Accounting Articles
The true cost of tax
How much tax are you really paying? With income tax, national insurance, VAT, fuel duty, beer duty etc etc it can be difficult to get a clear picture. Allow me to illustrate..... Average Joe has an average wage in his job working for Mr Big. Mr Big offers Joe some extra cash...
Posted at 2013-02-15 14:15:34 by Easterbrook Eaton Ltd
How Good are Your Business Records?
Just How Good are Your Business Records Well, HMRC may well be about to tell you! HMRC now have a ’Bookkeeping Team’ who have the power to visit businesses to assess how good the books and records are, applying penalties if they don’t ‘pass muster’. What starts with a simple telephone call from our chums...
Posted at 2013-01-30 11:12:38 by Mercer & Co
Pensions: Auto Enrolment
You may well have heard about Auto Enrolment, it is on its way so I thought some basic information would be useful.... Auto Enrolment is a government scheme to encourage people to save for their retirement by automatically including them in a pension scheme unless they opt out. There are useful resources available detailing&n...
Posted at 2012-12-12 11:06:32 by Easterbrook Eaton Ltd
Bookkeeping in the Cloud
Remember the days when you used to back-up your accounts onto a 3.5” floppy disk, ready to send to your accountant so they could prepare your accounts for the year? And how often the backup was too large so spanned 2-3 discs and more often than not data was corrupted and required you to send in another copy? Technology has a...
Posted at 2012-12-12 11:05:47 by Easterbrook Eaton Ltd
Are you ready for RTI?
What is RTI? Real Time Information, or RTI, is a new system that's being introduced by HMRC to improve the operation of Pay as You Earn (PAYE). PAYE information will be collected more regularly and more efficiently when employers submit their regular payroll submissions. How w...
Posted at 2012-12-12 11:04:05 by Easterbrook Eaton Ltd
Finding your market niche
Generally, only the largest companies can hope to meet the needs of an entire market. For most small to medium-sized businesses, a key factor in business success is finding niches in the market, and exploiting them by offering specialised products or services to specific groups of customers. Researching the market Careful stud...
Posted at 2012-09-03 11:23:15 by Lawrence Grant Chartered Accountants
Ten reasons to benchmark your business
More and more businesses are discovering the benefits of benchmarking and of developing a plan of best practice. Is it something that your business could consider? What is benchmarking? In a nutshell, benchmarking involves measuring the performance of one’s business against that of others in similar markets. It has been ...
Posted at 2012-09-03 11:21:19 by Lawrence Grant Chartered Accountants
Top tips for reducing your tax bill
Keeping your tax bill to a minimum does not have to be a matter of aggressive or complex tax schemes, but rather of identifying which of the many tax reliefs and allowances specifically granted by law are available to you. From ISAs to capital allowances, here are our top 10 ways of saving tax – for you, your family and your...
Posted at 2012-09-03 11:18:27 by Lawrence Grant Chartered Accountants
Tax Refund? Computer says 'NO'
Your Tax refund from HMRC ? Computer says NO Jan. 25, 2012, 11:52 a.m. On November 24th we published a news item about how HMRC were issuing clients with a notice to pay an amount of tax before they had received the client's self assessment. HMRC had taken it upon themselves to assume that the amounts reported in...
Posted at 2012-08-23 15:06:10 by Carrington Accountancy
Corporation Tax - A quick guide
We often get asked questions from our clients about Corporation Tax so we thought we would put together a short Q & A about this tax. What is Corporation Tax? Corporation Tax or CT is the tax on profits of a limited company. It can also be applied to other types of businesses such as clubs, charities and other unincorporat...
Posted at 2012-08-23 15:04:31 by Carrington Accountancy
Director Benefits and NI
What benefits can a director enjoy and what are the tax and NI consequences Feb. 29, 2012, 10:07 a.m. Childcare The limited company can contribute up to £243 pm per employee to a registered childminder or nursery with no tax or NI consequence. So, if a husband and wife are both on payroll then 2...
Posted at 2012-08-23 15:03:35 by Carrington Accountancy
Childcare Vouchers through your Limited Company
Recently some of our clients have been asking about Childcare Vouchers and if they are able to run these costs through their limited companies. Here is a recent question we received and our response: Can I use my limited company to cover some of the costs of my childcare? What is the maximum amount that can be claimed a...
Posted at 2012-08-23 08:20:06 by Carrington Accountancy
Tax Planning Solutions? BE AWARE
Paying the right amount of tax is a hot political topic right now and it is clear that HMRC have increased their efforts to put an end to various 'tax saving schemes'. Recently one of our clients was contacted by a company proffering an apparent great tax saving method that was 'compliant with HMRC legislation'. He...
Posted at 2012-08-23 08:18:54 by Carrington Accountancy
Throw your business a lifeline: Options for managing business debt
Realising that your business is in debt can be a worrying find. A business that is in debt needs to act as soon as possible, because the more that they bury their heads in the sand, the worse it will be. Realising that your business is in a lot of debts does not always mean that you must declare bankruptcy. Bankruptcy is only a last r...
