Recruitment agencies often use umbrella companies to pay temporary workers. HMRC confirms that there is no statutory definition of an umbrella company and currently describes it as ‘a company that employs temporary workers who work for different end clients’, where ‘the umbrella will enter...

People set up in business for a variety of reasons. For some it is a dream that becomes a reality some years later. In working towards that dream, they may purchase items before the business starts to trade, to enable the business to trade, rather than for the purposes of the trade, e.g. a professio...

The cost of living crisis has impacted on people’s ability to take holidays and short breaks. If you are a landlord letting a furnished holiday lettings (FHL), you may find that the downturn in bookings means that you are unable to pass the occupancy tests for your let to qualify as an FHL for tax...

If you are an employer, having a healthy staff is good for both you and your employees. So, you might want to give your employees benefits that will help them catch any health problems early and get back to full health. Even though private health insurance is a taxable benefit (except for employees ...

If you run your business as a personal or family business, you may have to take some or all of the profits for yourself. When it comes to taxes, not all ways of making money are the same. The best way for you to take out profits will depend on your personal situation, but you […]...

There are many ways to get tax-free savings income. But not all routes are available to all taxpayers. The options depend on the type of savings, the saver’s other income, and the rate of tax at the top of the income range. Savings Allowance A savings allowance is given to both basic rate and ...

From a tax point of view, not all rentals are the same, and the rules for furnished vacation rentals are different from those for traditional buy-to-lets. Buy-to-let In a traditional buy-to-let, the same tenant or tenants live in the property for a long time. The standard length of a lease is at lea...

HMRC makes a number of toolkits that point out common mistakes that people make on their self-assessment tax returns. The capital gains tax land and buildings toolkit, as its name suggests, points out the most common mistakes that HMRC finds when it comes to capital gains tax on land and buildings. ...

In the summer, there are a lot of events, and parking is often hard to find. If you have a driveway or field that you don’t use, you could rent it out to make some money. This doesn’t have to be a tax problem. But it’s important to remember that all of the money made […]...

Like any other kind of business, a property business has costs that can’t be avoided. But, if you meet certain requirements, you can get tax relief for the costs of running a property business. Allowable expenses As a general rule, a landlord can deduct costs that are entirely and only used to...