From 7 January 2013, people who earn more than £60,000 a year will no longer be entitled to child benefits, while those earning between £50,000 and £60,000 will see their benefit removed on a sliding scale, depending on their exact earnings. Continue Reading

Make sure you don’t cut into your annual take-home pay by being forced to hand over hundreds of Pounds in tax penalties, which most likely could have been avoided in the first place. Continue Reading

If you are serious about landing that dream job – the one you actually enjoy going to day after day – the first step is getting your CV to survive the “NO” pile.  No easy feat when you consider that recruiters can end up with hundreds, even thousands of CVs for a single job. Continue Reading

Expect a noticeable increase in your insurance premium by the end of 2012. Experts advise that insurance in the UK could go up by as much as 30%. This includes all insurance products: car insurance, life insurance, income protection, disability, and critical illness insurance. Continue Reading

On Friday the 14th of September, the HMRC “amnesty”, which allowed regular online traders the opportunity to pay lower penalties for not paying tax on their online profits, came to an end. Continue Reading

HMRC will send out thousands of letters this week, urging taxpayers to deal with any outstanding tax returns – including any that are still outstanding for previous tax years. Continue Reading

If you regularly send money from the UK, you might not be aware that there’s an easier, cheaper, more convenient option. Continue Reading

Once upon a time not so long ago, our forefathers would leave school or college, find a job and then stick with it until retirement time came around. Continue Reading

The Taxpayers’ Alliance has joined forces with the Petrol Retailers’ Association to put pressure on the government to cut or freeze fuel duty until 2015.

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Visa recently released a report which reveals that a total of £445.3 million was spent by international visitors during the first week of the Olympic Games. Continue Reading

According to a recent study done by www.unbiased.co.uk, Britons have failed to claim an estimated £12.5 billion in tax credits, including £7.3 billion in income-related tax credits. Continue Reading

If you’re a contractor in the UK, and you need to make payment on account to HMRC through self assessment, it is important to make the second payment before 31 July 2012. Continue Reading

Take our quick quiz to see whether you have what it takes to make it in the demanding and high-pressure world of contracting. Continue Reading

If you’re a contractor in the UK (or thinking about becoming one), one of the biggest decisions you’ll face is whether to trade as a sole trader or run your own limited company. Continue Reading

Over the last few years, the use of umbrella companies has become more and more popular within the UK contracting market, especially since the complicated IR35 rules were introduced. Continue Reading

Are you thinking of buying property in Australia? If you are, you might want to book a seat at the upcoming Australian Property Info Sessions. These free sessions will be held in London for four days, from Thursday 21 June to Sunday 24 June.  Continue Reading

The UK government announced on May 29 that it has canned plans to tax pies, pasties and sausage rolls.

Since March this year, the government has been facing heavy criticism over the proposed tax, particularly because it seemed to be targeting working-class families.

Cameron essentially wanted to close a loophole which allows bakeries in the UK to serve hot takeaway food like pies, sausage rolls and pasties without incurring the 20 per cent VAT that applies to hot food sold as takeaways from restaurants.

Defending the decision, Prime Minister David Cameron previously said it was unfair that takeaway restaurants like fish and chip shops had to charge VAT on hot food, while bakeries and supermarkets were exempt.

But the government has now done a U-turn, by amending the definition of what constitutes a “hot” pasty. Under the revised plans, food which is cooling down rather than being kept warm will not be liable for VAT.

VAT will now only apply to food served straight from the oven or kept hot in heat-retaining packaging, hot cabinets or on hot plates.

Since the 1960’s, Portugal has become an extremely popular tourist destination, drawing around 13 million visitors a year. This rise in popularity can be attributed to the fantastic Mediterranean climate, the natural beauty, great food and wine and of course, the friendly people. Also, despite being a developed country and member of the EU, Portugal is relatively inexpensive when compared to other EU countries offering a similar quality of holiday. Continue Reading

With the RTI pilot already underway, and all employers and agencies required to have implemented the system by October 2013, it’s a good idea to become familiar with what will be required from you, the recruitment consultancy, and what you can do to make your life easier before, during and after the transition.

What is RTI?

RTI (Real Time Information) is being introduced by HMRC as a way to improve the PAYE system for employers, employees and HMRC, and will support the introduction of Universal Credits.

