HLAS

The UK and South Korea have entered talks on a modernised trade deal to boost trade and strengthen their relationship. It comes as Korean businesses commit £21 billion of investment into the UK, backing renewable energy and infrastructure projects across the country and supporting more than 1,500 highly skilled jobs. South Korea is the 13th largest economy in the world and its import demand is set to grow rapidly. With around 45 million middle class consumers and an import market expected to grow by 45% by 2035, it presents massive opportunities for UK companies. The UK and South Korea are [...]

The UK Space Agency has announced 23 projects that could help the UK with new space technologies and applications around the world. The Enabling Technologies Programme (ETP) provides opportunities for the UK space sector to accelerate the development of leading-edge technologies that could be used to tackle global problems and benefit the work of space organisations internationally. The total government funding is £4 million - made up of £3.2 million from the UK Space Agency with £800,000 contributed by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The projects from academia and industry explore [...]

Listed below are a number of live HMRC webinars that will give the self-employed an understanding of key taxes that affect them. The webinars are free and last around an hour. New to Self-Assessment Thu 7 Dec at 1:45pm Mon 18 Dec at 11:45am Capital expenditure and revenue repairs Tue 9 Jan at 1:45pm VAT - the basics and the VAT return Tue 12 Dec at 9:45am Finance costs and travel expenses Wed 10 Jan at 11:45am How to fill in your Self-Assessment tax return if you're self-employed Mon 11 Dec at 1:45pm Wed 20 Dec at 9:45am Cash basis [...]

The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) is inviting businesses to share their views on how intellectual property (IP) helps them scale and grow. In a modern global economy, innovation, creativity, design, and brand recognition are increasingly important to business success. All these elements are underpinned by IP rights, such as copyright, trademarks, patents, and designs. The IPO wants to support businesses to manage their IP rights effectively. It is conducting a review of UK's IP-backed finance ecosystem and IP insurance landscape. The new survey forms part of this review. The survey covers a broad range of topics. Responses will help the [...]

The table below sets out the HMRC advisory fuel rates from 1 December 2023. These are the suggested reimbursement rates for employees' private mileage using their company car. Where the employer does not pay for any fuel for the company car, these are the amounts that can be reimbursed in respect of business journeys without the amount being taxable on the employee. Where there has been a change, the previous rate is shown in brackets. You can also continue to use the previous rates for up to 1 month from the date the new rates apply. Note that for hybrid [...]

Innovate UK is offering travel support for businesses to attend consortia-building events in Europe. The travel awards support businesses who want to expand their networks across Europe and make an impact in collaborative international research and development (R&D) projects. The awards encourage UK participation, engagement, and visibility at international events and aim to accelerate UK involvement in European research programmes (including Horizon Europe and EUREKA). To be eligible for support, you need to be a for-profit, UK-based, R&D performing SME according to the EU definition. If successful in your application for travel and accommodation costs, you will receive proactive support from [...]

Running your own company can be exciting but also challenging. Directors have lots of responsibilities including keeping company records up-to-date and making sure they’re filed on time. All limited companies, whether they trade or not, must deliver annual accounts to Companies House (CH) each year. This includes dormant companies. If we do not file your accounts then you can use CH online services which are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - and there are inbuilt checks to help you avoid mistakes. It can take as little as 15 minutes from start to finish and you’ll know your [...]

Almost 100,000 tax-payers have paid £121 million using the HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) app since April 2023, taking advantage of the new way to pay their Self-Assessment tax bill. Latest figures from HMRC reveal that between April and September 2023, 97,365 taxpayers used the app to settle their tax bill for the 2022 to 2023 tax year – more than 3 times the £34.6 million paid by 36,467 taxpayers during the same period last year. Tax-payers have been able to pay their Self-Assessment tax bill via the free and secure HMRC app since February 2022 and there is a YouTube video demonstrating how to make a [...]

A further £74 million is being made available to help farmers invest in improved slurry infrastructure to tackle water pollution, improve air quality, and make better use of organic nutrients, the government announced last week. Applications are now open for the second round of the Slurry Infrastructure Grant which forms part of a total £200 million being invested in infrastructure and equipment to tackle agricultural pollution from slurry over the agricultural transition period. The second round has more than double the funding on offer than the first round of the scheme to help meet increased demand. Based on feedback from farmers, several [...]

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt last week unveiled the government’s tax and spending plans in the Autumn Statement. He started his speech by saying that there were 110 measures to “Help grow the British economy”. Growth is better than expected this year according to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), although they state the impact of the Autumn Statement on output growth will be “modest”. They state that the economy recovered more fully from the pandemic and weathered the energy shock better than expected, but they expect inflation to remain higher for longer, taking until the second quarter of 2025 to return [...]