continue Reading

VAT Voice by Andrew NeedhamAndrew Needham, Director of VAT Solutions (UK) Ltd, asks whether an aspect of Customs’ policy regarding the option to tax is ‘fair and reasonable’.It has become increasingly obvious over the last few years that if Customs do not like something, for whatever reason, they will simply change the rules without taking any notice of what the law actually says, and then wait until somebody challenges them in the VAT Tribunal. By doing this, they normally ‘get away with ... Continue Reading

TaxationWeb by Bob Fraser MBA MA FSFAPensions have had a bad press over the past few years, resulting in many people questioning their value. Bob Fraser, Associate Investment Director of Rensburg Investment Management Limited, offers the case that pensions still represent a tax efficient way to provide a future income in retirement, and re-states the tax planning case for pensions based on current tax legislation.Pensions have had a bad press over the past few years, resulting in many people questioning ... Continue Reading