HMRC Stamp Duty press machines will be officially retired from service on 19 July 2021, marking the end of over 300 years of tax-related history. From mid-July, an electronic process will be adopted for the remaining transactions which still required physical stamps, such as duty paid on shares purchased on a stock transfer form. The

The funding that the Treasury organised to provide ailing businesses with liquidity during the worst periods of COVID disruption, were not attractive for the banking sector. Even with the underwriting provided by government, bounce-back and similar loans were simply unprofitable. Which may go some way to explain a recent tendency that banks seem reluctant to

HMRC publishes a range of factsheets that can be issued to taxpayers during a compliance check. The General anti-abuse rule and notices of binding CC/FS37 factsheet concerns the penalties HMRC can charge if you have been given a notice of binding and a bound arrangements opinion notice under the general anti-abuse rule (GAAR). The factsheet

Sole practitioners are at a disadvantage if they do not have “another pair of ears” to bounce ideas off or discover new routes to a solution. Stepping across the office to discuss a knotty problem with a colleague is a time-honoured way to solve a problem or at least open new perspectives on that problem.

Following its consultation in summer 2019 on establishing a new single labour market enforcement body for employment rights, the government has finally published its response to that consultation and confirmed that it is still committed to creating such a body. The new body will need to be established through primary legislation, when parliamentary time allows,

There is nothing like blue skies and summer temperatures to make working behind a computer screen seem a less than desirable activity. Add to the mix that you are working at home and the lure of the deckchair may break the resolve of even the most ardent worker. One way to counter this is to

The temporary Trade Credit Reinsurance (TCR) scheme closed, as planned, on 30 June 2021. The scheme directly benefitted over half a million businesses, providing certainty to firms across the UK and safeguarding jobs. It protected more than £575 billion of business turnover by providing around £210 billion in insurance cover. Participating insurers have indicated to

One of the services offered by Companies House helps combat fraud and protect your company from unauthorised changes to records. The free service is known as the protected online filing (PROOF) scheme and means that any forms covered by PROOF can only be filed online. Companies House will reject any paper versions of the forms and

The government is calling on all employers to make a commitment to help employees get the COVID-19 vaccine, including during working hours, to drive vaccine uptake across the UK. To support this, the government has produced a toolkit so that employers can run their own internal awareness campaigns to promote the benefits of vaccination. The

When should employers start to step into the decision-making process if staff are intent on taking holidays abroad? We now have a traffic light system, red, amber and green (in England) which demands: Travelling from a red list country: quarantine for 10 full days in a managed quarantine hotel (the day you arrive in England