Companies House are really going to town these days! We have had recent experience with a company filing their accounts 2 months late and they are threatening criminal proceedings against the directors! Let this be a warning

We hate it us much as you do, but I am sure many of you remember you have to at least consider Form P11D every year to declare any Benefits in Kind given to employees.
 
In the age-old habit of moving the goal-posts and creating extra paperwork (as if we all have nothing better to do), the very useful dispensation that is granted to avoid reporting items like your GCC membership when you are in a Limited Company, is being reviewed.
 
This is on a case by case basis but all employers are being invited to complete Form P11DX otherwise they may consider the previous dispensation invalid.
 
Apparently they also do not like any round sum allowances or personal payments made on company credit cards as there could be a 'private' element to the sums involved.

Now that the tax year has passed we will be busy sending requests out for all the many tax returns and accounts we are due to prepare this year.

If you havent got an accountant then why not give us a call 01872 242800

We are specialist accountants for chiropractors and act for over 200 chiropractors each year.

We offer free bespoke bookkeeping software to help you comply with Inland Revenue regulations and help make our systems in preparing documents efficient so we can include lots of advice and assistance within the services.

You will get a dedicated account manager to be your first point of contact who can help with answering questions on monthly bookkeeping, accounts and basic tax issues.

Call today to find out a price for your chosen package! 01872 242800

 

 

My money Valentine
Sweet economic Valentine
I make you smile with my ravings:
"Your books are applaudable!
Your knowledge is laudable!”
Oh you are the saviour of my savings

Well, I know that they call you geek
And your demeanour is rather meek
The numbers that you speak...
...Lift my heart!

So, don't change a thing for me
‘Cos I count on your accountancy
Stay, money Valentine, stay
‘Cos every day is Valentine's Day

In the papers over the weekend it has been reported that millions of people could be left out of pocket due to an online tax error on the HM Revenue and Customs website.

Those people who are self employed and filed their own tax returns online are not only being asked to pay the "back tax" for the previous year but also the full contribution towards next year known as the "payment on account". The "payment on account" is actually due in two installments, half in January and half in July however the error on the HMRC website has calculated and shown to pay the full amount now so many tax payers will be making some of their payment 6 months early.

Particularly with the ecomony as it is, having to make this early tax payment could stretch tax payers even further than they are already.

If you think you may be in this situation and would like us to have a look at your tax statement then please get in touch:

T: 01872 242800
E: support@finance4chiropractors.com

 

HMRC have been negotiating with tax payers who are stuggling to pay their tax bills. Tax payers have been able to pay over several months and at an interet rate sometimes as low as 3.5%, which is lower than most overdrafts.

If you have concerns about paying a tax bill this January, please contact us and we may be able to provide the number for the HMRC office that can help

T: 01872 242800
E: support@finance4chiropractors.com

 

In these trying times and in light of the deadline for submission of returns rapidly approaching we are hearing many clients have making comments about their tax payments and the usual reluctance to actually paying their tax…

A couple of our clients have mentioned about HMRC being able to delay their tax and not charge them penalties. We have subsequently looked into this so called “Business Payment Support Service” that the Revenue offer (and in fact recently recommended it to clients) who had concerns about meeting their tax payments.

The client in question has said that he was offered an agreement over the phone of delaying the tax due in January by 2-5 months – without any surcharges being issued or additional penalties. He pushed further and they were willing to spread his payments over 12 months. Any further than 12 months and a decision is apparently given to the local tax office.

The only downside is that you must keep up the payments or the agreement is void. Also there is a small interest rate of 2% above base rate until the liability is repaid.

Obviously this may come in useful to some tax payers as it encompasses ANY HMRC payment that you are concerned about not being able to meet, including corporation tax, not just the usual income tax. This could save drawing down on overdrafts from the bank not to mention surcharges that will not be withdrawn if you decide after they are issued that you can’t pay your tax!!

The number is 0845 302 1435  -  link www.hmrc.gov.uk/pbr2008/business-payment.htm

Or please contact finance 4 chiropractors for more details on 01872 271655
support@finance4chiropractors.com

This week our MORE software that we provide free of charge to our client's to assist with their monthly bookkeeping has been upgraded - we are now running version 6.

