Contractors are no doubt aware that the government recently changed the rules on the amount of money people can put aside in a pension scheme and still benefit from tax relief. It used to be £225,000, but earlier this year chancellor Osborne reduced that to a mere £50,000 per year.
Umbrella company contractors who receive tax credits or other financial assistance may be interested to learn that HMRC recently signed a deal with Experian to help it catch people who fraudulently claim tax credits and other benefits.
Umbrella company contractors may be interested to learn that a firm of chartered accountants has expressed concerns about the plan to merge income tax and national insurance.
Since 2009, HMRC has sent out approximately 17 million letters to taxpayers, including umbrella company contractors. Now it has emerged that around 2,000 people have complained about the threatening tone of HMRC’s debt recovery letters.
Umbrella company contractors who have been longing to see the back of IR35 might be interested to learn that HMRC’s average yield per case has leapt by 100%.
Millions of people, including umbrella contractors, could be in line for an early Christmas present from HMRC in the form of a tax rebate. 6 million income tax rebates will be made following the identification of PAYE errors in the years up to 2007/08.
Umbrella company contractors have the peace of mind of knowing that their income tax is deducted at source. But contractors in the UK who file their own tax returns should be aware that HMRC continues to delay sending out penalty notices despite losing recent tribunal cases.
UK limited company contractors may want to seek the advice of an accountant now that the coalition has struck a deal with the Swiss government in a bid to win the battle against offshore tax evasion.