http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/latest-blogs/latest-blogs en tony.slocombe@mhfp.co.uk Copyright 2013 2013-04-05T07:53:35+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/isas-an-investment-for-all-seasons http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/isas-an-investment-for-all-seasons Many people do not find sufficient time to manage their personal investments to maximise investment and tax planning opportunities.  A key example of this is with ISA investments. A cornerstone of any financial plan would be to ensure that ISA allowances are used regularly and effectively, where suitable.  Even without any growth on investments, a couple could save up a tax-advantaged ISA investment portfolio of over £100,000 within five years. Those who do get around to utilising their ISA allowance will often pick individual funds, but with a platform approach all your accumulated ISA pots can be consolidated into one plan following a more broadly based investment approach.  Changes to investment strategy can then be made without needing to set up new ISA accounts. … 2013-04-05T07:53:35+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/personal-allowance-increase-to-10000-per-annum-for-2014-15-tax-year1 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/personal-allowance-increase-to-10000-per-annum-for-2014-15-tax-year1 This increase was presented by George Osborne as a big tax advantage to low earners and it has been estimated that this take 260,000 out of the range for paying  income tax.  However on the flip side it has been estimated that 200,000 of these were included for auto-enrolment, but will now be excluded if the Department for Works and Pensions  continues to link the auto-enrolment threshold to the tax personal allowance as they have up to now and for 2013/14. A worker just below the new personal allowance could still opt to join the scheme and receive an employer contribution, but the fact that they will not be automatically enrolled may cause them to miss out on the valuable employer contributions available. Please note however that for employers with more than 250 employees as… 2013-03-26T12:50:49+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/employees-benefit http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/employees-benefit Help with child care costs The Government’s commitment to providing help with childcare costs is a welcome boost for working families, albeit the assistance is being phased in from Autumn 2015.  The relief will initially help families with children under age 5 and will be extended over time to include children under 12. To be eligible for the relief, both parents must work (with each earning below £150,000) and they cannot be receiving tax credits or the universal credit. The current proposal, which is subject to consultation, is that the Government will pay 20% toward child care costs up to £6,000 i.e. £1,200 per child. Company cars The Government is still tinkering with company car benefits.  The taxable benefit charge continues to rise and the bands on CO2 … 2013-03-22T10:18:10+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/pensions-for-individuals-budget-2013 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/pensions-for-individuals-budget-2013 As with many previous Budgets and Autumn Statements, I nervously waited for the Chancellor to utter the word ‘pensions’ along with a raft of notices concerning variation of pension tax allowances.  On this occasion the Budget revealed no obvious new adjustments to limits, which was a pleasing departure from recent trend. To summarise the current position: •  For the 2013/14 tax year, the Annual Allowance (AA) remains at £50,000, with it falling to £40,000 in 2014/15. •  For the 2013/14 tax year, the Lifetime Allowance (LTA) remains at £1.5million, with it falling to £1.25million in 2014/15.  Some protection is available for existing  pension savers who exceed the £1.25million limit, or believe they will by the time… 2013-03-22T10:11:52+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/no-safe-haven-past-present-or-future http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/no-safe-haven-past-present-or-future Tax avoidance has been the subject of particular press coverage and comment for over a year now and the Budget brings together “the largest package of anti avoidance measures ever”.  There are various announcements on specific targeted areas such as partnerships and certain IHT points where the Government consider these have been used in marketed tax avoidance schemes.  These sit alongside the new General Anti Abuse Rule (GAAR), which is due to come into force, and are against a backdrop and environment of encouraging disclosure where clients may have become used to enjoying confidentiality in shielding assets overseas. The General Anti Abuse Rule (GAAR) – the future This will apply to arrangements entered into after Royal Assent (expected in July 2013).  Often… 2013-03-22T10:02:13+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/inheritance-tax-dont-moan-its-a-loan http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/inheritance-tax-dont-moan-its-a-loan Don’t moan, it’s a loan! One of the anti-avoidance measures announced today impacts upon Inheritance Tax (IHT) schemes which have been marketed by certain promoters.  It is anticipated that this will save £5m of IHT in 2013/14, increasing to £20m in 2014/15, although it is difficult to ascertain how these figures have been arrived at. The IHT measures, as announced, will seek to deny a deduction for a loan in a person’s chargeable estate for IHT purposes.  The particular circumstances where relief will be denied involve a situation where the loan was originally created artificially in order to gain a tax advantage.  This may include loan arrangements to acquire assets which qualify for IHT relief or contrived situations with family members or trust… 2013-03-22T09:49:05+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/the-uk-swiss-tax-agreement-where-are-we-now http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/the-uk-swiss-tax-agreement-where-are-we-now The first point to note is that the agreement is now in place having come into effect on 1 January 2013. It sets out measures for UK taxpayers with Swiss accounts both in relation to future and past UK tax liabilities. All UK resident individuals with Swiss accounts are affected by the agreement which provides for HMRC to tax these funds. From 1 January 2013 From now on, all UK account holders will either have to disclose a liability arising from the accounts each year or have tax withheld at source in relation to income and capital gains. In most cases individuals affected by the agreement will already have received notification of the agreement from the Swiss bank and have been asked which option they wish to choose. Anyone wishing to maintain some anonymity with regard to their account may… 2013-03-05T11:00:34+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/the-high-value-residential-property-regime http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/the-high-value-residential-property-regime Last year the Chancellor announced a number of measures targeted at high value properties (defined as worth more than £2m) owned by non natural persons (NNP). A NNP is defined as a company, a collective investment scheme or a partnership where one or more members is a company. A trust is not a NNP. The key measures in brief: Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is payable at 15% where a non natural person acquires a UK property worth more than £2m. An annual tax charge (ARPT) will be levied if residential property worth more than £2m is owned by a NNP. The disposal of UK residential property worth more than £2m by a non natural person will be subject to Capital Gains Tax (CGT) at 28%. The consultation period came to an end following which HMRC confirmed that these measures will… 2013-02-25T14:11:50+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/auto-enrolment-update-for-enhanced-and-fixed-protection http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/auto-enrolment-update-for-enhanced-and-fixed-protection The Government have recently announced that they intend to remove the requirement for employers to automatically enrol workers who have Enhanced or Fixed Protection.  These protections only remain in place if individuals do not join any pension schemes, so auto enrolment presented a significant headache for them. The proposed change is to be welcomed, but there are some practical issues to consider, such as whether the employer knows which of their staff have such protections in place. From an individual’s perspective too, it is important to note that this still requires thought and action.  This alteration would simply enable them to opt out in advance and thus avoid the cumbersome process of joining and then immediately leaving. If they are enrolled and do not opt out immediately,… 2013-02-12T16:17:55+00:00 http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/tax-avoidance-the-debate-looks-set-to-continue-for-a-while http://www.mercerhole.co.uk/blog/article/tax-avoidance-the-debate-looks-set-to-continue-for-a-while The PAC has now concluded its session with the Heads of Tax from PWC, Deloittes, KPMG and Ernst & Young with, I suspect, little change in the opinions from either side.  Having watched the questioning I was impressed by the Heads of Tax.  Unsurprisingly they are bright, mentally alert people with a strong client service ethos and a desire to abide by the law.  They were, I have to say, very well prepared and were robust in expressing their opinions and prepared to defend their tax practices.  I think the issue has been triggered by the fact that the government is short of funds and wants to increase the tax take.  Its problem is that the length and complexity of UK law (to which it is contributing) means that there is a huge grey area of tax planning/avoidance that… 2013-01-31T13:58:34+00:00