Instead of the previous haphazard way information has been received by HMRC regarding pay and taxable deductions, HMRC will now be receiving information as payments are made and will therefore be better equipped to ensure the correct deductions are made from pay. This will also mean that many more employees will pay the correct amount of tax and National Insurance in the tax year.

What are the benefits?

For HMRC, there seem to be many benefits, which will in turn result in benefits for companies, individuals, Umbrella Companies and recruitment companies – all related to a more streamlined process and the possibility of individuals and companies paying the correct tax more of the time. HMRC suggests that RTI will:

• Remove the need for the end of year return (P35 / P14)
• Make PAYE more accurate for individuals
• Simplify the employee starting and leaving processes
• Reduce the number of bills and repayments sent after the end of the tax year
• Allow HMRC to pursue late payments more effectively
• Support the payment of Universal Credits
• Reduce Tax Credits error and fraud
• Reduce the number of individual customer records needing an end of year recalculation

What does it mean for recruitment consultancies?

RTI reporting will need to become an integral part of an employer’s normal payroll activity. When running the payroll, the software will gather all the required information send it to HMRC via internet, either through the Government Gateway or by using Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) on or before the date the payment is made.

While the new system might help to streamline the processes at HMRC, it could prove time-consuming and disruptive to small and large businesses alike.

There will also be initial costs to cover the transition software and training.

Umbrella a solution

For agencies wanting to avoid the additional costs, administrative work and issues likely to arise from the cross-over, using an Umbrella Company could prove to be the best solution. Not only would the Umbrella Company carry the transitional costs of switching to the RTI system, they would also take on the additional work required to implement it, and the onus would be on them to stay up-to-date with any RTI changes and news.

The agency would only need to send through the relevant timesheets and funds once a week – the rest would be taken care of by the Umbrella Company.

Choosing an Umbrella Company

Here are a few tips for choosing the right Umbrella Company to take care of your payroll responsibilities:

Experience and Reputation

Only consider an Umbrella Company that has been in operation for a number of years and look for one that has existing relationships and a good reputation with other agencies. Be wary of any new companies as you run the risk of losing money (and your own reputation) to a fly-by-night operator.

Easy online system

Make sure that your Umbrella service provider has a simple online system that’s easy to manage. There’s no point in using an umbrella provider to avoid admin, only to have to spend hours figuring out their complicated systems.

Personal service

As important as an online system is, when you need to speak to a real, live person, one should be available to you immediately!

Fee structure

It is extremely important that you establish upfront what the fees are – Ask the Umbrella Company to provide you with a full schedule of fees to ensure that your candidates aren’t going to be overcharged.

Insurance

Always ask about the insurance policy to be 100% sure that you will receive your money, no matter what. Your Umbrella Company should have public liability, employers’ liability, and professional indemnity insurance cover.

Expense policy

Some companies may claim an extensive claims policy, but the conditions attached are so extreme that the likelihood of your clients actually claiming is pretty slim. Do your research and ask as many questions as possible. Avoid any company that states that there is no need to prove your expense claims – if HMRC does query expenses and you cannot provide the necessary receipts, the tax liability could fall on your candidates.

Employee benefits

Will they give your clients the option of employee benefits such as sick leave and maternity leave? Well established companies like 1st Contact Umbrella can offer fantastic employee benefits.

Payment dates

Does the scheme have fixed payment dates you (and your clients) can rely on? Be sure to find out what the payment methods and schedules are and make sure the answers are not vague. You want to know exactly what their payment policy is, so that you have recourse should the timelines not be met.

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1st Contact Umbrella has successfully assisted over 100,000 clients with our no-hassle, efficient payroll service. We have an excellent reputation and long-standing relationships with many top UK agencies and you can expect:

• invoices and timesheets to be dealt with in a timely manner’
• your clients to be paid on-time with no fuss or hassle to them or you;
• great discounts for you and your candidates;
• PAYE, NI payments and returns dealt with each and every month;
• P45’s and P60’s lodged with HMRC with no effort from your candidates;
• any payments or tax queries dealt with by us, not you;
• Rapid responses to your queries

If you have any questions related to Umbrella Companies and RTI, visit www.1stcontact-umbrella.com or speak to an experienced and professional consultant by calling 0808 141 2341.

It is estimated that 1 in 3 people who work or have worked in the UK are due tax back and there are literally million of Pounds lying at Home Office waiting to be claimed. Continue Reading