South London Archives | Page 3 of 10

Don’t Miss THIS on your Tax Return! (Checklist)

October 8, 2020/in 2020, Accountancy, Accountants, Self-assessment, South London, Tax, Tax return, Tax returns/by Mark

The standard Self-Assessment Tax Return includes all the usual areas that you’d expect to have to confirm to HMRC. These include the obvious things like personal details, information about income for the period in question, any assets, dividends, interest received, pensions and so on.

However, there are a number of additional areas that you need to check and confirm before the return is submitted and filed with HMRC. It’s not an exhaustive list, but things people sometimes miss and that you need to check you have allowed for (if applicable) include:

Employment Income — have you confirmed any employment income? Have you supplied Taxfile, if we’re your tax agent or accountant, with copies of P60’s and P11D’s. Did you have any employment expenses?
Self-Employment Income or Partnership Income — have you confirmed any self-employed or partnership income and relevant expenses? Have you supplied all CIS vouchers, invoices, cash income etc. if applicable?
UK Land & Property Income — have you confirmed any rental income and relevant expenses for each property you perhaps rent out?
Foreign Income — did you receive any foreign income? Have you confirmed it?
Trust Income — did you receive any trust income or are you treated as having received any trust income?
Capital Gains — have you sold any assets or investments which may be subject to capital gains tax e.g. a rental house, stocks and shares etc?
Residence — were you, for all or part of the year, not resident, not ‘ordinarily resident’ or not ‘domiciled’ in the UK?
Investment Income — have you confirmed any bank/building society interest, dividends, etc?
Pension Income — are you in receipt of any? It needs confirming if so.
Any other income received that doesn’t fit into any of the above e.g. Job Seekers Allowance, Tax Credits? Child Benefit is an important one, especially if one parent is earning £50k or more. Marriage Allowance is another.
Do you have a pension that you pay into? If so, how much did you pay for the period in question?
Have you given any money to charity? Higher rate taxpayers can usually get extra tax relief on this.
Do you have a student loan?
Are you subject to the High Income Benefit Charge?
Do you use a service company?
Have you been paying your National Insurance?
Have you been keeping good records?

Taxfile will always prompt you to check for things like these if you’re our customer, before we submit your tax return on your behalf. As we say above, though, the list is not an exhaustive one, so there may be other information we need, depending upon your individual situation. The list of what HMRC requires each year also Read more

Watch Out – Fraudsters Are About!

July 24, 2020/in Accountancy, Accountants, Deadline, Fraud, HM Revenue and Customs, HMRC, Phishing, Scams, South London, Tax, Tulse Hill/by Mark

Have you noticed a significant increase in the number of scam calls, phishing emails and dodgy texts to your mobile in recent weeks? We certainly have. Some of Taxfile’s customers have been asking if any are genuine, so we thought we’d send out this warning …

If you receive a call, email or text from HMRC asking for your personal or financial details, it’s simple: DO NOT to give ANY information away via text, email or to someone calling you by telephone. They could be anyone! Your information will be used against you if it gets into the wrong hands — and that could potentially cost you a LOT of money. So if they call, text or email you out of the blue:

don’t confirm your date of birth,
don’t confirm your National Insurance Number,
don’t tell them your your mother’s Maiden name,
don’t confirm your Unique Taxpayer Reference (‘UTR’) or any other piece of personal or financial information,
… even if they say it’s urgent (most fraudsters will say it is, so as to panic you into divulging your information).

Even one bit of data given away can be dangerous these days. ‘Social Engineering’ scams can use one bit of information as a starting point to eventually build a more complete picture of your sensitive data. Once they have enough pieces of the jigsaw, they can potentially take over your identity, empty your bank account or go on a spending spree with a credit or debit card issued in your name. People have lost thousands! So, the message is to be careful not to give anything away via email, SMS/text or to someone who has telephoned you out of the blue.

If HMRC do send you a genuine email, text your mobile or call you, they will never ask for personal information, financial information or payment details. It may help you to check here to see a list of genuine communications that HMRC has recently sent.

