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Keeping it in the family – tax saving salary strategies

Written by admin on . Posted in Employment Tax, Income Tax, Law, PAYE, Self-Employed. No Comments on Keeping it in the family – tax saving salary strategies

An easy way to reduce a business’s tax bill – and also increase the amount of funds withdrawn from the business – is to put a family member on the payroll. Of course, the salary must be for genuine work (emphasis on this point!!), with any tax saving dependent on the overall tax position.

Such salary arrangements are most beneficial if they are in place from the start of a tax year, so right now is a good time to be looking at 2022/23.

When does this work?

Paying a salary to a spouse, partner or child at university makes sense if the recipient is not using their personal allowance. A tax-free salary can be paid, with the business or company receiving a corresponding deduction in calculating their trading profit. For a sole trader, the saving could be as high as 63.25% if caught in the personal allowance tax trap.

However, there will also be a saving if the recipient is using their personal allowance but has a lower marginal tax rate than their self-employed spouse, partner or parent. With a company, there is currently no advantage to taking a salary in this situation, but there will be from April 2023 when higher corporate tax rates come into effect.

One important point to remember is that the salary must actually be paid out for the work, so it should be payrolled and transferred into the family member’s personal bank account.

How much to pay?

There are two main restrictions:

  • The amount of salary must be commensurate with the work done; HMRC will refuse a tax deduction if no work or little work is undertaken. Work will obviously depend on the recipient’s skill set, but bookkeeping, payroll, marketing, or website maintenance might be options; and

 

  • Keeping the national insurance contribution (NIC) cost to a minimum. With employee and employer NICs set to be 13.25% and 15.05% respectively from April, these can easily wipe out any tax saving. An annual salary for 2022/23 of between £6,396 and £9,880 will mean no employee NICs and will also give the recipient a year’s contribution towards the State pension. Paying up to the annual personal allowance of £12,570 can work if employer NICs are covered by the employment allowance.

HMRC’s approach to allowing a deduction for salary paid to dependents and close relatives can be found here.

A caveat to anyone interested in this article’s content: do make sure you seek professional advice before embarking on this strategy, as getting it wrong could have severe consequences for you and/or your business.

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Sick pay rebate returns to help relieve pressure on businesses

Written by admin on . Posted in Employment Tax, PAYE, Sick Pay, Tax. No Comments on Sick pay rebate returns to help relieve pressure on businesses

The Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme (SSPRS), which ended on 30 September 2021, was reintroduced from 21 December 2021, with employers able to make retrospective claims from mid-January. The scheme’s return is in response to heightened levels of staff sickness due to the Covid-19 Omicron variant.

Statutory sick pay is not normally recoverable, but the SSPRS means that small and medium-sized businesses can reclaim SSP paid to employees affected by Covid-19.

What is covered?

The SSPRS only covers Covid-related absences (someone who has symptoms, is self-isolating or is shielding) for up to two weeks of SSP for each employee. The rate of SSP is currently £96.35 a week.

The two-week limit has, however, been reset, so an employer can make a fresh claim of up to two weeks regardless of whether a claim was made under the previous scheme. More than one claim can be made for an employee, subject to the two-week maximum.

There are no details indicating when the SSPRS will end, although the government will keep the scheme under review.

Qualifying employers

The most important condition is that the SSPRS is only available to employers with fewer than 250 employees. This test must be met on 30 November 2021. The employer must also:

  • Be UK based;
  • Have a PAYE payroll system that started on or before 30 November 2021; and
  • Have already paid the employee’s Covid-related sick pay.

To make a claim, an employer will need the Government Gateway login used when they registered for PAYE Online.

Record-keeping

Employers must retain records of any SSP they have claimed back under the SSPRS for three years from the date repayment is received.

The records should include the reason an employee said they were off work due to Covid-19.  Employees are now able to temporarily self-certify absences for 28 days, rather than the usual first seven days only.

Further guidance and the starting point for making a claim under the SSPRS can be found here.

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Apprenticeship levy transfers simplified in England

Written by admin on . Posted in Employment Tax, National Insurance Contributions. No Comments on Apprenticeship levy transfers simplified in England

Larger employers can transfer up to 25% of their annual apprenticeship levy pot to support other, smaller, employers to take on apprentices in England. While there is nothing new about this, what is new is an online service where funds can be pledged by larger employers.

Apprenticeship levy funds are lost if not used within 24 months, so transferring surplus funds is obviously more rewarding than losing them.

Pledging

With the new service, the pledging employer simply uses their apprenticeship service account to create a transfer pledge. This will specify the amount of funds available for the current financial year. They can then choose four optional criteria to reflect priorities for transferring funding. These are:

  • Location;
  • Sector;
  • Type of job role; and
  • Apprenticeship qualification level.