There are some subtle changes to the appearance including a new graph design on the home page as well as functional changes within the system that include:

1) being able to "tag" columbs to prompt the person entering the data for specific information

2) speedier process for those using the supplier and customer functions (this wont apply to many people as we usually enter on a payments and receipts basis only)

We will be speaking with all current software users over the next couple of days to discuss how these changes will affect you but if you would like more information on the bookkeeping software or any changes to V6 please get in touch 01872 271655 or support@finance4chiropractors.com

 

 

There have been a number of important recent changes to the Companies House Act that will affect chiropractors trading as a limited company.

Change to the filing deadline (dates)

The filing deadline has been changed from 10 months after the year end to 9 months. Broadly speaking, this change will affect anyone with year ends on or after 30th April 2009. For more information please review the Inland Revenue link here

Change to the filing deadline penalties (costs)

2) The late filing penalties are being increased from 1 February 2009.

New penalties are as follows:

Private Limited Company
Not more than 1 month - £150
More than 1 month but less than 3 months - £375
More than 3 months but less than 6 months - £750
Over 6 months - £1500

Please note penalties for PLC's are higher

This will hopefully encourage clients to get their records in within plenty of time for their accountants to prepare and file their accounts on time.

For more information on either of these changes please contact us on 01872 242800 or support@finance4chiropractors.com

 

 

Income Tax

2009/10

There will be no changes in either the basic rate (20%) or higher rate (40%) of income tax for 2009/10.

The personal allowance for 2009/10 will increase from £6,025 to £6,475.

The basic rate limit (being the point at which higher rate income tax becomes payable) for 2009/10 will increase from £34,800 to £37,400.
 

Subsequent Years

From 6 April 2010, the value of the personal allowance to an individual with gross income over £100,000 will be reduced by up to half (ie amount of allowance reduced by £1 for every £2 above the income limit up to a maximum of one half of the personal allowance).

Similarly from 6 April 2010 the value of the personal allowance to an individual with gross income over £140,000 will be gradually withdrawn (ie the amount of the allowance will be further reduced by £1 for every £2 above the income limit up to a maximum of the full amount of the personal allowance).

A new 45% rate of income tax will be introduced from 6 April 2011, applicable to non-savings and savings income above £150,000.

Income above £150,000 that comprises dividends will be taxable at the new rate of 37.5%.

6 April 2011 will also see 5% increases in the rates of income tax for trusts – the dividend trust rate will be increased to 37.5% and the trust rate of tax to 45%.
 

National Insurance

2009/10

The Upper Earnings Limit (UEL), being the earnings up to which the main rate of employee contributions at 11% are payable, will be aligned with the income level at which the higher rate of income tax starts to apply.  This will result in the UEL increasing from its current £40,040 to £43,875.
 

Subsequent Years

The main rates of NICs will all be increased by 0.5% from 6 April 2011, such that employee’s Class 1 contributions will be at 11.5% (on earnings up to the Upper Earnings Limit, currently £40,040) and 1.5% (on earnings above the Upper Earnings Limit), and Class 4 contributions 8.5% (on profits up to the Upper annual profits limit, currently £40,040) and 1.5% (on profits above the Upper annual profits limit).

Employer’s Class 1 contributions will also increase by 0.5% to 13.3% from 6 April 2011, as will Class 1A and Class 1B contributions.

The “primary threshold”, being the point at which NICs become payable, will be broadly aligned with the income tax personal allowance from 6 April 2011. 

Business Tax

The planned increase from 21% to 22% in the small companies rate of corporation tax has been deferred by a year until 1 April 2010.

There will be a temporary extension to the period that current trading losses can be carried back against previous profits, from the current one year entitlement to a period of 3 years, with losses being carried back to later years first.  This measure will have effect for company accounting periods ending in the period 24 Nob 08 to 23 Nov 09.  For unincorporated businesses, the measure will have effect in relation to trading losses for the 2008/09 tax year.

The current rules for capital allowances on “expensive cars” will be abolished and replaced with an environmentally based pooling system with effect from 1 April 2009 for corporation tax purposes and 6 April 2009 for income tax purposes.  Thereafter the rate of allowance will be based on the car’s CO2 emissions.

Whilst maintaining its position that so-called “income shifting” is unfair, the Government is not intending to include legislation in the 2009 Finance Bill but will instead “keep this issue under review”.

