Fraud: Convictions & sentences – 31 December 2021 Table of Contents Director jailed for stealing £1.7m A company director has been jailed for five years and banned for 12 for stealing £1.7m. After sentencing, director said that I found buying horses ‘more addictive than drugs. Investigators from asset recovery team continue to make enquiries into…
Late tax payment interest rate raised to 2.75% Following the increase in the base rate announced by the Bank of England last week, HMRC has confirmed changes to payment interest rates are due to come into force HMRC has increased the current late payment interest rate applied to the main taxes and duties to…
IR35 sage in public sector In the ongoing saga over IR35 in the public sector, two more government departments are facing multimillion pound tax bills for non-compliance The latest annual reports for the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) show that both departments owe millions of…
£1bn support package for businesses hit by Omicron The Chancellor has announced a £1bn support package including grants for the hospitality sector and a sick pay rebate scheme as omicron variant spreads Businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in England will be eligible for one-off grants of up to £6,000 per premises, plus…
Statutory sick pay rebate scheme reinstated As increasing numbers of Covid-19 cases means more workers taking time off work, the government has reintroduced the statutory sick pay rebate scheme (SSPRS) Who can apply for statutory sick pay rebate scheme (SSPRS)? The SSPRS will help small and medium-sized employers – those with fewer than…
15% global minimum tax – Rules published by OECD The OECD has published detailed rules to assist in the implementation of reform to the international tax system, which will see multinationals will be subject to a minimum 15% tax rate from 2023 The Pillar Two model rules provide governments a precise template for taking forward…
Crackdown on directors who dissolve companies to evade debts The Insolvency Service has been given more powers to tackle rogue directors who dissolve their companies and avoid paying liabilities to staff, creditors and the taxpayer. Under new rules directors that try to dissolve their companies to avoid debts can now be disqualified from being…
Bank base rate increased to 0.25% (First increase in 3 years) The Bank of England has raised the bank base rate for the first time in three years to 0.25%, despite concerns over omicron variant At its meeting ending on 15 December 2021, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted by a majority of 8-1…
11.7 million jobs supported by Furlough scheme The latest figures on use of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme show that 11.7m jobs were supported by furlough throughout the pandemic, highlighting the risk of HMRC investigations Since the start of the scheme in March 2020 a total of 11.7m jobs have been supported by the CJRS…
Covid grants to be included in tax returns HMRC is reminding self assessment customers to declare any Covid-19 grant payments on their 2020/21 tax return, including SEISS claims which are taxable More than 2.7 million customers claimed at least one Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) payment up to 5 April 2021. These grants are taxable…
EU custom changes from January 2022 Some of the temporary customs and VAT easements introduced on 1 January 2021 for goods moving between Great Britain and the EU will be removed on 1 January 2022 Businesses trading with the EU have less than three weeks to get ready for new import and exports customs controls…
Fraudulent Covid loans of £4.9bn The government’s measures to prevent fraud in its bounce back loan scheme (BBL) have been labelled inadequate by National Audit Office (NAO) and were introduced too late. A report by the government’s spending watchdog estimated that £4.9bn of the £47bn that was given out as part of the Covid-19…