It is entirely up to the pledging company whether to accept or reject an application.

At the time of writing, there were 45 funding pledges listed on the new online service, ranging from £1,618 up to a maximum of £342,263 – some without any criteria.

Apprenticeships

The benefit for smaller and medium-sized employers receiving a transfer of funds might not be as beneficial as it appears, because, for up to ten new apprenticeship starts each year, the employer only pays for 5% of the apprenticeship fees (and nothing if they have less than 50 employees). However, a transfer will remove the 5% cost, and the full cost if the ten-apprenticeship limit is exceeded.

Although any employer can receive a transfer, they will need to set up an apprenticeship service account.

  • The transfer can only be used to cover apprenticeship training costs up to a funding band limit. Transfers cannot be used to cover, for example, wages or travel costs.
  • Transfers can only be used for new apprenticeship starts, although this could be an existing employee.

One notable benefit is that funding will run for the full duration of the apprenticeship and cover 100% of relevant costs.

The current list of funding opportunities can be found here.

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New tipping rules to come into force within months

Written by admin on . Posted in Employment Tax, Income Tax. No Comments on New tipping rules to come into force within months

Five years after carrying out a consultation, the government is going to make it illegal for employers to withhold tips from workers. The change to legislation, due to take effect over the next 12 months, is not just for staff in restaurants, hotels and bars, but also anyone employed in industries such as hairdressing, casinos and private car hire.

With some 80% of tipping now occurring by card, the change is considered urgent. Cash tips to workers are already protected, but for card tips, an employer can either choose to keep tips or pass them on to staff. This new change to legislation will bring consistent treatment regardless of how a tip is paid.

Legislation

The legislation will mean that employers will have to:

  • Pass on all discretionary card tips to workers without any deductions. Employers have typically made deductions to cover card processing costs, payroll, staff food and drink, recruitment and training.
  • Distribute tips fairly and transparently, have a written policy on tips, and record how tips have been dealt with.

Workers will have the right to make a request for information relating to an employer’s tipping record, enabling them to bring an employment tribunal claim for compensation if the rules have not been followed.

Tronc scheme

A tronc is a separate organised pay arrangement used to distribute tips, gratuities and service charges. The troncmaster runs the related payroll and reports information to HMRC.

A tronc scheme run by an independent troncmaster will be the most effective way for many employers to comply with the new requirements.

A tronc, if run independently, will meet the fair and transparent requirement, and workers can have a say in how tips are shared, which should help improve staff motivation. Another benefit is that tips shared from a tronc are free of NICs, but this is not the case where the employer decides how tips are shared out.

HMRC’s guide to how tips are taxed can be found here.

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Managing the end of furlough

Written by admin on . Posted in COVID-19, Employment Law, Employment Tax, Redundancy. No Comments on Managing the end of furlough

After playing a crucial part in managing the impact of Covid-19, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) is set to end on 30 September. Although some business sectors, such as hospitality, are currently seeing severe staff shortages, other employers may struggle when furlough is phased out.

For September, the CJRS only covers 60% of an employee’s wages, up to a cap of £1,875, with the employer having to top this up to at least 80%. All claims must be made by 14 October.

Redundancies

If you find you do need to restructure your staffing levels, any furloughed staff who are to be made redundant have the same legal rights as any other employees. So any decisions need to be mindful of unlawful discrimination or unfair dismissal.

A business may select staff for redundancy based purely on the fact that they were the ones to be furloughed. The level of risk to this approach will depend on the reasons why staff were chosen for furlough, the selection process used to do this, and whether these were fair. Large groups of 20 or more redundancies will require collective as well as individual consultation.

Alternatives

There are a few alternatives to redundancies to consider:

  • A hiring freeze;
  • Redeployment of staff to different areas of your business;
  • Postponing salary increases; or
  • A temporary reduction in hours across the workforce.

A temporary reduction in hours could be run on a similar basis to flexible furlough, just without the government support. Experienced employees are retained, and employees should be better off compared to being made redundant and having to claim universal credit. Employee consent is required to alter contractual terms.

Payments and support

If you do have to make employees redundant then they are entitled to statutory redundancy payment (after two years of employment) and untaken holiday pay. There may also be notice pay depending on circumstances.

the main form of support for most employees until they find alternative employment will be universal credit. This is a very different animal to furlough, and for many there will be a big drop in income.

This will certainly be the case for higher earners because universal credit doesn’t take account of previous income levels. Anyone with a high earning partner or significant savings may not be entitled to universal credit at all.

