Accountant booted out of ICAEW

An accountant has been booted out of the ICAEW for failing to pay the Insolvency Service (IS) nearly £90,000.

A tribunal of the ICAEW’s disciplinary committee made the decision when it heard how William Evan Price of Pontypool - as liquidator of TG Beddoe & Sons (Engineers) Ltd - failed to pay £88,714 to the Insolvency Service.

The disciplinary committee ruled that Price had failed to comply with Regulation 5 of the Insolvency Regulations 1994 without any justifiable reason, had caused significant loss to third parties and that his actions amounted to serious professional misconduct and had brought the ICAEW into disrepute.

In a letter to the Insolvency Service, Price said that he had always maintained that he disbursed the monies to meet 'liquidation liabilities and so should not have been paid to the Insolvency Service' and that the monies were paid 'to cover costs and are all accounted for'.

Price even insisted he was not a member of the ICAEW, even though he was, the tribunal heard.

Despite Price’s previous clean disciplinary record, the committee found that 'the defendant has failed to account to the Insolvency Service for a significant sum of money which represented nearly 50% of the assets of the liquidation. He did so without any justifiable or lawful reason. This was serious professional misconduct.

'Members of ICAEW are trusted by many public bodies, including the Insolvency Service to treat money put into their care in accordance with the law and regulations. A failure to treat money in this way, for which the defendant has been found liable, is to discredit the profession as well as to damage the Insolvency Service and the creditors of any liquidation.’

Price was also ordered to pay costs of £3,450.

300,000 famalies in the dark over Child Tax Credit

HMRC has admitted that it failed to contact around 300,000 families about imminent changes to child benefit payments that could see them lose the valuable subsidy.

The taxman had previously said that it would contact 1.1m people to alert them to the fact they will lose the right to claim child benefit from Monday, when it will be means-tested.

The letters were set to tell better-off families that they should either opt out of the system or have to repay the money through higher taxes. Just 784,000 people received the letters, leaving around 300,000 claimants uninformed of the changes.

Under the new rules, anyone now claiming child benefit will have to fill in self-assessment tax returns or face the prospect of being fined.

From 7 January, families with one parent earning over £60,000 a year will lose the right to the benefit, currently £20.30 a week for the first child and £13.40 a week for each subsequent child.

Families where one parent pulls in between £50,000 and £60,000 will see the benefit reduced on a sliding scale.

But in a bizarre anomaly, double income families where both parents earn up to £49,000 – just below the £50,000 threshold - will be able to keep their benefit, while households with one parent on £60,000 and the other not working will lose all theirs.

HMRC said it couldn’t alert everyone as it didn’t have all the information it needed for some people following changes to their relationship status, address or income.

An HMRC spokesman said: ‘There may be cases where people's circumstances have changed, for example their income may have increased or address may have changed, and we will not yet have up-to-date information. However, to ensure people know about the changes, we are also using extensive advertising, media and online activity, as well as written communication.

‘Our target audience will have seen the adverts five times on average, and there has been extensive media coverage of the change. Over 1m hits on the guidance section of the HMRC website and 100,000 uses of our online calculator show that the message is getting through.’

HMRC and RTI

Employers are being urged by HMRC to get set for major PAYE changes that come into effect in three months’ time.

In April 2013 employers will have to start sending PAYE returns electronically, using RTI-enabled payroll software, to HMRC each time they pay their employees as part of routine payroll processes. The returns will include details of all employees’ pay, tax and deductions. This new process will replace sending a separate return at the end of the year.

HMRC urges employers to visit its website for comprehensive information about RTI, including how to prepare, payroll software options and hints and tips to help avoid some common pitfalls.

It also suggests acquiring new or updated payroll software and to start checking and updating employee information.

Ruth Owen, HMRC’s director general personal tax, said:

‘To avoid a last minute rush it’s vital employers act now, if they have not already done so. Employers will need to send their first return – called a ‘Full Payment Submission’ or ‘FPS’ for salary or wage payments made to employees on or after 6 April – and if they have 250 or more employees they will have to send an Employer Alignment Submission before the first FPS.’

‘Although reporting PAYE in real time will be straightforward for most, some preparation is needed. There is more to it than simply buying or updating software – although this is key. Employers may need to add employees such as casuals or those below the Lower Earnings Limit to their payroll system and must think about their payroll practices to make sure that they work for real-time reporting.’

More details are available from HMRC.

Global warming is over - official!!

global warming ened 16 years ago

So why am I still paying thousands a year in "green taxes"?????

US fiscal cliff

Squabbling politicians in the US have managed to delay an economic nightmare of substantial tax rises and spending cuts, as its richest citizens alone are set to bear the weight.

The so called ‘fiscal cliff’ was averted at the eleventh hour, after crisis talks between Republicans and Democrats managed to agree on a tax rise for only the highest earning of US citizens.

President Barack Obama told a White House press conference: ‘I will sign a law that raises taxes on the wealthiest 2% of Americans... while preventing a middle-class tax hike.’

The deal will mean those earning $400,000 (£246,000) or more will be impacted by income tax rise to 39.6%, though Democrats had initially been pushing for earners as low as $250,000 to also be affected by the hike.

Another feature of the compromise agreement will see inheritance tax rises of 5% after the first $5m for individuals ($10m for a couple),

Upon news that the Senate and the House of Representatives voted through the bill, financial markets around the world reacted positively with the FTSE 100 share index even surpassing the 6,000 benchmark for the first time in 17 months on the back of the news.

2012 tax returns

With more than 20,000 filing their tax returns over the Christmas break, HMRC is urging those yet to complete theirs, to do so before the 31 January cut-off date.

The 20,563 Self Assessment forms completed over Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day was a significant rise on numbers for the same period last year.

Christmas Eve proved to be the most popular of the three days, as three times more than on 24 December 2011 sent off their tax returns. Of the 14,330 that did so on Christmas Eve, 73 were sent between 11pm and midnight.

An additional 1,548 dug out their bank statements and P60s and completed their forms on Christmas Day, a 40% rise compared to last year, while 4,685 - amid the eating of turkey leftovers and other traditions ritually followed - on Boxing Day, chose to send their tax returns.

There are however 10.6m people who are legally required to file tax returns in the UK and an HMRC campaign rolled out this week is encouraging those, who have so far been putting off paying the tax they owe, to not miss the 31 January deadline for online tax returns to be filed on time.

An initial fine of £100 will be issued for any late returns – regardless of whether any tax was owed or if paid on time – while extra financial penalties will be added the longer the form remains unsent.

150000 earners give up child benefit

High-earning child benefit recipients have until 6 January 2013 to decide whether to stop receiving the benefit.

The High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) starts on 7 January. The new charge will apply when a taxpayer or their partner’s income is more than £50,000 in a tax year, and if they or their partner receive child benefit.

‘Over 155,000 people have already decided to stop receiving child benefit. There is easy to use information and a calculator on our website which will help families come to a decision,’ said Lin Homer, HMRC chief executive.

For those with income of more than £60,000, the tax charge is 100% of the amount of child benefit. For income between £50,000 and £60,000, the charge is gradually increased to 100% of the child benefit.

Those affected will need to decide whether to keep receiving child benefit and pay the tax charge through Self Assessment, or stop receiving the benefit and not pay the new charge. If a couple wish to stop receiving the benefit, the child benefit recipient should contact HMRC before the new charge starts on 7 January. If their income is less than £60,000, the tax charge will always be less than the amount of child benefit.