The Making Tax Digital deadline for the June VAT return is fast approaching – if you are not already signed up and registered you need to act fast. There is currently a potential delay between people signing up to MTD and being able to then submit their MTD return. Once you sign up to file your MTD VAT return you need to wait for a message from HMRC with confirmation that you’ve been signed up, this will also include your VAT number. Normally this message will be received in 72 hours, however on some occasions this is taking up to 6 days to come through, and until the message is received the return cannot be submitted. The returns are due by 7 August, so if you have not yet done this, please do make sure you act now. If you have any questions or concerns please do contact us.
In an ever more competitive employment market, employers are looking closer at the overall benefits they offer, beyond just salary. This can be made up of several things including; healthcare cover, income protection and life insurance. These additional benefits can be a big factor when recruiting new staff and can also help with retaining existing employees. One of the most cost effective benefits for an employer to provide is often life insurance, specifically a Relevant Life Plan. A Relevant Life Plan is a term assurance plan available to employers, to provide an individual death in service benefit for an employee (including directors). It’s designed to pay a lump sum if the person covered dies or is diagnosed with a terminal illness, whilst they are employed during the term of the policy. A Relevant Life Plan is paid for by the employer. The key point is that there has to be an employment relationship for the plan to be available. Therefore the plan would not be available for partners in a partnership or sole traders. On death of the life insured the benefits are paid into a Trust, meaning the proceeds are paid free of Inheritance Tax. It is important that the Trust is set up correctly as there can be big consequences on both the premiums being paid in and more importantly when the benefits are paid out. For employers the premiums are usually allowable as a business expense meaning the business gets tax relief on the premiums paid. This makes the premiums very cost effective. Several providers also offer an additional valuable benefit. The life insured will have access to a network of medical practitioners who can answer any questions that they may have. So when faced with a medical problem, they’ll have all the information that they need to help them make the right decisions for their treatment and recovery. Lovewell Blake Financial Planning Limited can assist with all forms of group and business protection, including shareholder protection and loan cover. Should you wish to discuss this further please contact us.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused great unrest through the global economy and caused radical fluctuations in the value of business and other assets. Many taxpayers will own assets which have fallen in value, such as stocks and shares, and are now wondering how to react, if at all. Although this is primarily a personal financial matter, the tax consequences could be an important factor in this decision.
Do you own failed investments of negligible value?
During the period in which you’ve owned assets that have become worth ‘next to nothing’, you may be able to make a ‘negligible value claim’ to HMRC, which allows you to realise a loss on the assets, which can be offset against other gains made in the year to reduce your capital gains tax liability.
Have you realised capital gains in the 2019/20 tax year?
If you’ve realised gains in this tax year such that you will pay capital gains tax, it may be possible to mitigate this tax charge or eliminate it entirely by making further capital disposals in the tax year (before 6 April 2020) that will make a loss. Although selling assets at a loss is not inherently attractive, there may be some appeal in avoiding a charge to capital gains tax.
Any actions taken in this regard should be taken on a commercial basis, and we encourage anybody making significant decisions about their personal financial situation to take advice from a suitably qualified investment adviser or independent financial adviser.
If you have any queries, or would like to discuss your personal tax situation, please get in touch with your usual MHA Larking Gowen contact in the first instance or at enquiry@larking-gowen.co.uk.
You can find contact details on the Our People section of the MHA Larking Gowen website.
When someone dies, their estate will still be liable for income tax and capital gains tax during the estate ‘administration period.’ This is the period during which the personal representatives apply for probate, collect in the deceased’s assets and pay their liabilities.
Estates are divided into two categories: complex estates and non-complex estates.
What are complex and non-complex estates?
Complex estates are where:
The value of the estate exceeds £2.5 million
Tax due (i.e. income tax and capital gains tax) for the whole of the administration period exceeds £10,000
The proceeds of assets sold in any one tax year exceeds £500,000 (for deaths after 5 April 2016)
Non-complex estates are where none of the above criteria are met.
If the estate falls into the complex category, self-assessment tax returns will be required annually by 31 January each year in line with the usual self-assessment deadlines.
Informal payment arrangements
The personal representatives (PRs) of non-complex estates do not need to file formal tax returns. Informal payment arrangements can be used. The PRs simply provide HMRC a calculation of the amount of tax due at the end of the administration period and HMRC will issue a payment slip and reference number, which is to be used to make a one-off payment of the total tax due.