Guidance to making staff redundant can be found here. Let me know if you need bespoke advice in this area. I can be reached on 01691 655 060 x Ext.7 or by email at femi.ogunshakin@nexa.law

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Focus on national insurance contributions

Written by admin on . Posted in DOTAS, Employment Tax, National Insurance Contributions, Tax. No Comments on Focus on national insurance contributions

New government proposals target the promoters of national insurance contribution (NIC) avoidance schemes, while plans are in place to introduce a zero rate of employer contributions in Freeports. Both measures are included in the National Insurance Contributions Bill 2021.

Crackdown on avoidance

NIC avoidance is already within the scope of the Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes (DOTAS) regime, but these measures will strengthen HMRC’s ability to clamp down on the market for NIC avoidance. HMRC will be able to act quickly and decisively where promoters fail to provide information on their NIC avoidance schemes.

One area which has received considerable publicity is the use of mini-umbrella companies, where a temporary workforce is split into hundreds of small, limited companies. Each company benefits from the £4,000 employment allowance, avoiding the annual employer NICs on this amount.

HMRC is on the lookout for particular actions. The new measures target promoters that:

  • Respond by restructuring their business when challenged by HMRC;
  • Engage in protracted circular correspondence; or
  • Simply deny they are a promoter even with clear evidence.

Freeport employees

From 6 April 2022, employers with business premises in a Freeport tax site will be able to benefit from a zero rate of employer NICs (visit www.britishports.org.uk/Freeports to find out more about Freeports). Eligible employees will be those who spend at least 60% of their working time at the site. However, only new hires will qualify, and then only on annual earnings up to £25,000. Relief will apply for 36 months per employee. At current rates, a Freeport employer will save a potential £6,690 in NICs per employee over 36 months.

Relief is available until at least 5 April 2026, although it might run for a further five years. Regardless of whether relief is extended, new hires employed by 5 April 2026 will qualify for 36 months of relief.

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Wheat, Chaff and Umbrella Companies – Separating Them Out

Written by admin on . Posted in Employment Tax, IR35, Tax. No Comments on Wheat, Chaff and Umbrella Companies – Separating Them Out

Contractors have turned to umbrella companies as a hassle-free way of providing their services to clients following the recent changes to the off payroll working rules. They receive no tax savings, but pass on some administration and pay less than a standalone limited company would charge. However, not all umbrella companies are equal.

The main advantage to using an umbrella company is that the off payroll working rules will not apply. All of your earnings become subject to PAYE in the hands of the umbrella company. HMRC has published a useful guide explaining how and what you will be paid when working through an umbrella company (www.gov.uk/guidance/working-through-an-umbrella-company).

Employment

You, as the contractor, will be an employee of the umbrella company, and the umbrella company will therefore pay you for the work carried out for clients, whether contracted directly, or via an employment agency. Gross pay is calculated after various costs, such as:

  • the umbrella company’s administration costs;
  • employer NICs;
  • workplace pension contributions; and
  • holiday pay.

As an employee, you are entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday pay a year, and the umbrella company must pay you for this if you leave with holiday entitlement accrued.

However, holiday pay must normally be taken in the year it is accrued and cannot be carried forward. This is one area where an unscrupulous umbrella company can cost you, with some simply pocketing pay for unclaimed holidays.

Tax avoidance

Most umbrella companies are compliant with tax rules, but some use tax avoidance schemes. Be wary of an umbrella company that:

  • Claims they can help you keep more of your earnings than others; or
  • Asks you to sign an annuity, loan or other agreement involving a non-taxable element of pay, especially if this involves a different organisation to the umbrella company.

Moreover, avoidance schemes may come with a high, non-refundable, fee.

HMRC has published guidance to identifying schemes that wrongly claim to increase take-home pay.

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HMRC Official rate of interest, beneficial Loans et al

Written by admin on . Posted in benefit-in-Kind, Benefits, Budget, Employment Tax, Tax. No Comments on HMRC Official rate of interest, beneficial Loans et al

HMRC’s official rate of interest has been cut from 2.25% to 2% from 6 April 2021. This will affect any directors or employees who have a beneficial loan from their employer, as well as directors who have an overdrawn current account with their company. The official rate is also used in some other tax calculations.

Beneficial loans

Assuming no change to the official rate throughout 2021/22, the cut will reduce the tax payable by a higher rate taxpayer with an employer-provided interest-free loan, of, say, £50,000 from £450 to £400. Alternatively, the director or employee will need to pay interest of £1,000 rather than £1,125 for 2021/22 to avoid the tax charge.

