Save cash by filing your tax return early

When you calculate the tax you owe through self-assessment, HMRC ask you to make ‘Payments on Account’ (‘POAs’) towards your liability for the following tax year. By default, these are set at the same level as the previous tax year’s liability.

The first of these payments is due on 31 January in the tax year to which it relates, and the second is due on 31 July following the end of the tax year. For example, POAs for the 2018/19 tax year (6 April 2018 to 5 April 2019) are due on 31 January 2019 and 31 July 2019 and calculated based on the level of your tax liability for the previous tax year, 2017/18.

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Tax Free Childcare – don’t miss out!

Many people have come across childcare vouchers in their employment – essentially, this is where an employer can ‘award’ vouchers which are paid tax and NIC free.

However, HMRC have been intending on abolishing this scheme for some time, recognising the lack of equality between employed and self-employed individuals in this area, and the old childcare voucher scheme is now closed to those who were not in it already.

The alternative to this is called ‘Tax Free Childcare’ and is in theory much simpler to administer than the old childcare voucher scheme.

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Getting your structure right

Starting your own business can be an exciting – but daunting – time. One of the first and most important decisions to make is how are you going to structure your business? The reason this decision is so important is that it has a variety of consequences – not only related to tax, but also from a legal and administrative perspective, and how your business will be perceived.

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New Year, new start?

As per our recent blog post, the deadline for filing self-assessment is 31 January 2019. Once this is completed for the year and out of the way, it is a natural time to reflect on the service you have received from your current accountant.  Many potential clients we speak to are keen to change accountants for various reasons, but fear that it will involve too much hassle.  However, be assured that there is very little administration for you at all.

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