News

20 November 2020: HMRC confirms that annual party exemption applies to virtual festivities, including gifts consumed at the party. In the Insights story explaining how the staff party exemption might apply this festive season, the Tax Faculty highlighted factors to consider when planning virtual parties. ICAEW is pleased to report the taxman is not a grinch at all and is ready to spread some virtual cheer. HMRC will soon update its guidance, but has confirmed that virtual parties for employees are exempt from tax where the cost does not…

1 December 2020: HMRC has temporarily suspended the requirement for an activation code to be sent in the post before taxpayers can access the self assessment online filing service. The normal process for taxpayers who want to sign up to file a self assessment (SA) tax return online involves HMRC sending an activation code through the post. This can take up to 10 days to arrive and the code expires after 28 days. Overseas taxpayers often receive the code after it has expired. Taxpayers waiting for their code frequently…

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax will launch properly in April 2023 for self-employed people and landlords who make over £10,000 annually.So while it's not compulsory (yet), if you fill in a Self Assessment tax return, you can sign up for a digital tax returns pilot scheme.The pilot lets you keep records digitally and send Income Tax updates to HMRC instead of filing a Self Assessment tax return. The government estimates that so far, around 30 per cent of businesses and landlords have signed up voluntarily.HMRC says it will…