Employers that hire veterans in their first employment after leaving the armed forces are now entitled to National Insurance (NI) relief up to the upper secondary threshold for one year. The relief, announced at the 2020 Budget, came into effect in April and applies to all veterans of the regular armed forces who have completed … Continue reading →

A new Debt Respite Scheme, designed to give a debtor with problem debt the right to legal protection from their creditors, is now available. The new scheme consists of two new two types of ‘breathing space’: A standard breathing space – Available to anyone with problem debt, which offers legal protection from creditor action for up … Continue reading →

With the fourth round of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) now well underway, HM Revenue & Customs has announced tough new fines for those that abuse the financial support on offer. The new penalty regime is aimed at those who have overclaimed the SEISS grant, which includes any amount of grant that a self-employed … Continue reading →

In most cases, expenses an employee incurs at work are paid for by their employer, but some, like travel and accommodation expenses, are reimbursed later by the employer. Since 2016, the system for reimbursed expenses has been simplified, which means that HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will usually accept that business expenses that are reimbursed … Continue reading →

One unexpected bonus for staff forced to work from home because of the pandemic has been a £6 per week tax break. People will have seen their household bills naturally go up over the last year, from increased working at home and the Government has recognised this. These working life changes are driven by the … Continue reading →

The devastating effects of the pandemic have meant small businesses in the UK have changed the direction of their organisations to survive the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic and lockdown restrictions. More than a year on from the start of the first official national lockdown and with the country currently slowly exiting the latest one, … Continue reading →

Companies that signed up to the VAT deferral scheme have been warned they face a five per cent penalty if they do not make payment arrangements by 30 June this year. Over half a million businesses deferred VAT payments last year. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has confirmed that companies will be liable for the … Continue reading →