HLAS

In recent years HMRC have identified and successfully challenged a number of spurious claims for Research and Development (R&D) tax credit relief made by purported ‘R&D Consultants’. Many of these claims have been for projects that did not satisfy the criteria for the tax relief and some included overstated expenditure and consequently have been abusing the scheme. The R&D rules offer legitimate claims generous tax breaks. For a company that is a Small or Medium-sized Entity (SME), qualifying expenditure attracts a tax deduction of 230% of the amount spent which can then be traded in for a tax refund of [...]

In the increasingly competitive jobs market, it is important that employers are able to attract and retain talented people to help them grow their business. Within certain sectors, the opportunity to participate in the equity of the organisation that they work for is something that more employees are seeking and those employers that do not offer such opportunities could put themselves at a disadvantage when looking to retain and recruit. For corporate employers, there are currently four HMRC ‘tax-advantaged’ schemes that provide employees and employers with income tax and National Insurance Contribution (NIC) advantages. The four tax-advantaged schemes are currently: [...]

With the departure of Boris Johnson, the contenders as leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister (PM) have now been whittled down to the last two – Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss. Whoever wins will need to appoint a new chancellor and we await their tax policies with interest. In the event of Liz Truss becoming PM, we are expecting her Chancellor to call an emergency Budget, with a flurry of tax reductions being announced. In her campaign to win support from Tory members, Liz Truss has suggested that she would reverse the 1.25% Health and Social Care Levy. [...]

The Office for Veterans’ Affairs will provide £100,000 in funding to the charity Veterans Into Logistics, to support veterans to become HGV drivers. The announcement is on top of the £25m of UK Government funding being distributed through the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust to charities to offer support to veterans across the United Kingdom. The grant has been provided to the charity Veterans into Logistics, which offers bespoke training for former military personnel who wish to pursue careers in HGV driving. See: Government funds HGV driver training programme for veterans - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)  

The Plastic Packaging Tax (PPT) was introduced on 1 April 2022. If you manufacture or import plastic packaging into the UK, you may need to register for PPT, submit a PPT return and pay any tax due. As the end of the first quarterly accounting period for PPT approaches, HMRC shared some key reminders on completing PPT returns and payments. If you are liable to register or have already registered for PPT, from 1 July 2022 you must submit your PPT return and pay any tax due no later than 29 July 2022. Your PPT return needs to cover plastic [...]

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has published new guidance in which it urges UK organisations to prepare for an extended period of heightened cyber security threat. The guidance is designed to apply to any period of sustained heightened cyber threat, including the one arising from Russia in light of events in and around Ukraine. While the NCSC is not aware of any current specific threats to UK organisations, it says that the cyber threat to the UK remains heightened and they expect it to stay that way for some time. The new guidance aims to help organisations avoid complacency [...]

New developments in innovative technologies to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere will be taken forward by new government-backed projects across the UK – helping to create new green jobs and putting the UK at the forefront of this new industry. The UK government announced last week that a total of 15 projects across the UK, from Edinburgh to Exeter, Swindon to Sheffield, will benefit from a share of over £54 million to develop technologies that remove carbon emissions from the atmosphere.  This government support will encourage further private investment into the UK, the creation of new green jobs in [...]

Innovate UK is offering small and micro businesses a share of up to £30 million in grants alongside tailored business support delivered by Innovate UK EDGE. You can apply for up to £50,000 for highly innovative ideas that have a clear route to commercialisation through business growth. Your project must lead to new products, processes or services that are significantly ahead of others currently available, or propose an innovative use of existing products, processes or services. It can also involve a new or innovative business model. In your application, you must be able to show that you: Have a great idea. [...]

Thousands of claimants are yet to renew their tax credits ahead of the deadline, with HMRC reminding them to do so by 31 July or their payments will stop. Tax credits help working families with targeted financial support, so claimants must renew before the deadline to ensure they don’t miss out on the money they are entitled to. Renewing online is the best option, and you can log into GOV.UK to check the status of your renewal. See: Manage your tax credits - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The VAT rules are becoming increasingly complex and businesses need to ensure that the correct rate is applied to the goods and services they supply. HMRC have recently updated their guidance on VAT rates. It provides a list of goods and services which you can check to determine which rates of VAT apply and which items are exempt or outside the scope of VAT: VAT rates on different goods and services - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) The guide is not a comprehensive list, and you may need to check the appropriate VAT Notices that deal with certain supplies in more detail. We [...]