Government Action On Dodgy Tax Advisors

The Chancellor’s budget was mostly a damp squib for our sector, with many of his announcements leaked in advance.  However, there was one point of interest – the government’s plan to crack down on dodgy tax advisors. Why is that relevant to us? You may be aware of tax avoidance schemes peddled by convincing ‘tax […]

You Don’t Need Tax Knowledge To Work At HMRC!

A job advert for a “support officer” at HMRC states applicants do not need “any existing knowledge or experience of tax to apply”, The Telegraph reports. The role is mainly administrative but key responsibilities include “resolving customer queries and complaints in a courteous and professional manner”. However following the unavailability of HMRC’s self-assessment helpline, many […]

Chancellor’s Autumn Statement – A Damp Squib?

The Chancellor has delivered his Autumn Statement, which, despite all the rhetoric and propaganda, was largely a damp squib for contractors, temps and self-employed people.  Here we explain why. Self-employed A big headline was the abolition of class 2 NICs paid by self-employed people earning over £12,570, and reducing class 4 NICs from 9% to […]

Autumn Budget Date Scheduled

The Chancellor recently announced that this year’s Autumn Budget will take place on 22 November 2023, essential viewing for the political geeks among us, and our first indication of tax changes which might affect you. In recent years we’ve had announcements that: reviews IR35, repeals IR35, retains IR35 freezes personal tax rates / VAT / […]

Less Than One Third Job Seekers Confident About Their Prospects

Jeremy Hunt’s first budget last week aimed to get more people back to work but less than one third (31%) of workers feel more confident looking for a job as a result.  Leading job board CV-Library polled 2,250 workers about their opinion of the budget, with 51% thinking that it will make no difference to […]

Prison For Tax Avoidance Promoters

The Chancellor’s Budget seemed to be mostly a PR exercise with headline policies focused on getting us all working, such as free childcare and initiatives to support the employment prospects of people with disabilities and long-term health issues.  Despite all the good news, we were disappointed that the self-employed and temporary workforce seemed largely forgotten, […]

The Political Farce Continues

Today the new Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt MP, has given a statement which undoes pretty much all of the tax measures outlined in Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget delivered just 3 weeks ago.  The following tax policies will no longer take place: Cutting the basic rate of income tax to 19% from April 2023; Cutting dividends tax by […]

IR35 Is Chancellor’s Rabbit Out Of The Hat!

The Chancellor’s mini-budget included a so-called “rabbit out of the hat” announcement, which was Kwasi Kwarteng’s unexpected decision to repeal off-payroll legislation.  Social media has been ablaze with lots of misinformation incorrectly stating that IR35 itself has been overturned.  It’s important to note that IR35 legislation is still very much in place, and will continue […]

Chancellor Challenged Over 9th Loan Charge Suicide

Following news that a ninth person facing action by HMRC in relation to a DR scheme has taken their own life, the Loan Charge and Taxpayer Fairness APPG has written urgently to the Chancellor urging leadership and much-needed compassion and common-sense. The known suicide risk linked with the Loan Charge was first reported to HMRC […]