Pensions

The lifetime allowance and annual allowance will be frozen at their 2010/11 amounts (£1.8m and £255k respectively) for the next 5 tax years, that is up to and including 2015/16.

The deadline for filing paper tax returns has already been and gone, the next deadline being 31st January for filing online!

Although this still may seem like months away, it is infact 2.5 months..... so that is 11 weeks or put another way....77 days!

This doesnt include the Christmas break either, which means really it is only 9 weeks ....so 63 days!

Our team do also try to have weekends off (!!) so without weekends that means it is 45 days we have to be able to complete your tax return, get it to you and back for authorisation to submit it.

Although we usually try to get accounts and tax back to our clients within 6 weeks, that is 30 days based on our 5 days working week, inevetibly if information is missing or questions arise, then this can extend to longer. Also, at this time of year we operate a strict first in - first out basis so if you have to join the back of the queue then you may be cutting it fine to guarentee we can meet the deadline

In short, if you haven't filed your records with your accountant for the 07/08 tax year then it is time to make this a priority if you want to avoid the £100 penalty and potentially interest and surcharges on any unpaid tax

 

 

 

Until recently when we claim for tax relief, the BCA (British Chiropractic Association) and the CoC (College of Chiropractors) subscriptions have been allowable by the Inland Revenue but not the UCA (United Chiropractic Association).

However, our tax department have corresponded with the Inland Revenue and the UCA to make this allowable now.

What this means to you: Any chiropractors we claim tax relief for can feel confident that we have authorisation to get this allowance for UCA subs!

Don't forget to sign up for regular e-news updates from finance 4 chiropractors! Simply visit our homepage and follow the link or use the link below

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A client of ours called the other day following us processing a chiropractic repayment claim for her, as she had yet to receive her actual tax rebate in the bank.

When we followed this up with the Inland Revenue, they happily advised that their post had been dealt with up until 17 April 2008!!!!

So in fact they are about 8 weeks behind with processing post! Imagine what would happen if a business like ours or yours did that?

 

Following a number of repayment claims we have completed recently we found that the Revenue keep trying to disallow the GCC joining fee (£1250) as a tax-deductible expense. We conducted some research and uncovered a bit of tax law which proved to the Revenue that it was in fact an allowable expense. The Revenue have accepted our findings so good news to all first year chiropractors – we can include this expense in your accounts/repayment claim and gain up to £500 more tax back!

 

......and that means that our accountancy team are now starting to call in accounts and tax records for the year ended 31/3/08. We have already started to get many clients records in to us to start work. These "early bird" clients mainly use our bookkeeping software "MORE" that allows them to keep up to date with their record keeping and have our support and guidance through the year to do so.

There are many benefits of getting your records in early.

1) Tax will be calculated early, maybe 9 months before the payment deadline (if accounts are finished in May), which means plenty of time to save for any excess or unexpected tax.

2) Tax saving opportunities can be explored. If we only receive records in during January (being the month of submission) it is difficult to act on any opportunities as too much time will have passed. For example, it may be that we would suggest looking at incorporation, which by delaying could mean less of a tax saving.

3) We can advise of improvememts to bookkeeping methods so that you dont go too far into next years record keeping making errors

4) You will avoid additional penalties, not only from the Inland Revene (if the return is late) but by the accountant. As Decemeber and January can be busy months and if your tax return needs to be carried out in staff overtime, then a premium rate may be charged.

We have written an article on the importance of keeping good bookkeeping records to explain more benefits from a day to day basis, which is definately worth a read.  http://www.finance4chiropractors.com/featured-topics/starting-in-business/the-importance-of-keeping-good-bookkeeping-records.htm 

So wouldnt it be great to get into the habit of getting your records in early? Rather than having endless calls and reminders from the accountant asking "where are your records..."!! For more help and advice, or to explore the free bookkeeping software we offer to mke bookkeeping less of a chore for you, contact us: 01872 271655

 

Each day this week we are going to summarise the relevant changes to the Companies Act

Part 5 (final)

Penalties for late filing of accounts have been increased, such that:

Up to 1 month late, £150;
1 – 3 months, £375;
3 – 6 months, £750;
> 6 months, £1,500

What this means for you is greater penalties for failing to submit your accounts within the set deadlines so even more reason to ensure that you are organised with your record keeping so that your accountant can receive your records in plenty of time to ensure that these penalties are not incurred.