If you’re going to give HMRC information and want to be sure it’s genuine, you need to Read more

Wandsworth Council chooses Taxfile for its Tax Return Support Scheme

April 11, 2020/in 2020, Accountants, Advice, HMRC, Income tax, London, Self-assessment, Self-employed, Sole traders, South London, Tax, Tax advice, Tax calculation, Tax returns/by Taxfile

In an extraordinary measure to help its community, Wandsworth council has set up a Tax Return Support Scheme for those needing to do a 2018/19 tax return in order to qualify for the Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS).

In response to COVID-19, SEISS will provide direct cash grants worth 80% of trading profits up to a maximum of £2,500 per month for self-employed individuals with profits of less than £50,000 per annum. To be eligible for this scheme, you will need to have submitted your tax returns for 2018-19 by the extended deadline of Thursday 23 April.

To assist the community captured by Wandsworth council, the scheme is to help members submit tax returns when they otherwise might not have been in a position to do so.

At Taxfile we are delighted to be considered as one of their ‘local accountants’ who will advise and assist residents to complete their 2018/19 tax returns. This service is provided by Wandsworth council for FREE, as the council covers the cost.

The submissions need to be sent to HMRC by no later than 23/04/20, so the council has placed a cut-off date 17/04/2020 to take advantage of their free support.

To be eligible for Wandsworth council’s Tax return Support Scheme you must;

Be a Wandsworth resident
Be self-employed (sole trader, freelancer or CIS contractor)
Have a Unique Tax Reference number (UTR)
Have made a profit of less than £50,000 or less in the 2018/19 tax year
Not yet have submitted your 2018/19 tax return
Not be a director of your own limited company

[UPDATE: Please note that the Wandsworth council’s scheme has now ended].

If you would like any advice, we offer a free 20-minute consultation, please call us on 020 8761 8000.

Your Tax Return – All Wrapped Up for Christmas!

November 26, 2019/in 2018, 2019, 2020, Accountancy, Accountants, Income tax, London, Save money, Self-assessment, South London, Tax refunds, Tax return, Tax returns, Tulse Hill/by Mark

Urgent: rather than waiting until January, start sorting out your Self-Assessment Tax Return out right now.

Why now? Well, because every tax expert and accountant in the land is about to hit their busiest month in the accounting year — January. For tax professionals, January is a frantic time because everyone wants their tax matters sorted out at the same time due to HMRC’s deadlines. So, we have to take on extra staff, extend our opening hours and open at weekends — just to keep up with the demand. All of this costs extra money, so we have to increase charges a little during January to cater for the enormous increase in workload. January also becomes quite a bottleneck. In January alone, we are likely to have to prepare and submit around 500 Self-Assessment tax returns for our customers and that’s a very tall order.

So — act now & save money on your tax return

You can avoid extra charges by coming in to see us for your tax return now — well before January. It makes sense to come in early in November or December if you can. That way, we can have your tax affairs sorted in time for Christmas, avoiding the bottleneck. You can then relax in the knowledge that your tax matters have been sorted, ahead of the rush, at the best possible price.

Saturday opening

We’re open Saturday mornings at Tulse Hill from 9am until 1pm for a limited time. So, make the most of this opportunity and book a weekend appointment now, while it costs nothing extra.

Get a tax refund for Christmas!

We can help prepare and submit your Self-Assessment tax return and let you know the all-important amount of tax you need to pay or, indeed, may even be owed by HMRC. If you’ve overpaid tax, we could even get your refund for you in time for Christmas — what a Read more

Second Property & Rented Property ‘Tax Trap’ for the Unwary

June 13, 2018/in 2020, Accountancy, Battersea branch, Capital gains tax, CGT, Dulwich, Lettings, London, London SW8, Property investment, property investor, South London, Tulse Hill/by Mark

Owners of second properties and let properties need to be aware that HMRC is planning to introduce new rules from 6 April 2020 to require payment of Capital Gains Tax much, much earlier! The window of payment will be reduced from 31 January following the year of the gain to a mere 30 days from the date of the sale.

