Category: HMRC

Do I have to file UK tax return?

Do I have to file a return even if no tax is payable?

Simplest way to find out, is to use the tool on gov.uk website. Always keep a print of the result for record.

But sometimes, as all automated tool sometimes do, this tool may not give the answer as expected.

Recently I had an enquiry.

An Individual has no UK income but has rental income in India of c£4k per annum. Does he need to file his UK tax return, even if his total income is less than personal allowance.

Question 1 – Whether this individual will get personal allowance?

Our case – Individual is an Indian national but he lives in the UK.

Fortunately, he is a UK tax resident thus he was eligible for personal allowance.

Simply, an individual is UK tax resident if he was in the UK for more than 183 days in that tax year. If your case is different refer to RDR3 Booklet of HMRC.

HMRC guidance to check eligibility of personal allowance in different cases of tax residency and nationality is given in RDRM10300+

Question 2 – Whether he needs to file a tax return even if no tax is payable?

Starting point is that It’s the individual’s responsibility to inform HMRC if he has any income tax or capital gains tax to pay1 within 6 months of the end of the assessment year i.e. by 5th Oct2

But individual is not required to inform HMRC, if after taking in account all income for the tax year he is not liable to pay any tax.3

Please be aware there may be situation where you have to file tax return even if there is no tax payable, example:

  1. Where HMRC sends you a notice to file a return; or
  2. In case where you have capital gains which are less than the capital gains allowance but:
    a. the total amount you sold the assets for was more than 4 times your allowance; and
    b. you’re registered for Self-Assessment
  3. You need to claim a refund
  4. File a loss return
  5. Claim relief for charitable donations, pensions
  6. Pay Class 2 NICs and others.

Keeping the above in view, it may still be advisable to file a tax return as if you make a mistake, penalties are lower for inaccuracies than failure to notify.

Source:

  1.  TMA 1970 sec 7 (1)
  2. TMA 1970 sec 7 (1C)
  3. TMA 19790 sec 7 (3) and (7)

Acknowledgement

Bonus material

Income tax was introduced in Britain temporarily during the Napoleonic wars in 1799 but became a permanent feature in 1842, in anti-tax United States in 1913 and in the bastion of income tax – Sweden in 1932.

Source: User guide to Economics by Ha-Joon Chang

History of accounting

Humans have been practicing accounting since time immemorial . Archaeologists have found clay tablets in Middle East1 with writings and numbers as a form of accounting for wars, harvest and taxes.

The modern `double entry bookkeeping` system is thought to be Italian in origin. India had and still has sophisticated accounting system which is different from the double entry system.

Like all trades, accountants have being forming associations to advance their interests; earliest known example is Collegion di Rasonati in Venice formed in 1581. Members were auditors of ship building business in Venice Arsenale.

Word debit and credit are of medieval Tuscan2 origin, a form of Latin language. According to that `he owes` is debit and `he trusts` is credit.

Debits are traditionally entered on the left-hand side of a ledger and credits on the right-hand side. Some reason the origins to be Christian in nature – in the Bible3; at the last judgement, when we are called to account, the sheep (the good) go up on Christ’s right and the goat (the bad) to the left.

So, whose balance shall we put on the left: that of the wretched customer who has not yet paid us, or that of the kind supplier who has trusted us to pay later? Hence debtors’ balances are entered on the left4.

Earliest surviving book which mentions double entry bookkeeping  is of Luca Pacioli. Please note Luca did not invent double bookkeeping, it had been practiced for more than 200 years before him.

Notes:

  1. Some scientists believe first human civilisations started in Middle East in the Fertile Crescent.
  2. Language spoken in Tuscany region of Italy.
  3. As seen from the painting of last judgement by Michelangelo in Sistine Chapel in Rome. Poor me – I have walked past Sistine Chapel but not been inside.
  4. This paragraph is so beautiful that I lifted it straight from the book – Accounting a short introduction by Christopher Nobes.

Bonus:

  1. Luca Pacioli was also mathematician and left a interesting  probability theory puzzle called `Problem of Points` besides some chess puzzles !

Trivial Benefits

This article is explains briefly how employers can offer trivial benefits to their employees. These are offered as gestures of good will for celebrating special occasions (e.g. birthdays, religious holidays and other special events).

Trivial benefits are tax exempt (i.e. no income tax or NIC is due either on employer or employee) provided the following conditions are met each time the trivial benefit is given:

  1. Amount should be a maximum of £50 per employee
  2. Should not be in the form of cash or a cash voucher
  3. Should not be part of a contractual agreement with the employee
  4. Should not be offered as a reward for work performance.

There is no limit of how many trivial benefits can be offered to every employee in a year, however there is a cap of £300 per year for directors and their family members.

Also trivial benefits does not need to be given to ALL employees.

Examples of Trivial Benefits:

  1. Meal out offered for special events (e.g. birthday party for an employee)
  2. Turkeys offered on Christmas for each employee, provided the average price is maximum £50 per employee or equivalent vegan vouchers for vegan employees
  3. Bottles of wine offered for New Year, or vouchers for non-alcoholic drinks for those who do not drink alcohol.

