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HMRC suspends Business Records Check program

HMRC has announced a suspension of the Business Records Check (BRC) program until the new tax year, when they will implement a new approach. 

The pilot programme conducted 2,437 Business Records Checks up to 4th January 2012 and found that 28% of businesses had some issue with their record keeping and that an additional 11% had issues serious enough to warrant a follow-up visit. Any new BRC appointments will be postponed until the revamped approach is launched early in 2012/13. However, HMRC will continue to undertake visits already booked (including follow up visits) to those already identified as having seriously inadequate statutory records.

HMRC will confirm the new start date of the program in due course. However, when the program does restart, HMRC will initially contact those businesses it considers to be at a higher risk of keeping inadequate records by telephone or letter to ask about their record keeping. This information will then be used to determine whether a full Business Record Check is required.

Auto-enrolment pension dates confirmed

The Government has released the revised timetable for auto-enrolment pension roll out. The timetable was revised due to concerns that the impact of the scheme could be too much for some businesses to take in the current environment.

Large employers with 250 or more employees will be the first to face the change, with the original start date of October 2012.

The next group will be those with between 50 and 249 members who will have from 1 April 2014 until 1 April 2015 to implement the changes. Then a test tranche for those with 30 or fewer staff will take place throughout June 2012 before becoming compulsory from 1 January 2016.

Businesses with between 30 and 49 employees will be expected to comply with the rules from 1 August 2015. 

Commenting, minister for pensions Steve Webb said: "Automatic enrolment will begin on time this October, taking up to 10 million people into pension saving, many for the first time ever, and all employers will be part of it. We have done all we can to ease any burden on business the reforms will bring and employers of all sizes now know the date they need to start enrolling their staff."

Government swoops on latest tax avoidance scheme

The Government has come down hard on the latest tax avoidance scheme, with a change in law with immediate effect.

The legislation blocks a tax avoidance scheme involving post-cessation trade relief, after the Government heard of an avoidance scheme that seeks to generate post-cessation trade relief for set off by users of the scheme against their other income or capital gains.

The relief was designed to allow a person to claim a deduction in their income tax calculation for certain payments and bad debts arising after a trade, profession or vocation has ceased. But according to reports, artificial trading companies were being set up in tax havens to take advantage of the relief.

The law changed with immediate effect on 12 January 2012, and the legislation will be in the Finance Bill 2012.

Autumn Statement 2011

As the UK recovers from the most severe financial crisis in generations, the Autumn Statement 2011 could only focus on one objective; strengthening the economy.