For more information, or the full report, please visit our website http://www.finance4chiropractors.com/featured-topics/tax-and-tax-planning.htm

We would be happy to discuss any of these changes to the Companies Act with you if you contact us:

T: 01872 242800
E: support@finance4chiropractors.com

 

Each day this week we are going to summarise the relevant changes to the Companies Act

Part 4

The thresholds for a statutory audit have been increased, such that a company is exempt from undertaking one as long as:

Turnover < £6.5m; and
Assets < £3.26m; and
Number of employees < 50

What this means for you is less opportunity for needing an audit.

 

For more information, or the full report, please visit our website http://www.finance4chiropractors.com/featured-topics/tax-and-tax-planning.htm

Each day this week we are going to summarise the relevant changes to the Companies Act

Part 3

General duties of directors have been extended. They need to take into account six social factors when making company decisions as follows:-

The likely long term consequences of a decision
The interests of the company’s employees
Relationships with the company’s trading partners ( i.e. supplies, customers)
The effect of the company’s operations on the community and the environment ( where practicable)
The desirability of maintaining the company’s reputation for high standards of business conduct; and
The need to act fairly as between members.

What this means for you is more consideration being taken when making business decisions to ensure the above standards are met

 

For more information, or the full report, please visit our website http://www.finance4chiropractors.com/featured-topics/tax-and-tax-planning.htm

Each day this week we are going to summarise the relevant changes to the Companies Act

Part 2

There is no longer a need for a company secretary

What this means for you.....in short, less paperwork!

 

For more information, or the full report, please visit our website http://www.finance4chiropractors.com/featured-topics/tax-and-tax-planning.htm

Each day this week we are going to summarise the relevant changes to the Companies Act

Part 1

Accounts are now due to be filed within 9 months rather than the previous 10 months.

What this means for you is that accountants have 1 less month to file accounts so your accounting records will need to be sent in earlier to ensure that deadlines are not missed and penalties are avoided

For more information, or the full report, please visit our website http://www.finance4chiropractors.com/featured-topics/tax-and-tax-planning.htm

the free software we offer clients to assist them with their bookkeeping is now being improved further to make it even more user friendly and to save even more time each month when writing up your income and expenses.

there will be a facility to import your bank statements from online banking, saving hours in entering this data and other similar functions too.

bookkeeping should no longer be a time consuming chore that is put off until the end of the year! And once you have got up and running with this software, with a few hours of analysing the data you will have meaningful reports to assist you with making valuable business and financial decisions.

 

New article uploaded onto the website today regarding the recent (and major) changes to capital allowances. Capital allowances is another word for the tax relief received on plant and machinery, fixtures and equipment and motor vehicles

It is worth reading TODAY as the changes take effect from 5 April 2008 so that only leaves just over 5 weeks to get advice on when is the best time for you to purchase any capital items

LINK: http://www.finance4chiropractors.com/featured-topics.htm

Our free bookkeeping software offered to accounts and tax clients has been well received after speaking with several clients yesterday.

The type of feedback we received was that the software is easy to use, gives the client control over their finances and the support and guidance from our team is invaluable for making people feel confident in what they are doing.

The best bit though is that by keeping your records up-to-date, we are offering 6 monthly tax estimates for users of the software to help with their tax and financial planning......

We have designed a 10 questions survey on our software and once carried out on the current users, we will publish this on the website

 

 

We have just successfully passed the January tax deadline! As you may be aware, January can be a very busy period for many accountancy practices, however, over the last 12 months we have spent a lot of time streamlining our systems to ensure we are able to successfully meet the deadlines for our clients.....but without causing unnecessary pressure on the team or additional fees for our customers.

Our clients are allocated with a dedicated "account manager", who becomes their first point of contact, and who also monitors the progress of their accounts and communicates this back to their clients.

This combined with the free issue software we provide makes their record keeping easier to keep on top of, meaning records can be with us shortly after the year end and tax can therefore be calculated and filed sooner, hence providing peace of mind that their tax affairs are taken care of.

Article coming soon on the website (www.finance4chiropractors.com) regarding our free bookkeeping software and the importance of keeping good bookkeeping records.