Merry Christmas!

From all of us at Shepherd Partnership, please accept our very best wishes for Christmas and the festive period.

It’s hard to believe that a new decade is almost upon us – never mind that it’s twenty years since the millennium – but we’re excited for 2020 and all that it will bring to our local business community.

If you have any plans, aspirations or changes in mind for your business in the New Year, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re always here as your trusted business partners.

Office Closure

Please note, our offices will close for the festive period at Midday on Christmas Eve and will reopen on Thursday, 2nd January.

Braving The Shave!!

One of our team members, Gillian, is soon to be ‘Braving the Shave’ to fundraise for MacMillan Cancer Support!!

Gillian is raising funds and awareness for this very worthy cause in memory of her best friend, Sara Barker, and another friend’s husband, Grahame Booth – both of whom lost their battles with cancer.

The shave is taking place on Saturday 12th October – and we’ll be sure to share the ‘after’ pictures as soon as possible!

The pic above shows Gillian’s current hairstyle (lots of long hair) – so the shave will be a dramatic – and rather cold – change as we head into the winter months!

To find out more about the fundraising effort, and to donate to this fantastic cause, please take a look here: https://bravetheshave.macmillan.org.uk/shavers/gillian-humphrey

 

 

In The Press…

You may have spotted us in the latest Craven Herald and the July edition of Aspire magazine! But if not, please read on for the published article…

 

There’s been a lot going on for Skipton-based accountancy firm, Shepherd Partnership, who recently relocated to new premises at Carleton Business Park…and appointed a new director!

The long-established practice, which provides personalised support to local business owners and individuals, relocated to their new offices to offer an enhanced visitor experience, and to accommodate a recent period of growth. Staff and clients are now benefiting from a comfortable, modern office space and state-of-the-art meeting rooms; all kitted out with a range of high-tech equipment.

Managing Director, Adam Dutton, said, “As well as being fantastic for us, the move also signifies a positive time for Skipton’s business community. Despite what’s going on in the wider economy (avoiding the ‘B’ word!), we are seeing no decline in activity in any areas of business. The region as a whole – and Skipton in particular – is continuing to develop and grow.”

In addition to the move, the firm were thrilled to simultaneously appoint Heather Langtree, an experienced accountant who joined the firm in 2015, to her new role as director.

“Heather has a wealth of experience and a portfolio of clients who trust and respect her knowledge and advice. She will enhance our leadership team whilst continuing to provide informed advice and opportunities to local businesses.”, explained Adam.

Heather added, “I believe Shepherd Partnership provide an unrivalled and personalised service. I am excited to drive the business forward in my new role… and in our new home. Our team were unbelievably helpful in making the move a success; from packing, unpacking and sorting out IT and phone systems, to welcoming visitors to the new premises.”

After visiting the new offices and talking to the team, it’s clear Shepherd Partnership’s focus is on clients’ success – and they have a real desire to make Skipton a thriving business hub. To discover more, take a look at their website, or get in touch to arrange a visit to their fabulous new location.

WE’RE MOVING!

We’re delighted to announce our upcoming move to fantastic new premises!

In February 2019, we will relocate to purposely designed and newly refurbished offices at Carleton Business Park, Skipton.

This is an exciting development for The Shepherd Partnership and we can’t wait to welcome you – our clients and contacts – there in the near future.

Watch this space for further updates…but please get in touch if you have any questions in the meantime.

Please CLICK HERE to download a map of our new location.

Our new address will be:

Carleton Business Park

Skipton

BD23 2AA

Recognising phishing emails and texts from HMRC

We often hear of phishing scams involving apparent communication from HMRC.

Phishing is the fraudulent act of emailing a person in order to obtain their personal or financial information such as passwords and credit card or bank account details. These emails often include a link to a bogus website encouraging you to enter your personal details.

HMRC have just updated their guidance; explaining how to recognise genuine contact from them, and how to tell when an email or text message is phishing or bogus.

Click here to read the guidance.

HMRC confirm MTD is happening in April 2019…but delays full roll-out as result of Brexit

HMRC confirmed that MTD for VAT is set to take effect from April 2019, as previously planned. From this time, businesses with a turnover above the VAT registration threshold (currently £85,000) will be required to keep digital records for VAT purposes and submit VAT returns using MTD functional compatible software.

