House sales surged by more than two-thirds in September October 21, 2021 There were 160,950 residential transactions last month, considerably higher than last year, but the market is expected to slow following the stamp duty holiday stimulus. The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of UK home transactions in September was up 68.4 per cent on September 2020, according to HMRC figures. There was a 67.5 per cent leap [...]
HMRC to issue ‘nudge’ letters targeting crypto asset owners across the UK October 20, 2021 HMRC has issued a statement warning individuals that they will soon be issuing “nudge” letters specifically in regards to crypto asset holdings. These “nudge” letters are yet to be circulated, but City A.M. checked in with Zoe Wyatt, partner and crypto asset specialist at Andersen UK. “These nudge letters are likely to have been automated [...]
HMRC annual pension stats: ‘The genie is well and truly out of the bottle’ October 4, 2021 HMRC published its annual update to personal and stakeholder pensions statistics at the end of last week. The document included an update on the impact of the lifetime and annual allowance tax charges. Moreover, HMRC also shared the most recent data for flexible pension payments under the pension freedoms rules. Scrutinising the data for City [...]
HMRC delays move to make income tax digital by another year September 24, 2021 HMRC has delayed its planned move to make tax digital (MTD) by a further year, now scheduled to come into force in April 2024. The delay means businesses or landlords with a business income of over £10,000 a year will have now have an extra year to prepare for the digitalisation of income tax. General [...]
Exclusive: Record £38bn in tax by self-employed shows HMRC’s ‘peak leniency has passed’ September 23, 2021 The amount of income tax paid by self-assessment taxpayers has jumped 31 per cent to hit a record £38bn in the past year, up from £29bn the previous year, according to an analysis of HMRC tax receipts that was shared exclusively with City A.M. today. The boom in tax revenues from the self-employed is because [...]
Exclusive: HMRC disbands ‘secret’ unit that probed family investment companies September 22, 2021 A dedicated unit within HMRC that focused on family investment companies has been disbanded, City A.M. understands. A source within HMRC confirmed this afternoon that the ‘secret’ specialist HMRC unit, which was set up in 2019 to investigate risks associated with family investment companies and tax avoidance risks, has been wound up. The primary reason [...]
Property transactions rose almost a third in August September 21, 2021 Property transactions in August rose almost one third on the previous month, according to official estimates. The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of residential transactions in August was 98,300, 32 per cent higher than July, HMRC data published on Tuesday revealed. The number of transactions was also 20.8 per cent higher than August 2020. It comes [...]
Legal Q&A: How referees’ pay could be hit by a tax dispute with HMRC and why this could have wide-reaching effects on the gig economy September 21, 2021 Lawyer Kevin Barrow explores the implications of an ongoing case between referees and HMRC. What’s this case about? It’s about whether PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited) needs to deduct income tax and National Insurance Contributions (NICs) from payments it makes to referees whom it has engaged on a self-employed “gig worker” basis to officiate at [...]
Accounting body urges government to scrap tax reform plans September 1, 2021 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has today called for the government to drop tax reform plans which, the accounting body says, “will likely to create as many problems as it might solve”. The ICAEW today published a response to the UK government’s consultation on basis period reform. It reiterated the [...]
Civil investigations by HMRC fell during lockdown August 28, 2021 HMRC civil investigations into suspected tax evasion have fallen during the pandemic compared to pre-pandemic levels, according to FOI data obtained by national accountancy group UHY Hacker Young. The organisation said HMRC opened 278 civil investigations into suspected tax evasion during the first ten months of the pandemic, between 1 April 2020 to 31 January [...]