Bennetts Company News

Just a reminder that the annual investment allowance (allowing 100% claim in year 1) on capital equipment (excluding cars) reduces from £100,000 to £25,000 with effect from April 2012. If you are therefore planning on purchasing any large capital items in the near future it would be best to do so in March rather than April.

The new NMW rates from 1.10.11 are as follows:

16-17 years old – £3.68 per hour

18-20 years old – £4.98 per hour

21 and over – £6.08 per hour

Apprentices – £2.60 per hour – aged under 19, and those 19 and over but in the first year of their apprenticeship.

The deadline for P35 submissions is 19.5.11, and 31.5.11 to issue P60’s to employees. Please contact us if we don’t normally submit for you, and you require assistance.

From 1.4.11, corporation tax returns must be submitted electronically, including statutory accounts, in an electronic format known as IXBRL.

If you have not yet brought in your books for your 2009/10 tax return please do so as soon as possible. The tax return deadline is 31.1.11.

The new NMW rates from 1.10.10 are as follows:

16-17 years old  – £3.64 per hour

18-20 years old – £4.92 per hour

21 and over – £5.93 per hour

Please note the main rate now starts at 21 years old whereas in the past it was 22 years old.

There will also be a new apprentice rate of £2.50 per hour which will apply to apprentices aged under 19, and apprentices aged 19 and over but in the first year of their apprenticeship.

New businesses who are employing people and who set up between 22.6.10 and 5.9.10 will qualify for a subsidy of their Employers National Insurance contributions. They must be outside London, the South East, and East of England, and will obtain exemption for the first 10 employees they take on during the first year of business.

The exemption for each employee lasts for 1 year but the scheme ends on 5.9.13.

New businesses who qualify will automatically receive information with the PAYE starter pack.

You have probably heard about the 5.7 million tax code errors by HMRC. If you are one of the unlucky ones please contact us. We may be able to defend it under an extra statutory concession called “A19”.

Watch out for e-mails supposedly from HMRC. Fraudsters are jumping on the bandwagon by sending out e-mails to obtain your personal details. HMRC do not contact you by e-mail.

The new government will be announcing an emergency budget on June 22nd. We will update you on the implications through this page as soon as possible after that date.

In the past GP’s have stated that “you should refrain from work” or “you need not refrain from work”. From 6.4.10 GP’s have another option, “may be fit for work taking account of the following advice”. They then have 4 further options; a phased return to work, flexible working, amended duties or workplace adaptations. For more information see www.dwp.gov.uk/fitnote.