Covid-19

The government has scrapped plans to get workers to pay income tax on coronavirus (COVID-19) testing kits purchased by their employer. HMRC issued guidance on 6 July which outlined that COVID-19 testing kits were to be classified as a taxable benefit-in-kind. However, the Treasury Select Committee criticised this decision and highlighted that tax bills could build up as employers purchase large numbers of tests. Mel Stride, Chair of the Treasury Select Committee, said: ‘Many employees, especially healthcare and hospitality workers,…

Business groups, including the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) and the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) have reacted to Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Summer Economic Update. In the Update, the Chancellor announced a range of measures designed to protect and create jobs and boost the UK economy following the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. A new Job Retention Bonus was announced, alongside a six-month VAT reduction for businesses in the hospitality and tourism sector and a temporary…

On 8 July Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered a Summer Economic Update, which outlined measures designed to boost the UK economy following the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. A new Job Retention Bonus was announced, which will provide employers with a one-off £1,000 bonus for each furloughed employee who is still employed as of 31 January 2021. The government hopes the Job Retention Bonus will incentivise firms to retain furloughed workers rather than making redundancies. VAT will be reduced from 20% to 5%…

Chancellor Rishi Sunak will deliver the Summer Economic Update today, in which he will announce measures to help boost the UK economy following the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. The Chancellor is expected to cut taxes in order to help the UK economy recover following the COVID-19 lockdown. Experts predict that the Chancellor will reduce VAT for businesses in the hospitality sector and outline further plans to increase investment in training and apprenticeship schemes. Many also anticipate a six-month stamp duty holiday…

The Treasury has extended the temporary scrapping of VAT on personal protective equipment (PPE) until the end of October. The decision comes after a temporary zero-rate of VAT was applied to PPE sales for an initial three months from 1 May to 31 July. The government previously removed import duties from PPE and medical supplies intended to assist the NHS with the response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. EU law governing VAT – which the UK is bound to until…

The introduction of off-payroll rules to the private sector will go ahead as planned next April after an attempt to delay them again failed in the House of Commons. The reforms of the off-payroll rules to the private sector, which are known as IR35 and have applied to the public sector since 2017, were reviewed earlier this year. They will shift the responsibility for assessing employment status to the organisations employing individuals. The rules would have applied to contractors working…

The Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG) has urged self-employed individuals to check their eligibility for the first round of the government’s coronavirus (COVID-19) Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant. The claim window for the first SEISS grant will close on 13 July. The LITRG stated that HMRC used IT systems to identify potential SEISS claimants in May. However, the group is concerned that some self-employed individuals did not receive HMRC’s correspondence. The LITRG also said that there is ‘some…

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has found that the UK’s late payment crisis has worsened during the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. 62% of small businesses have been subject to late or frozen payments during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to research carried out by the FSB. Just 10% of small firms have agreed changes to payment terms with their clients. 65% of small businesses that supply goods or services to other businesses have experienced being paid late or having payments frozen.…

The number of workers now furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) has risen to 9.3 million, according to the latest figures from the Treasury. A further 100,000 employees were furloughed in the week up to 28 June, with 1.1 million employers now using the CJRS. The government has now paid out more than £25 billion to furloughed UK workers. It has also guaranteed £42.9 billion in loans through its business support schemes. The majority has been borrowed via…

Businesses have been told to stay vigilant against the rise in impersonation fraud during the coronavirus pandemic, by trade credit insurer Atradius. The insurer says the increase in impersonation fraud is result of opportunistic fraudsters seeking to take advantage of disruptions to normal business patterns during lockdown. Impersonation fraud occurs when a fraudulent party presents themselves as if representing a reputable business. The impersonator approaches other businesses under the guise of looking for new suppliers. Believing the enquiry is from…