Effectively, ‘in year’ reporting of the estimated gains – and payment of the tax – is mandatory under the new rules. Failure to report the gains and pay the tax will lead to penalties for landlords and second home owners.

You will only be able to offset losses accrued at the time of the disposal, so losses later in the year will not be available against the payment on account.

Summing Up:

If you make a capital gain in 2018/19 (before the new rules kick in) you will pay the capital gains tax on or by 31 January 2020.
For the sale of a house that is let, or a second property, with exchange of contracts occurring on, say, 15 April 2020 with completion happening on 15 May 2020, the Capital Gains Tax (CGT) has to be paid by 14 June 2020. This accelerates the payment of the tax to the Exchequer by 7 months.
So, perversely, the later year requires the Capital Gains Tax payment before the earlier year, as you can see above!

The other difficulty is knowing what rate to apply because a higher rate taxpayer has to pay 28% on a gain but a basic rate taxpayer has to pay tax at 18% up to the limit of the basic rate band that is unused. This is, of course, one situation where Taxfile can help to work out the tax implications for its customers. Tax calculations are what we do best and we’re here to help you!

Note that Scottish tax rates may vary.

HMRC is currently assessing feedback on their consultation, which closed on 6 June 2018.

If you believe this change of rules is wrong, one option is to write to your MP to complain.

Professional Help with Tax & Accountancy – for Landlords & More

For help with accountancy and tax for any property, lettings or any capital gains situation you may find yourself in, contact your nearest branch of Taxfile. We have London offices in Tulse Hill, and Dulwich, in London SE21. Call 0208 761 8000 for an introductory chat or appointment, contact us here or click the bold links for more information. We’ll be happy to help and to get your tax affairs in order.

New: Tax Advice & Planning Service

February 2, 2018/in Accountancy, Accountants, Accounts, Advice, Bitcoin, Capital gains tax, CGT, Corporation tax, CT, Disclosure, Dividends, Dulwich, Estate Planning, Higher rate tax payers, HMRC, IHT, Income tax, Inheritance Tax, Investments, Land and property, London, Non-domiciled residents, South London, Stocks & Shares, Tax, Tax advice, Tax advisers, Tax enquiry, tax experts, Tax planning, Tulse Hill/by Mark

You can now get tax planning and tax advice from Taxfile. We have highly experienced senior accounting staff who can give you the right tax advice when you need it most — for example, when your circumstances are changing, if you’ve had trouble keeping on top of your tax commitments and need to bring things up to date, or perhaps a friend or relative simply needs a bit of reassurance with regard to their tax situation. Perhaps you have assets or income abroad as well as income in the UK and want to make sense of your tax position. Or, perhaps you have recently made a tidy profit trading crypto coins like Bitcoin and want to know where you are from the standpoint of Capital Gains or Income Tax. Maybe you need to disclose income from property rental that you have previously not told HMRC about (more about that in a later post). Those are all examples of typical situations where our new Professional Tax Advice and Tax Planning services can help you to see the wood from the trees.

A Free Telephone Consultation

In the first instance, we are inviting clients to speak for just 15 minutes with one of our resident tax planning experts. This will be in the form of a free, introductory telephone call, perhaps in February or March if it suits you. We can then see what’s needed and take it from there. We can, of course, discuss any costs with you before you commit to anything further, and there is no obligation.

Whether it’s about labour taxes, investment taxes, business taxes, disclosures to HMRC or even professional help to support you during an HMRC tax investigation, we can make sense of all the options for you and — in a fair and ethical way — help to make sure you are paying no more tax than you should do. With decades of experience in accountancy and tax planning, we know exactly what’s what when it comes to tax, so can definitely help you. Call 0208 761 8000 to arrange your free 15 minute telephone appointment with a tax expert, at a mutually convenient time. Alternatively, Read more

