High street warns of 'punishing tax burden', thinktank argues private jets are 'heavily subsidised' by taxpayers, and Croner Intelligence launches Workflows AI tool to draft letters

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Tax | EU plans 3% digital services tax by end of 2018

The EU is considering proposals to introduce a digital services tax on multinational tech giants, mirroring the UK's proposed digital tax, with the French finance minister calling for agreement before the end of the year

6 Nov 2018

Finance | Landmark privilege rulings affect auditors and clients

What the Court of Appeal gives, the High Court takes away: two major decisions on legal professional privilege in the cases of ENRC v SFO and Financial Reporting Council v Sports Direct International plc have important ramifications for auditors and audit clients. Ross Dixon and Chris du Boulay at Hickman and Rose examine the decisions

6 Nov 2018

Auditing

Corporate Governance

Audit Regulations

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Tax | Probate fees to rise to £6K for largest estates

Plans to hike the cost of probate with the introduction of banded fees will see estates valued at over £1m paying £4,000 in fees from April 2019

6 Nov 2018

Finance | Post Office faces court battle over accounting software

A dispute over the accuracy of a digital accounting system used by the Post Office has now reached the High Court as sub-postmasters start their class action over the relationship between employees and the company, and the operation of the IT system

6 Nov 2018

Finance

Financial Reporting

Image for mha macintyre hudson signs partnership tech firm

Business | MHA MacIntyre Hudson signs partnership with tech firm

The top-20 accounting firm has entered into a strategic testing partnership with Inflo, a specialist in artificial intelligence and machine learning, in order to improve the technical offering for clients

6 Nov 2018

Leadership & Management

Image for frc flags implementation issues ifrs 9 and 15

Finance | FRC flags implementation issues with IFRS 9 and 15

The Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) thematic reviews of IFRS 9 Financial Instruments and IFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers show that the early application of both standards has raised a number of problems, particularly in explaining the transition to key stakeholders

6 Nov 2018

Business | Trainee accountant sentenced for £30K VAT fraud

An HMRC investigation has found that a trainee accountant produced fake invoices between two businesses to fraudulently reclaim more than £30,000 in VAT

6 Nov 2018

Business

Called to Account

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Finance | Governments shift towards accrual basis reporting

Nearly two thirds of governments will report on an accrual basis by 2023, compared to the 25% of governments that do so now, according to the latest research from the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and CIPFA

6 Nov 2018

Tax | Q&A: professional gamblers and taxable winnings

Croner taxwise tax advisor Vivienne Cheung looks at the income tax liabilities of a professional poker player with no other earnings

6 Nov 2018

Finance | Charity accounts part 10: charitable companies

This article, the tenth in our series on charity accounts, will focus on charitable companies’ SORP requirements, including the need to produce a strategic report and what the summary income and expenditure account should include

6 Nov 2018

5 Nov 2018

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Finance | Revising the risk assessment: ISA 315

Katherine Bagshaw FCA examines some the many long-standing issues of ISA 315, Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement, and what the Exposure Draft of the revised standard improves upon

5 Nov 2018

Tax | Selling your home and principal private residence relief

Yet again in Budget 2018, second home owners were targeted with a number of changes to the principal private residence (PPR) relief rules such as halving the exempt period to nine months from April 2020. Courtney Halifax CTA ATT, tax manager at Mercer & Hole, examines the tax implications for anyone selling property

5 Nov 2018

Business | Blick Rothenberg acquires Hazlems Fenton accountants

Blick Rothenberg, part of Cogital Group, is expanding with the acquisition of accounting firm Hazlems Fenton LLP, which primarily deals with entrepreneurial and owner-managed businesses

5 Nov 2018

Business

Accountancy Firms

Careers

Leadership & Management

Image for hmrc delays late payments penalty reforms

Tax | HMRC delays late payments penalty reforms

Planned reforms to HMRC’s penalty regimes for late submission and payment of tax due are to be further delayed while the department considers how best to communicate the changes, with papers published following the Budget indicating there are unlikely to be any change before April 2021 at the earliest

