ICAEW technical round-up: February 2021

24 February 2021: This month’s top technical stories on ICAEW Insights include updates on self assessment penalties, IR35 changes and a major change to the government’s Kickstart Scheme.

SA late payment penalties waived until 1 April

19 February: Self assessment taxpayers have an additional four weeks to pay tax or set up a payment plan without being charged a 5% late payment penalty, HMRC has confirmed.

HMRC charts its performance in 2020/21

10 February 2021. HMRC’s quarterly performance statistics for October to December 2020 show that it continues to struggle to provide an adequate level of customer service. Alongside the data HMRC has published a commentary as it did in the last quarter.

Expert support for faculty members on key tax issues of 2021

10 February 2021: Respected tax authority Rebecca Benneyworth has written two new TAXguides offering valuable insights into the key issues facing agents at the start of 2021 and exploring what business structure has the lowest tax burden.

Businesses needed to test new system for paying deferred VAT

8 February 2021: HMRC is urging businesses that deferred VAT payable between 20 March and 30 June 2020 to participate in a pilot scheme this week testing the new payment scheme.

Tax news in brief

Highlights from the broader tax news week ending 3 February, which includes: a restrained Scottish Budget in light of the coronavirus pandemic and HMRC publishes a Brexit edition of its Agent Update with guidance on postponed VAT accounting.

Self assessment: late tax returns almost double at 1.8 million

3 February 2021: A record-high number of taxpayers missed the self assessment tax return deadline and ICAEW has urged late filers to act well ahead of the new 28 February cut-off.

ICAEW technical round-up: January 2021

29 January 2021: This month’s top technical stories on ICAEW Insights include HMRC’s decision to waive late filing penalties for one month, help with common COVID-19 accounting and auditing issues, and a raft of Brexit news and guidance.

HMRC to waive SA late filing penalties for one month

25 January 2021: ICAEW welcomes HMRC’s decision to automatically wave penalties for self assessment tax returns filed late due to the coronavirus pandemic. The move will see no penalties issued for returns filed online up to 28 February 2021.

HMRC stands firm on SA late-filing penalties

19 January 2021: HMRC has rejected calls to reconsider automatically waiving late-filing penalties for self assessment tax returns due on 31 January, but confirmed that deadlines missed due to COVID-19 should not result in having to pay a penalty provided an appeal is made.

Reconsider stance on SA late-filing penalties, urges ICAEW

14 January 2021: ICAEW has called on HMRC to reconsider automatically waiving late-filing penalties for self assessment tax returns due on 31 January, in light of the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on clients, tax agents and HMRC resources.

Options for 31 January self assessment deadline

7 January 2021: As HMRC is resisting calls for an easement on self assessment late filing penalties, ICAEW’s Tax Faculty outlines the options available to taxpayers and agents who will have difficulty filing or paying.

No relaxation of the 31 January SA filing deadline

5 January: In December, HMRC declined calls from professional bodies to relax the self assessment filing deadline but promised to keep the situation under review. Where HMRC issues penalty notices to those who file late, more time will be allowed to appeal and pandemic-related delay on the part of an agent may be accepted as a reasonable excuse.

COVID-19 can lead to ‘reasonable excuse’ for late corporation tax return

2 December 2020: HMRC has discretion to waive penalties for late filing of corporation tax returns where there is a reasonable excuse. Correspondence with HMRC suggests that this includes delays caused by the late filing of company accounts and other reasons associated with the coronavirus pandemic.

Corporate Criminal Offence: Why all businesses should be taking this seriously

23 November 2020: Lucy Sauvage, a Director in BDO’s Tax Risk team talks to ICAEW’s Tax Faculty and answers key questions about the effect of the pandemic on risks relating to the corporate criminal offence (CCO) and what organisations need to be thinking about.

HMRC performance suffers due to diversion of resources

10 November: HMRC data reveals the extent to which service performance and compliance activity have been impacted by the diversion of resources to deliver COVID-19 support schemes.

Extend the SA filing deadline or waive penalties?

3 November 2020: ICAEW is acutely aware of the pressure on member firms as the self assessment filing deadline approaches. The Tax Faculty is seeking members’ views on the options, to inform its discussions with HMRC.

To succeed digital tax systems must work for all

28 October: The digitalisation of tax offers significant potential benefits for taxpayers and agents, as well as administrations, but these will not be achieved without collaboration agree industry experts at the Wyman Symposium.

COVID-19: employees can claim allowance for working from home

Updated 15 October: Employees required to work from home can have a £6 per week or £26 per month allowance paid tax-free by employers or, during the pandemic, can claim a deduction from earnings for this allowance, HMRC has confirmed.

Self assessment late filing daily penalties waived

12 October 2020: HMRC is recalculating top slicing relief on life insurance policy chargeable event gains for 2018/19 but some taxpayers will need to submit an amendment. An HMRC webinar will provide further information.