Where an employer-provided loan is cheap rather than interest-free, the benefit charge is based on the difference between the official rate and the amount of interest actually paid. There will be no benefit if:

  • The balance of beneficial loans provided to a director or employee throughout 2021/22 does not exceed £10,000.
  • The loan is for a qualifying purpose, such as buying shares in a close company.

Directors should be particularly careful to not let an overdrawn current account go just over £10,000 at any point during the tax year.

Other uses

The official rate is also used in regard to employer-provided living accommodation and pre-owned assets tax (POAT).

  • Living accommodation – There is an additional benefit charge on the excess of the cost of the accommodation over £75,000. For example, if living accommodation cost £250,000, then the additional benefit charge for 2021/22 will be (£250,000 – £75,000) at 2% = £3,500.
  • Pre Owned Asset Tax (POAT) – There is an income tax charge on certain inheritance tax planning arrangements. Where chattels and intangible assets are concerned, the amount of deemed income subject to tax is the value of the asset multiplied by the official rate.

More detail on beneficial loans from an employer’s perspective can be found here.

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Repaying Furlough Grants

Written by admin on . Posted in Budget, COVID-19, Employment Tax, Tax. No Comments on Repaying Furlough Grants

The government reports that 3,000 businesses have voluntarily repaid over £760 million of furlough grants received under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) where the reality of the impact of the pandemic was not as bad as first anticipated.  For those less forthcoming, the government is targeting fraudulent claims.

The March Budget unveiled a new task force to find those who have exploited the various Covid-19 support schemes, including the CJRS. With over £100 million invested, this represents one of the largest responses to a fraud risk by HMRC. The task force will have around 1,000 investigators.

Fraudulent activity

There has been no specific requirement for a business to demonstrate they have been financially impacted by the pandemic to claim under the CJRS. HMRC guidance simply says employees can be furloughed where a business cannot maintain its workforce because operations have been affected by Covid-19.

The new task force is therefore likely to focus on businesses who have:

  • furloughed more people than actually employed, or used inflated wage figures;
  • claimed for workers who continued doing their jobs;
  • not passed the grants on as wages to furloughed employees; or
  • abused the flexible working arrangements.

Given that each CJRS claim provides the opportunity to repay any amounts previously overclaimed, HMRC is likely to consider incorrect claims as deliberate and concealed. This means a penalty of up to 100% of the grant.

Repaying furlough grants

Even if CJRS rules have been complied with, voluntarily repaying a grant where it is not needed creates the right impression for your business.

Regardless of whether repayment is voluntary or because of an overclaim, repayment is normally done with a correction on the next claim. If an overclaim is corrected, no penalty is incurred provided HMRC is notified within 90 days of when the grant was received. You can find out about paying back CJRS grants here.

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Some ‘new’ tax year opportunities

Written by admin on . Posted in Budget, Capital Gains Tax, Employment Tax, self-assessment, Self-Employed. No Comments on Some ‘new’ tax year opportunities

“A bit late in the day, Femi” I hear you thinking. But is it? Some tax planning should happen before the end of the tax year; but the start of a new tax year also presents opportunities. With many people experiencing a drastic change to their circumstances due to the pandemic, it is more important than ever to keep on top of your tax affairs.

If your income is now at a different level than pre-pandemic, you need to re-evaluate any previous tax planning. For example:

  • Child benefit – A claim may now be worthwhile if income is below £60,000. Act soon to benefit from a full claim for 2021/22.
  • Marriage allowance – A claim may now be possible if neither you nor your spouse/civil partner is a higher rate taxpayer. You can claim for 2021/22 or backdate a claim for three years.
  • Working from home – Employees can claim a £26 per month deduction if required to work from home. Claim for 2021/22 or backdate a claim to 2020/21. Although the tax year 2020/21 has ended, some carry backs are possible. Gift Aid donations and SEIS/EIS investments made during the current tax year can all be carried back.

Investments

Savings rates hit record lows last year, and many companies cut their dividend payments. You may also have used up savings to replace lost income. Therefore, make sure you and your partner are making the best use of the savings and dividend allowances, and decide whether any ISA saving is still the best option.

You might also have had to realise investments during 2020/21. If you are now facing a CGT bill, it might be possible to crystallise some capital losses to offset against the gains. This is done by making a negligible value claim for assets that have become virtually worthless.

Tax payments

Some simple procedural checks can make a difference:

  • Employees – Check your PAYE codes for 2021/22. Your allowance might be too low if deductions have increased (such as professional subscriptions) or taxable investment income has fallen.
  • Self-employed – If profits have fallen, you might be able to reduce payments on account. This will reduce the payment coming up in July, as well as obtain a refund from this January’s payment.

A good starting point when reviewing your tax affairs is HMRC’s income tax webpage. This contains many useful links and can be found here.

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