News

Leased cars

HMRC have announced plans for paperless self assessment (SA), which will see online filers receive all official communications electronically.

The Revenue received 7.65m digital SA submissions in 2011/12 – 80.9% of the total number of returns for the year – but only 25% of taxpayers’ interactions with the department are online.

HMRC have commissioned an enhanced stamp duty reserve tax (SDRT) assessment system, which is scheduled to go live in June 2014.

The aim of the new offering – developed and delivered by financial services company Euroclear UK & Ireland Ltd – will be to rebalance the established market practice of gross transactions being sent for reporting and assessment for SDRT at a centralised point.

HMRC have announced new fuel rates for company cars (below), to be applied to all journeys on or after 1 December 2013 until further notice.

Employers may use either the previous or new figures for one month from the date of change, and can make or require supplementary payments but are under no obligation to do either. Petrol hybrid cars are treated as petrol for this purpose.

The amounts can be used for VAT, but employers will need to retain receipts, the Revenue warned.

HMRC have made progress in improving their end-to-end mail strategy, particularly bulk mail, the department has announced.

It has changed the dating conventions on the self assessment statement of account in time for the December statement issue and is on track to do the same with the P2 annual coding notices in January.

Other improvements to the dispatch scheduling, governance and forecasting of bulk mail outputs have been put in place.

HMRC have published two draft documents as part of the National Insurance (NI) Contributions Bill: arrangements for claiming the employment allowance from 6 April 2014, and regulations for offshore employers and oil and gas workers on the UK continental shelf.

The arrangements set out how employers will be able to claim the allowance of up to £2,000 against their secondary class 1 NI liability.

Employers are being given the chance to settle open enquiries into the use of employee-financed retirement benefit schemes (EFRBS) arrangements by agreement and without needing to take part in litigation.

Firms have until 31 December 2013 to consider the two options offered by HMRC:

HMRC have issued a rundown of estimated turnaround times for requests for agent authorisation for self assessment, saying advisers who wish to be effective before 31 January should apply online by 15 January or post form 64-8 by 23 December.

Taxpayers’ applications for self assessment registration should be sent by mail no later than 20 December.

 Taskforces 

The latest HMRC taskforces will target individuals and businesses in the south and southeast with offshore accounts and with lifestyles beyond their obvious means through assets from undeclared income; taxpayers in the northeast who try to reclaim VAT fraudulently; and road transport industry in the south and southeast.

Some banks and other financial institutions use inappropriate criteria to decide in which format they report payments of interest, HMRC have warned.

The department’s announcement follows an initial check of data supplied to fellow European Union states under the EU savings directive.

Financial institutions’ declarations regarding payments of interest can be made either under FA 2011 schedule  23 –  by type 17 and type 18 returns – or the UK regulations that implement the savings directive.

HMRC have issued Revenue & Customs Brief 35/13 to set out the official position on the liability of entertainers to pay National Insurance (NI) contributions, subject to the proposed changes in the Social Security (Categorisation of Earners) Regulations being approved by parliament.

HMRC have published advice on the correct procedures to follow when a pensioner is moved from one PAYE scheme reference to another.

The first full payment submission (FPS) from the new reference must be submitted after the final FPS from the old reference has been sent.

Failure to follow the procedure may result in the Revenue setting up the new pension source as a secondary employment and issuing incorrect codes.