Posted at 2012-08-01 16:07:20 by Clarke Bell
IR 35
Following on from the Budget announcement that the IR35 rules are to be strengthened, HMRC have issued two documents with a view to progressing this objective. On 9 May HMRC published their “Business Entity” tests, available via www.hmrc.gov.uk/ir35/guidance.pdf, which set out various tests to be c...
Posted at 2012-06-24 03:29:29 by Adroit Accountax Ltd
Double entry bookkeeping (part 2)
This article follows on from the previous article - Double entry bookkeeping part 1. The following topics are covered in this article: An introduction to the chart of accounts. Transferring the double entry transactions documented in Part 1 to a trial balance. Using the trial balance to produce a profit and loss account and balance sheet. ...
Posted at 2012-06-18 15:40:07 by FUA Team
Double entry bookkeeping (part 1)
All accounting entries consist of a matching debit and credit entry. This system, known as double entry bookkeeping has been operated since the 15th century. Recently with the advent of very user friendly internet based accounting systems such as Clear Books the requirement to have a detailed knowledge of debits and credits to carry out company f...
Posted at 2012-06-18 15:37:46 by FUA Team
Anatomy of the profit and loss account and balance sheet
Together the profit and loss account and balance sheet describe the financial position of a business. The profit and loss account reports sales, expenditure and profit during a given period. The balance sheet shows what the business has and what the business owes on a particular date. It is a snapshot at one given time as opposed to the profit a...
Posted at 2012-06-18 15:34:20 by FUA Team
Introducing Accounting
Financial statements The financial statements of a business, often referred to as the accounts consist of two main documents. The profit and loss account, often referred to as the P & L and the balance sheet which is sometimes abbreviated to B/S. The financial statements report upon a period of trading for the business. The P & L account reco...
Posted at 2012-06-18 15:29:57 by FUA Team
10 Top Tax Planning Tips for Contractors & Freelancers
Here are our 10 TOP Tax Planning Tips for Self-Employed Contractors & Freelancers that could save you in excess of £5,000 of tax. Web: http://www.aidhanfinancial.com 1. Set up as a Ltd Co. It sounds immediately obvious but this is the first step any contractor/freelancer should take if they want to maximise their disposa...
Posted at 2012-05-15 19:58:10 by Aidhan Accountancy
New IR35 Test due to launch May 7th 2012
It has become evident, especially since the budget that the Government will try and clamp down on what they consider to be 'disguised employment'. The first step will see HMRC launch a new set of processes that they say will serve to help contractors and other business organisations asses their own risk as to being caught up i...
Posted at 2012-05-08 10:00:43 by Carrington Accountancy
Seven Year End Tax Planning Thoughts
Below are several thoughts on tax some but not all related to the tax year end on 5 April 2012. These comments are by their nature general and any action needs to take into account the wider commercial or family context. This is not investment advice. Please contact me for specific advice relating to your circumst...
Posted at 2012-05-02 14:12:40 by Lido Tax Consulting
HMRC Cracks Down On On-line Traders
Online Traders have now become part of HMRC's crackdown on undeclared businesses. Are you running an online business? Or maybe your "ebay hobby" has become more than a hobby. Get your tax affairs in order before HMRC do it for you! Contact us now for a quote. We have many years of experience from dealing with online...
Posted at 2012-03-29 19:04:19 by Havering Accountancy Services
The Importance of Year End Accounts and Management Accounts
Year End Accounts Final accounts preparation and filing with the companies house is not an easy task. Many small business owners view this as a tedious and a time consuming task. This is mainly berceuse the business owners are more occupied on the business related matters rather than, accounting, bookkeeping and final accounts preparation. ...
Posted at 2012-03-20 11:36:18 by KVS & CO
February VAT returns
HMRC are telling us that online filing for VAT returns will not be available between 8 April and 11 April 2012. So it would be worthwhile making sure any February VAT returns are filed well before the 7 April deadline in case the site is busy. If you are still filing paper returns - these will be the last ones ever - from April 2012 al...
Posted at 2012-03-15 22:48:59 by Huw Williams Limited
How to be a Limited Company
For the uninitiated, creating, setting up and operating through a Limited Company can sound like a daunting task. It is often this very reason why many people put off the very idea due to the unknown. However, rest assure, with the right advice and assistance it can be quite simple and (financially) rewarding. However, it is not always s...
Posted at 2012-02-19 23:02:59 by Aidhan Accountancy
HMRC Offers Private Tutors Time To Declare
HMRC is offering private tutors the chance to declare any undeclared income. By declaring any income before 06/01/12 tutors can ensure that they are on the "best terms" with HMRC regarding this underclared income. This suggests that tutors may be some of the self employed businesses that HMRC plan to investigate in...
Posted at 2011-12-11 22:11:28 by Havering Accountancy Services
Buy to Let
If you have just purchased a buy to let property, then remember that not all accountants will be able to offer you the best service. Employ an expert in the field, this is especially essential at the moment because the tax rules have recently changed. Author: R.A.Arthur & Co. 0800 04 391 04.
Posted at 2011-12-09 13:29:43 by Arthur R.A. & Co