5 Nov 2018

Tax | Overdue VAT reaches five-year high

There has been a 22% rise in the value of unpaid VAT owed to HMRC by UK businesses to £3bn, up from £2.48bn the previous year, as late payments leave businesses with cashflow difficulties

5 Nov 2018

Finance | ICAEW says ISA 315 not fit for small businesses

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) consultation on the proposed amendments to ISA 315, Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement, has elicited a response from ICAEW urging the body to take heed of concerns about its scalability

5 Nov 2018

Tax | Disputed tax from big business hits £27.8bn

Figures released today show that the amount of underpaid tax in dispute with the UK’s 2,000 largest businesses increased to £27.8bn in 2017/18, a 12% increase on the previous year, as HMRC steps up its investigative activity

5 Nov 2018

Finance | Mazars calls for joint audits for UK listed companies

In Mazars' response to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) statutory audit market study, it says that it is ‘fully supportive of changes which propose to create a genuinely competitive audit market that addresses stakeholders’ needs’ and pushes for joint audits

5 Nov 2018

Auditing

Corporate Governance

Audit Regulations

Accounting Consultations

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Business | 40% gender difference in pension pots

The gender pension gap is 39.5%, twice the level of the gender pay gap, with women receiving on average £7000 less than their male counterparts, according to research from the union Prospect

5 Nov 2018

Business | Living Wage rates rise to £9 an hour

At least 180,000 people that work for Living Wage employers across the country are set for a pay rise as the new Living Wage rates see an above inflationary increase

5 Nov 2018

2 Nov 2018

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Tax | Williams: Making Tax Digital is a business opportunity for accountants

Making Tax Digital (MTD) should be seen as a chance for accountants to forge stronger links with clients, argues Nick Williams, head of UK accountants for Intuit QuickBooks

2 Nov 2018

Tax | Denning: US may strike back at digital services tax

Chris Denning, head of international and corporate taxation at MHA MacIntyre Hudson, suggests that the US might retaliate against the UK’s digital services tax introduced in the Autumn Budget

2 Nov 2018

Business | Finance Mole: outside your comfort zone

Finance Mole is cornered by the internal recruiter who sees no distinction between a lawyer and an accountant plus, announcement of Sacha Romanovitch’s departure at Grant Thornton, financial irregularities at Patisserie Valerie

2 Nov 2018

Business

Companies

Image for stephen haddrill quit financial reporting council

| Stephen Haddrill to quit Financial Reporting Council

The head of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) Stephen Haddrill is to leave the audit regulator as soon as a replacement is found

2 Nov 2018

Leadership & Management

Image for big four making progress employee diversity

Business | Big Four making progress on employee diversity

The Best Employers for Race - 2018 report, carried out by charity Business in the Community, has shown that the UK’s Big Four are among the UK’s best employers for taking a pro-active approach to address racial inequalities in their organisations

2 Nov 2018

Leadership & Management

Image for treasurys cat not creaming cash

Tax | Treasury’s cat not creaming off cash

Taxpayers have had a ‘purr-fect’ Budget present with the news that Gladstone, the Treasury’s resident cat with specific mouse hunting duties, is not costing them a penny this year and has not been on the payroll - either as a full-time employee or via a personal services contract - since his appointment

2 Nov 2018

Tax

Personal Tax

Politics

Image for first fine accountant under tpr enrolment rules

Business | First fine for accountant under TPR enrolment rules

The accountant of a London cafe has been ordered to pay £6,857 after he admitted falsely claiming to The Pensions Regulator (TPR) that staff had been enrolled into pensions

2 Nov 2018

Finance | US regulator sanctions three Deloitte Mexico partners

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) has barred, fined, and censured three Deloitte Mexico partners for deficient work in auditing the Mexican subsidiary of a US public company