Need help?
If you need professional advice or assistance on probate or post-death tax matters, please speak to Ian Webster or Cindy Chaplin or or email probate@larking-gowen.co.uk. You can find contact details on the Our People section of the MHA Larking Gowen website.
We are accredited by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales to provide probate services.
During this unprecedented time, whether your business is temporarily closed, has had a change in services or are looking for Coronavirus related signage, Signs Express is here to help. We’ve worked with the NHS for over 30-years as an approved supplier, and with over 65 centres throughout the UK and Ireland, are here to assist with any emergency or temporary signage you may need.
Encouraging social distancing in businesses that remain operational is of the utmost importance, with personalised floor graphics such as 2-metre-long arrows, footprints and other graphics being a great, cost-effective solution. All the while looking professional, incorporating your brand and, most importantly, supporting the wellbeing of your customers.
From NHS approved messaging to bespoke artwork, we can supply a range of solutions including banners, labels & stickers, vehicle graphics, notices, branded crowd barriers, digital signs and Health & Safety signage available for installation or supply only.
Please stay safe and take great care of yourselves and your loved ones. We are in this together and we will get through this together.
The 21st Macmillan Charity Golf Day was held at Barnham Broom Golf Club in October 2019, where over 100 golfers turned out to support the charity.
The event was made possible through the support of Barnham Broom, local companies and individuals alike.
After golf on the 18-hole Valley Course, a dinner was held along with an auction and raffle together with a variety of donated rounds of golf from many Clubs which were sold by silent auction.
Organiser Graham Knights, who is an Ambassador for Macmillan in Norfolk, commented that the amount raised between this event and other fundraising for Macmillan throughout 2019 now equals a grand total of £17,640 – a truly impressive amount made possible by Mr Knights’ hard work and the support of Barnham Broom Golf Club.
The money will be used to support cancer patients in Norfolk.
Mr Knights also praised Barnham Broom saying that the event would not be possible without the support of hotel, events and golf staff.
Barnham Broom is a resort near Norwich, Norfolk. Overlooking 300 acres of beautiful countryside and the River Yare Valley, the venue features a luxury four-star hotel, spa, leisure centre, two golf courses, award-winning Brasserie restaurant, Sports Bar and conference room. It is a popular choice for weddings and events.
Children at Monks Close in Bircham Newton will now be able to enjoy a new play area installed by Freebridge Community Housing’s Placeshaping Team.
Following some consultation work with the residents of Monks Close about how the neighbourhood could be improved, the Placeshaping Team were contacted by a number of parents living on the Close with concerns about the lack of activities available to their children.
So, working with the residents, the Placeshaping Team have now overseen the design and installation of a new play area – and a refurbishment of the some of the old existing play equipment.
One of the residents who has been heavily involved with the drive to get the work completed at Monks Close is Charlotte Beck, “I’m really pleased how Freebridge’s Placeshaping Team has worked together with me and other residents on Monks Close to provide this great new play area for the local kids. Although Monks Close is a great place to live we’re a long way from Hunstanton or King’s Lynn where most opportunities for children are based.”
Robert Clarke, Head of Housing at Freebridge, said “Monks Close is located in a very rural location, and amenities for the local children are limited. Freebridge’s vision is to support a better West Norfolk, which means that as well as providing good quality housing we need to support, where we can, efforts to improve the neighbourhoods our tenants live in. It’s been great to see the local people working with the Placeshaping team on this project, and now the new play area is finished we look forward to it being used by the local children for many years to come!”
Hatch Brenner Solicitors has announced a new production in their drama venue sponsorship at Norwich Theatre Royal.
Caroline’s Kitchen, a comedy by Torben Betts and directed by Alastair Whatley, arrives in Norwich from Wednesday 6 – Saturday 9 March.
Caroline Mortimer, played by Caroline Langrishe (Lovejoy, Judge John Deed), is the nation’s favourite TV cook. In the glow of the studio lights, she has it all – a sparkling career, a big house, a (golf) loving husband, smart kids and the best kitchen money can buy. But when the camera turns off the truth comes out and when an unexpected guest disrupts a night of celebration there is more to spill than the wine … Welcome to Caroline’s Kitchen…
‘The comedy simmers’ DAILY MAIL (CRITIC’S CHOICE) ★★★★
‘It is an acerbic, often laugh-out-loud take on marriage, privilege and class, and it is well worth a ticket to see the ending alone, because reader, I gasped.’ WESTEND WILMA ★★★★
‘Makes you laugh when you really think you shouldn’t… it’s hilarious’ JENNI MURRAY, RADIO 4
Hatch Brenner’s drama venue sponsorship of Caroline’s Kitchen follows the sad news that the forthcoming tour of To Kill A Mockingbird has been cancelled by the producers.
