US software developer Avalara is set to disrupt the market with the launch of a free Excel extension for Making Tax Digital for VAT which will allow companies to upload Excel data directly into HMRC's VAT filing API using a Microsoft Add-In, reports Sara White

Claims for research and development (R&D) tax relief have soared in recent years, reaching £3.7bn in 2015-16, an increase of 25% from the previous year, while so far £3.5bn has been claimed for 2016-17, according to the latest statistics from HMRC

HMRC has been criticised by MPs regarding the standards of data protection it maintained while collecting biometric data on customers for security purposes, a process that generated complaints from taxpayers, at a PAC hearing into HMRC performance

The use of tax incentives to drive growth in the UK’s video game industry has risen by over 30% in the last year and is helping to reverse the sector’s decline in recent years, according to analysis by Moore Stephens

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has indicated his party is considering the introduction of new taxes on digital media providers in order to provide funding for more traditional media outlets including local newspapers and broadcasters and ensure a ‘free and democratic’ media

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is consulting on plans to create a global financial innovation network (GFIN), in collaboration with 11 financial regulators and related organisations, which will build on its proposal earlier this year to create a ‘global sandbox’ for new concepts and finance models

ICAEW is warning of early reports of issues with HMRC’s calculations of under or over payments as part of the commenced the annual reconciliation of taxpayers’ PAYE records for 2017/18

Making Tax Digital for VAT reporting will be mandatory from 1 April 2019, although there will be an initial soft-landing period before penalties kick in from early 2020. Rob Munro asks whether software providers are ready

News that Amazon’s UK tax bill almost halved last year to £1.7m, despite a near-trebling of profits at the online retail giant, has prompted renewed calls for changes to the tax regime for multinational digital companies

Law firm Mishcon de Reya has filed a complaint with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO), citing concerns over the use of the common reporting standard (CRS) and beneficial ownership registers

Tax and finance functions are struggling to keep up with digital advances, a push towards transparency and global reforms of the international tax system, according to a survey conducted by EY