2 Nov 2018

Auditing

Corporate Governance

Image for hmrc refund child benefit penalty charges

Tax | HMRC to refund child benefit penalty charges

HMRC has announced a U-turn in its policy towards taxpayers who failed to register for the high income child benefit charge (HICBC) when required, and is to issue automatic penalty refunds for those able to demonstrate a ‘reasonable excuse’

2 Nov 2018

Business | Oxford tops list of UK’s best business locations

Oxford and Reading have retained their top slots as the best places to do business in the UK, according to a study from PwC which suggests most cities have now fully recovered from the recession and downturn triggered by the global financial crisis

2 Nov 2018

Business

Companies

Accountancy Firms

Image for cracks showing hmrc performance under brexit pressures

Tax | ‘Cracks showing’ in HMRC performance under Brexit pressures

MPs are warning 'cracks are showing' as HMRC seeks to manage a ‘daunting’ workload in advance of Brexit, with mounting concerns about the possible impact of delays introducing its new customs system on businesses adapting to a new VAT regime

2 Nov 2018

Business | Yorkshire butchers face chop with administration

The latest victim of the difficulties currently facing businesses on the UK’s high streets is Yorkshire butcher Crawshaw Group, which has gone into administration putting nearly 700 jobs at risk

2 Nov 2018

Business

Companies

Accountancy Firms

Restructuring & Insolvency

Tax | Budget 2018 briefing: key measures at a glance

In our roundup of Budget 2018 essentials, we review the key tax measures for businesses and individual taxpayers, from a time-limited hike in annual investment allowance to £1m, retention of entrepreneurs’ relief, frozen VAT threshold, a digital services tax for tech giants and an unexpected increase in the personal allowance

2 Nov 2018

Business | People in the news: IIRC, Carey Olsen, New Quadrant Partners

Career news this week includes partner appointments at New Quadrant Partners and Irwin Mitchell, while IAASB resumes search for new chair and the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) hires former McKinsey chief to head up organisation

2 Nov 2018

Leadership & Management

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Latest news

Tax | EU plans 3% digital services tax by end of 2018

Finance | Landmark privilege rulings affect auditors and clients

Tax | Probate fees to rise to £6K for largest estates

Finance | Post Office faces court battle over accounting software

Business | MHA MacIntyre Hudson signs partnership with tech firm

Finance | FRC flags implementation issues with IFRS 9 and 15

Business | Trainee accountant sentenced for £30K VAT fraud

Finance | Governments shift towards accrual basis reporting

Tax | Q&A: professional gamblers and taxable winnings

Finance | Charity accounts part 10: charitable companies

Finance | Revising the risk assessment: ISA 315

Tax | Selling your home and principal private residence relief

Business | Blick Rothenberg acquires Hazlems Fenton accountants

Tax | HMRC delays late payments penalty reforms

Tax | Overdue VAT reaches five-year high

Finance | ICAEW says ISA 315 not fit for small businesses

Tax | Disputed tax from big business hits £27.8bn

Finance | Mazars calls for joint audits for UK listed companies

Business | 40% gender difference in pension pots

Business | Living Wage rates rise to £9 an hour

Tax | Williams: Making Tax Digital is a business opportunity for accountants

Tax | Denning: US may strike back at digital services tax

Business | Finance Mole: outside your comfort zone

| Stephen Haddrill to quit Financial Reporting Council

Business | Big Four making progress on employee diversity

Tax | Treasury’s cat not creaming off cash

Business | First fine for accountant under TPR enrolment rules

Finance | US regulator sanctions three Deloitte Mexico partners

Tax | HMRC to refund child benefit penalty charges

Business | Oxford tops list of UK’s best business locations

Tax | ‘Cracks showing’ in HMRC performance under Brexit pressures

Business | Yorkshire butchers face chop with administration

Tax | Budget 2018 briefing: key measures at a glance

Business | People in the news: IIRC, Carey Olsen, New Quadrant Partners