Dawn Parkes, Hatch Brenner Managing Partner, commented: “I am very much looking forward to seeing Caroline’s Kitchen this March with a group of colleagues and business contacts. I understand the show arrives in Norwich direct from a hit London run, and ahead of a New York transfer so I imagine the quality of the production will be exceptional.”
At last it appears that we’ve reached, or will shortly reach the peak of COVID-19 pandemic, meaning that the curve of infection should begin/continue to flatten and decline. And with that, should follow the relaxation of the lockdown, meaning we’ll start to see businesses re-opening allowing us to abandon our home offices and head back to those places of work we left so many weeks ago! But we’re going back to a strange new place of work; it won’t be like going back to work after the Christmas break, and it’s unlikely to be ‘business as usual’ – by any stretch of the imagination. With social distancing and hygiene measures likely to practised until the end of the year, companies will require a range of health and safety products to ensure the safeguarding of staff and customers. So over the last week or so we’ve been adding products to our Expert Banner website – to help you prepare for the return to your office. And many of these products are ‘ready to go’ – no artwork required. We’ve included vital social distancing tools such as floor stickers, banners and sneeze guards, along with a range of health advice signage, sanitiser stations, posters, strut cards and flyers. You can see our product range here. But please check back regularly, as I’m ‘on this’ now, and will be adding new products on a regular basis. If there’s something specific that you’re looking for, please drop me an email and i’ll do my best to source it for you. Stay safe!
Your new work space may be perfect (the delicious end of the kitchen table, the sunny corner of the living room or away from it all in the quiet loft room) … but your body may be feeling differently!
We know how important it is to stay mentally and physically healthy right now, and we would like to offer our fellow Norfolk Chamber members a discount on a selection of our ergonimical and innovative chairs. Our team comprises of health professionals with a wealth of expertise and experience, including: – Ergonomists, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists and Health and Safety consultants (we know our stuff).
If you are interested then drop us a line, or give us a call and we will whizz over the details!
We are delighted to announce that we are working with Aura Smart Air to help boost their visibility on search engines such as Google and Bing.
Aura Smart Air is a brand new invention designed to monitor and regulate air quality, with an easy-to-use app for shops, retailers, clinics and more.
Tudor Lodge was approached by Aura Smart Air to help rank for their brand name and make the most of an increased demand from covid-19.
Our Approach
The website has been built on Weebly and whilst we prefer custom-code or WordPress, we have had success ranking with Weebly in the past and were quick to add our SEO techniques to boost a site’s ranking including:
Meta-title optimisation
Meta-description optimisation
Image optimisation
Internal link optimisation
Sitemap optimisation
Robots txt optimisation
In addition, we have been acquiring natural links by putting out press releases on high quality sites relating to news, tech and more. By strengthening the domain, it will help Smart Aura Air rank quickly for their brand name and other keywords too – to be completed in phase 2 of the campaign.
We allow Google around 4 to 6 weeks to fully index the site and we aim to speed up the process via adding more content and generating quality links to the site.
In late March HMRC announced they would be offering support to self-employed businesses by way of a grant of up to 80% of your average earnings over the 2017, 2018 and 2019 tax years. This payment will be a single instalment covering three months and is capped at £7,500. It is also worth noting that this grant will be taxable.
At the time they estimated it might be mid-June before self-employed businesses received this grant, but the they have now updated their guidance and they seem to be ahead of schedule. This along with the Bounce Back Loans announced this week could be a welcome boost.
Visit the GOV.UK website here to check your eligibility to claim, using their online tool. You will need your UTR (which will be on any HMRC correspondence including your tax return) and your national insurance number.
Once completed you will know whether HMRC think you will qualify, and they will estimate a date when you can claim.
HMRC are not allowing agents to claim on your behalf, so it is really important you set up a government gateway now to allow a claim to be made as soon as possible, once you have taken the eligibility test it will prompt you to either log in or to set up government gateway access.
Action to take now:
Our People section of the MHA Larking Gowen website.