Taxfile’s multi-lingual, multi-talented staff, at a glance

November 18, 2016/in Accountancy, Accountants, Bookkeeping, Capital gains tax, CIS, Construction Industry Scheme, Corporation tax, Dulwich, HMRC, Income tax, Landlords, Lettings income, Limited company, Multilingual staff, NI, PAYE, Payroll, Payroll bureau, Rebate, Refund, RTI, Self-employed, South London, Tax, Tax accountant, Tax accountants, Tax advice, Tax advisers, Tax agents, tax experts, Tax refunds, Tax returns, Taxfile, Tulse Hill, Value Added Tax, VAT/by Mark

[Updated]: It’s common knowledge that most of Taxfile’s South London staff are multi-lingual but can you guess which staff member speaks no less than four languages fluently (Russian, Pashto, Dari and English) and which staff member is into both metal music and Irish dancing? And who should you ask for if you need payroll services? And who specialises in bookkeeping … who in limited company accounts and so on? Our staff ‘mind map’ tells you a bit more about each member of the team, what their specialities are, key interests and, of course, their contact details in case you ever need their help. Take a look … Read more

Taxfile’s Autumn Newsletter 2016

October 13, 2016/in 2014, 2015, 2016, Accountancy, Accountants, Accounts, Advice, Auto Enrolment, CIS, Construction Industry Scheme, Contractor, Filing deadlines, FreeAgent, HMRC, Late return, London, penalties, penalty, Refund, Save money, Self-assessment, South London, Subcontractor, Tax accountant, Tax accountants, Tax advice, Tax advisers, Tax agents, Tax refunds, Tax return, Tax returns, Taxfile, Tulse Hill/by Mark

Hot off the press is our brand new Autumn newsletter for 2016. If you haven’t yet seen it, take a look because it’s jam-packed full of useful information that’ll help you keep your tax affairs and accounts in order, save you money and keep you up to speed on tax matters. Here’s a quick flavour of what’s included (or click the thumbnail image to view or download the newsletter):

Act fast to save money on your 2015-16 tax return – see the newsletter’s first article.
Sub-contractors working in the construction industry are invited to claim their CIS tax refunds through Taxfile, so they have their refund in time for Christmas!
Help if you’re late with any previous years’ tax returns and tax payments — and how you already owe HMRC at least £1300 if you haven’t filed your 2014/15 tax return or paid tax for that year.
Try the UK’s Number 1 cloud-based accounts package FREE, for a month. No credit card required – cancel at any time – full details are included in the newsletter. [UPDATE: Please note that this offer has now expired].
Help if your tax affairs are in a mess — are you late filing returns or paying tax? Are you worried about HMRC penalties? Are you a foreign worker, working in the UK, and need to get your tax records up to date following the Brexit decision? We’re here to help!
Taxfile are Finalists in the ‘Independent Firm of the Year, Greater London’ category of the British Accountancy Awards 2016.
Free tax enquiry Fee Protection Insurance for Taxfile customers who file their tax returns by the statutory deadline through Taxfile.
How online banking may save you time and money.
Introduce a new client to Taxfile and save 10% on our fees!
Saturday opening at Taxfile (Tulse Hill office) throughout November and December.
Help with all your tax and accounting needs – check out our list of all the things we can help you with — now including auto enrolment!
And a ‘thank you’ to all Taxfile customers … Read more

A Great Choice of Cloud-based Accounts Software Packages

April 8, 2016/in Accountancy, Accounts, Bookkeeping, Cash flow, expenditure, expenses, FreeAgent, Limited company, Sage, Software packages, South London, Special Offers, Tax, Tax calculation, Taxfile, Xero/by Mark

Sign Up & Your Favourite Charity Gets £25 Too!

[UPDATE: Please note that this offer has now expired]. If you are a limited company client that signs up to a new cloud accounting software subscription from Taxfile, we’ll donate £25 to your favourite charity. So, as well as saving yourself time and making your life easier, you’ll get a warm glow from making the world that little bit better! The accounting software packages that we currently offer and recommend are FreeAgent, Xero and Sage One, which are all leading accounts packages.