But they have delayed the full roll-out of Making Tax Digital (MTD) while the UK makes preparations to leave the EU in 2019.

MTD for individuals was scheduled to take effect from 2020. However, the government has revealed that the plans have been put on hold to allow HMRC to focus on the UK’s Brexit preparations.

In a letter to tax professionals, HMRC stated: ‘We have made the decision to delay plans to release project capability to EU exit work. This means halting progress on Simple Assessment and real-time tax code changes.’ HMRC proceeded to say that the foundations for MTD for individuals have been laid, which will enable the government to return to the initiative ‘in the future’.

Responding to the news, Yvette Nunn, Co-Chair of the Technical Steering Group at the Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT), stated: ‘Given the unprecedented changes which will result from Brexit, it is only sensible that HMRC seek to prioritise their work. While we welcome the pause . . . we strongly urge HMRC to use the extra time given to iron out the known problems with Simple Assessment and dynamic coding before they hit play on them again.’

Meanwhile, HMRC has added two new software providers to the MTD for income tax pilot scheme, bringing the current total to four.

The software providers signed up to the MTD for income tax pilot will be required to supply reporting tools to those taking part in the pilot, in order for them to send income and expenses summaries to HMRC every three months. Participating sole traders will then be required to submit a final report to confirm all income and expenses for the year, and to claim any allowances or reliefs they may also be entitled to.

Company car tax rises take effect

The company car has continued to be an important benefit for many employees, despite increases in the taxable benefit rates in recent years.

However, April 2018 saw the introduction of further changes affecting employer-provided cars, which could have a significant impact on your business motoring costs.

Benefit-in-kind rates

Company cars are essentially taxed as a benefit-in-kind (BiK) by multiplying the list price of the car (including most accessories) by the ‘appropriate percentage’. This is set by reference to the car’s fuel type and level of CO₂ emissions.

In 2017/18, a reduced BiK rate of 9% applied for vehicles emitting no more than 50 g/km of CO₂, but from April 2018 these rates have started to increase significantly.

Cars with CO₂ emissions of 0-50 g/km are now liable to a rate of 13%, with similar rises applying to cars with higher levels of emissions.

Diesel cars

April 2018 also saw an increase in the additional diesel car supplement, which has risen from 3% to 4%. The maximum cap of 37% still applies (unless the car is registered on or after 1 September 2017 and meets the Euro 6d emissions standard).

Capital allowances

Changes have also been made to the tax relief for business expenditure incurred on or after 1 April 2018. The 100% first year allowance for expenditure on cars now applies where emissions are less than 50 g/km, reduced from the previous level of 75 g/km. In addition, the limit for attracting an 18% writing down allowance has fallen from 130 g/km to 110 g/km.

Electric charging points

There is perhaps more welcome news for those employers providing charging points for electric or hybrid cars, as HMRC intends to exempt employer-provided electricity from being taxed as a BiK, to apply retrospectively from 6 April 2018.

Further changes to company cars are due to take effect in 2019 and beyond, including additional increases in the BiK rates and the introduction of a new range of bands for ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs).

We can help you to plan ahead and decide on the most tax-efficient option for your business motoring needs.

For more information, including the latest tax rates, visit the Tax Strategies area of our website.

OTS calls for ‘urgent review’ into how UK tax system affects businesses

In a new report, the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) has called for the government to carry out ‘urgent work’ in order to simplify the business tax system for UK firms.

The OTS report focused on businesses owned by individuals and families, and examined how the tax system affects firms at each of the key stages of their development, from starting-up to disposal or cessation. The OTS’s stated aim was to ‘highlight the complexity entrepreneurs face when seeking to establish or grow a business’.

In the report, the tax reliefs and charges that apply to new and growing businesses were examined in order to ascertain how well they operate and whether they achieve their objectives.

The OTS concluded that the reliefs and charges would ‘benefit from an overhaul to reduce complexity’, which would help to make reliefs ‘more accessible’ to firms.

The regulatory body has urged the government to consider streamlining or simplifying a number of key reliefs in order to better help entrepreneurs in starting up and expanding their businesses.

