New expenses rules for umbrella contractors
Following a recent Treasury consultation on National Minimum Wage travel and subsistence schemes, the government has proposed changes to expenses rules that mean umbrella contractors will no longer be expected to accept travel expenses in lieu of salary. ContractorCalculator’s Dave Chaplin says: “Some umbrella solutions providers have paid their contractors ‘expenses’ to mitigate tax, payments that should have been classed as salary. Fortunately this consultation confirms HMRC’s commitment to focusing on compliance in this area.” More…
UK economic growth surpasses expectations
A robust economy provides many more opportunities for contractors. So it has to be good news that, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the UK’s economy grew by 1.1% in the second quarter of 2010, surpassing all analysts’ expectations. Significantly for contractors, who depend heavily on the sector for work, services and the financial sector grew by 0.9%. Construction contractors also received good news, as their sector grew by 6%. More…
Online demand for workers continues to grow
The latest Monster Employment Index for June shows that online demand for workers in the UK grew by 1%. Despite this muted month on month increase, annually the index has grown by 19%, demonstrating that the contractor market is picking up. Monster UK & Ireland MD Julian Acquari says: The Monster Employment Index was little changed in June, with positive trends continuing to be seen in sectors related to manufacturing and financial services.” More…
National Audit Office releases mixed HMRC report
HMRC has been found lacking by the National Audit Office (NAO), having collected £5.9bn less in taxes and duties in 2009-10 compared to the yield in 2008-2009. According to the NAO, however, HMRC has improved its record on collecting debt, reducing outstanding balances by £1.6bn. Contractors not yet on HMRC’s radar may also be pleased to note that the agency has 18m pending cases of overpaid/underpaid tax. More…
HMRC IT boss is, in fact, a contractor
Following the release of HMRC’s accounts by the National Audit Office, the Sunday Times has reported that the Chief Information Officer of HMRC, Deepak Singh, has become a contractor. Not only that, but he has allegedly followed the ‘Friday-to-Monday’ pattern that IR35 was created to combat! The former CIO took on a contract worth an estimated £50,000 a month, which almost equals his former salary when employed. HMRC is informally estimated as being the largest public sector consumer of IT contractor services, and this clearly goes all the way up to the top. More…
HMRC go to extreme lengths to catch tax evader
HMRC once again makes it into the news in the Daily Telegraph as a result of its tenacity in tracking down a tax evading businessman who buried £140,000 in his aunt’s grave, planning to wait 20 years until the tax investigation deadline had passed. Following a tip-off by the local parish priest, inspectors unearthed the cash and recovered the £50,000 share due to the exchequer. Dave Harnett, Permanent Secretary for Tax told The Sun newspaper: “Tax evasion isn’t a victimless crime. We all pay extra to compensate for the money cheats steal from the country.” More...
Published: Friday, July 30, 2010
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