With any of the 3 cloud-based packages you’ll be able to:

Create and send invoices from within the software;
Automatically chase payments;
View real time cash-flow;
Track time and expenses;
Monitor Profit and loss;
Forecast your tax liability;
Connect and automatically import your bank statement data straight into the software;
And much more!

Best of all, though, will be the time-saving benefits that you’ll get from professional accounting packages like these. With the software working hard for you in the background, you’ll have more time to get on with something else.

Contact Ryan, our resident accounts package specialist, for advice on which package will best suit you and your specific circumstances. He’ll be able to walk you through the details of the many features and benefits of each package as well as any further information you require. Ryan can be contacted on the usual Taxfile number: 0208 761 8000 or, if preferred, fill in an enquiry form here and Ryan will call you back at a time that suits you.

AMAZING OFFER! Save Time, Money & Space with a FREE Sage Bookkeeping & Accounts Package!*

January 14, 2016/in Accountancy, Accountants, Auto Enrolment, Bookkeeping, Cash flow, expenses, Filing deadlines, Income & Expenditure, Income tax, London, National Insurance, NI, NIC's, Online returns, PAYE, Payroll, Real Time Information, RTI, Sage, Save money, Self-assessment, Software packages, South London, Special Offers, Tax, Tax advice, Tax advisers, Tax calculation, Tax returns, Taxfile, VAT/by Mark

[UPDATE: Please note that this offer has now expired]. Taxfile’s customers can benefit from an incredible offer on a range of Sage accounting packages at the moment. We’re offering a FREE or, in effect, heavily subsidised* Sage accounting package to all active Taxfile customers, whether existing or new. There are various different packages available so we’re sure we’ll have one which will suit every customer perfectly. The list of benefits is almost endless — here are just a few:

Firstly we’ll GIVE* Taxfile customers the package — you don’t have to pay Sage at all;
Say hello to quick and easy bookkeeping and record-keeping;
Quick and easy cash flow management tools;
Cloud-based record keeping means you can access accounts records from anywhere with an internet connection;
Automatic bank statement integration makes bank reconciliation a breeze, helping when receipts go missing and even recognising – and accounting for – regular transactions;
A mobile app module allows you to simply snap a photo of your receipt and it uploads to your Sage account (say goodbye to physical receipt storage!);
Less paperwork!
Automatic tax computations performed by the software;
Report and analysis options;
VAT handling;
Automatic VAT return options (or let us handle it for you as you prefer);
Shows you the taxes and National Insurance due so you can easily pay them on time;
Fast and easier tax returns;
Help from Taxfile at any point and from Sage’s own helpful videos;
Helps you stay in line with UK laws, taxes and regulations;
No experience needed;
Perfect for the self-employed, start-ups and small businesses;
Taxfile will even be happy to set you up;
Integrated invoicing and quotation options available (even from your mobile phone!);
A quick and easy payroll bolt-on is also available for limited companies, with payslips, RTI, Auto Enrolment integration etc.;
Auto enrolment communications included if you have a company pension scheme;
Option to automatically integrate online e-commerce records into your Sage account;
Fast and easier company accounts preparation;
… and much more!

But there is more major benefit – collaboration with us, your accountant!

The Sage packages we supply are not only free, or in effect heavily subsidised depending on the package involved, but also allow us, your accountant and tax adviser, to collaborate with you within your Sage package with your permission. So where you cannot do something yourself, we can log in using our own integrated Sage administration system to get involved on your behalf, for example to set things up for you, run reports, activate VAT returns, tax returns, end of year accounts, payroll and so on. It’s amazing really! So you do as much or as little as you want to … and we cover everything else!

You save money!

Using the easy but powerful Sage bookkeeping and accounting packages supplied by Taxfile
means that you’ll save money. It’s as simple as that. Customers using such packages makes our job easier, reducing our chargeable hours working on your accounts, so quite simply saves you money!

You also save time!

Our Sage packages will save you SO much time you’ll never look back! Once you’ve tried our Sage packages for a while you’ll Read more