The OTS has highlighted 12 key observations, focusing on two main areas: the operation of the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS), Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and Venture Capital Trust (VCT) schemes; and Entrepreneurs’ Relief (ER), capital gains tax (CGT) gift relief and inheritance tax (IHT) reliefs for business.

The organisation has invited the views of businesses and the industry, and will ‘consider some of the areas touched upon in more depth in the future’.

Paul Morton, Tax Director at the OTS, said: ‘This paper takes a significant first step towards meeting the pressing need to undertake a detailed review of the tax system as it operates across the business lifecycle.

‘It is aimed at helping the businesses that are the lifeblood of the UK economy to maximise their opportunities and to make the system clear and simple to understand and use.’

Chancellor invites small firms to contribute views on VAT threshold

Chancellor Philip Hammond has invited small businesses to provide feedback on the impact of the current VAT threshold on their firm.

In November 2017, the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) outlined a range of measures intended to help simplify the VAT system. The OTS suggested examining the current approach to the level and design of the VAT registration threshold, and argued that the current registration threshold of £85,000 is ‘costly’, and has a ‘distortionary impact’ on business growth and activity.

The government has acknowledged that the current design of the VAT registration threshold could be ‘disincentivising’ small businesses from expanding their firm. The consultation will explore the effects of the VAT threshold on small businesses and examine different policy options.

Businesses can contribute their views online at www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/W7TLCZ7. The deadline for firms to respond is 5 June 2018.

Meanwhile, the government recently introduced new rules to combat online VAT fraud. The measures, which were first announced by Mr Hammond during the 2017 Autumn Budget, strengthen the powers to make online marketplaces accountable for VAT fraud perpetrated by sellers using their platforms.

Under the government’s new guidelines, online marketplaces will be liable for any unpaid tax if they do not remove sellers who fail to pay VAT from their sites. The regulations apply to both UK sellers and those based overseas.

Marketplaces are also now required to ensure that sellers using their platforms display a valid VAT number.

New tax year ushers in key business and tax changes

With the beginning of the 2018/19 tax year, some significant changes to business and tax legislation are taking effect. Here, we take a look at some of the key measures that could affect your business or personal finances.

Increase in employers’ minimum auto-enrolment contributions

Currently the pension auto-enrolment legislation requires employers to contribute at least 1% on qualifying earnings. From 6 April 2018, employers may be required to increase the contribution they pay into their automatic enrolment workplace pension scheme. Affected employers will be required to pay a minimum of 2% from this time, with a further increase to 3% set to take place from 6 April 2019.

Reduction in the Dividend Allowance

The Dividend Allowance is set to reduce to £2,000 on 6 April 2018, from its current level of £5,000. The stated aim is to ‘address the unfairness associated with director-shareholders’ tax advantage’.

Rising National Living Wage (NLW) and National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates

From 1 April 2018, the NLW for employees aged 25 and over will increase to £7.83 per hour.

Meanwhile, the NMW will increase to £7.38 per hour for workers aged 21-24, and to £5.90 an hour for workers aged 18-20. For workers who are aged 16-17, the NMW will rise to £4.20 per hour, and for apprentices, the rate will rise to £3.70 an hour. An apprentice is an individual who is aged under 19, or 19 and over and in the first year of their apprenticeship.

Introduction of the new Welsh Land Transaction Tax (LTT)
1 April sees the introduction of the new LTT, which preserves the essential structure of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT), but with some key differences, including a higher starting threshold for residential properties. For those seeking to purchase a residential property in Wales, there will be no tax to pay on a home worth up to £180,000.

The new Scottish income tax bands

From 6 April 2018, a raft of additional changes will take effect for taxpayers who are resident in Scotland. In the 2017 Scottish Budget, the Finance Secretary for Scotland, Derek Mackay, announced two new income tax bands, bringing the possible income tax rates payable up to five. The new Scottish income tax rates range from 19% to 46%.

Rise in the pensions Lifetime Allowance (LTA)

The LTA has increased in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI), and for 2018/19 it will rise from £1,000,000 to £1,030,000.

For more information on the key changes set to take effect from April 2018, please visit the Hot Topics section of our website.