View from a Tea Cup

 

In a recent case, HMRC investigated whether agency workers that were being supplied to an employment agency client were actually employees of the agency rather than being self-employed and therefore subject to different taxation and national insurance rules.

America, the land of opportunity?  On a recent visit to the USA, I ask a dear friend of mine about the impact of the current economic situation on business.  America has always been a place where, through ambition and hard work, people could achieve whatever they wanted.  Faced with the relentless bad news and uncertainty how was business reacting?

New proposals from the government to issue tax credits for research and development (R&D) work will make it easier for US companies and SMEs looking to expand into the UK market.

The proposals include removing the minimum R&D spend rule and the cap on tax credits payable to loss-making SMEs, in addition to implementing an advance clearance system.

Two brothers faced a 6 year jail penalty after being found guilty at Croydon Crown Court for stealing more than £1.6 million through tax fraud and by thieving from their employees to finance their luxury lifestyles.  After carrying out a complex investigation into the brothers, HMRC found that they had made £1.3 million worth of fake VAT claims for various bogus companies and told 200 of their staff that £330,000 cash taken from their debit and credit cards was for national insurance and tax payments.   The broth