Examples of non- trivial benefits:

  1. Boss offering lunch to some employee who are over working in their lunch break, for the reason of finishing their tasks quicker. These are reward lunches, not trivial benefits.
  2. Boss offering vouchers every month to those employee who meet or exceed their targets. Theses are awards, not trivial benefits.
  3. Other work-related examples:
  4. lunches in workshops/seminars
  5. month end drinks
  6. monthly meeting lunches/buffets
  7. retirement party for the employee who retires (as this is a reward for his working years); Note: other employees can get a trivial benefit attending this party of their retiring colleague.

Please note in above instances other exemptions may apply.

Same benefit multiple times:

Multiple of the same trivial benefit is considered as one, with a cap of £50 per employee (e.g. boss offering sandwiches every week say of £3 each . So total equals £3 x 52 = £156 thus exceeds £50 limit)

Record keeping

Employers should keep clear records of Trivial Benefits – Dates, details and Amounts

Employment Allowance: Group / Connected Companies

Employment allowance in group companies can only be claimed by any one company.

An employer gets £3,000 off their Class 1A (Secondary) National Insurance in each tax year.

The question arises – can two or more companies in a group claim £3,000 each.

The answer is No, only one of the group companies can claim employment allowance. Tax payer decides which company gets it.

I would highly recommend a read through the technical guidance link given below:

a) HMRC even includes unincorporated businesses in connected businesses.

b) Besides share-holding and control as under Corporation Tax Act 2010, HMRC has included within connected businesses – economically interdependent businesses as well.

Technical guidance in this case is highly readable with lots of examples.

Sources:

Basics

Technical guidance: Connected companies

PS – I came across this little gem of information among audience questions today on HMRC Webinar: Employers – what’s new for 2018. I will highly recommend subscribing to these webinars. They are free !

October 2019

HMRC’s latest Agent Update Issue 74 informs that from 6 April 2020 Employment Allowance will be restricted to employers with NICs liabilities of under £100,000.

That is employers will need to look at their last tax year’s Employer NIC expense and if its over £100k they cannot claim £3k Employment Allowance.

If employer is part of a group Class 1 NICs liabilities of all companies, and/or PAYE schemes, needs to be added together to assess eligibility for Employment Allowance.

May 2023

If one group company cannot claim full balance, balance cannot be transferred to another company.

Sep 2024

The Employment Allowance can only be used against your employer Class 1 NICs liability. It can not be used against Class 1A or Class 1B NICs liabilities.
Source : Claiming Employment Allowance: further employer guidance.

Overview of taxes in United Kingdom

Below is a very brief summary of taxes in the UK but gives an idea to a businessman who is planning to start a business.

Ongoing Taxes

NameDetailRate
Corporation taxTax on profit the company makesCurrent rate 19% going up to 25% from April 2023 for profits over £250k
Dividend taxTax on dividends received by individual shareholdersFirst £2k tax free then between 7.5% to 38.1%
Payroll (PAYE) tax    Taxes on becoming an employer 
Income taxEmployee paysFirst £12,570 is tax free then between 20% to 45%.
Employee national insuranceEmployee paysFirst £8,840 tax free then 12%
Employer national insuranceEmployer paysFirst 9,568 tax free then 13.8%.

Employment allowance £4k
Value added taxSales tax when turnover crosses £85,000Usually 20%
Business rates          Municipal taxUsually, half of rent


One off taxes

NameDetailRate
Capital Gains TaxTax on the profit when you sell something that is increased in value.First £12,300 tax free then 10% or 20% depending on your income. Tax on sale of residential property is higher.
Inheritance TaxTax on the estate of someone who died.40% over £325,000

Other matters

NameDetailRate
InsuranceMinimum legal requirementEmployer’s Liability Insurance.   Certificate needs to be kept for 40 years. Requirement now removed.
Minimum WageLegal minimum wageOver 23 years: £8.91 per hour. Lower for younger people

Matters specific to restaurant industry.  

NameDetailRate
Premises LicensePermit to sell alcoholNew license can be a long process. Transfer is usually free and annual fee less than £1k p.a.
Music LicensePermit to play background musicAnnual fee under £1k p.a.

Example:

Suppose you start a restaurant and after few years it starts making some profits, you will find that you have a new partner to share in your good fortune – Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC)

I have given below what an owner will make and what his new partner HMRC will capture.

Owner’s share:
Sales                                                   £2,000,000
Net Profits                                        £400,000             say 20%              
Corporation Tax                              £100,000             25% rate from April 2023
Distributable Profits                       £300,000
Personal/Dividend tax                   £100,000            
Net in hand                                      £200,000

I have taken net profits at 20% this is achievable in a well-run high end central London restaurant. This profit percentage is after paying payroll taxes, VAT and Business Rates.

HMRC’s share:
Business Rate                                   £100,000             Fixed not dependent on sales
VAT                                                     £400,000            
Payroll Taxes                                    £60,000              
Corporation Tax                              £100,000            
Personal/Dividend tax                   £100,000            
Total                                                   £760,000

Above figures have been estimated and rounded off to make them easier to understand but on the whole close to reality.

In case you decide sell or just drop dead, you will meet new characters from the `Book of the Taxes` called Capital Gains tax and Inheritance tax but don’t worry, not today.

Set up a business – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)