Tax news in brief

Government amendments to Finance Bill 2023-24

The government has tabled a number of amendments to Finance Bill 2023-24, including measures to:

• avoid double-counting of, and gaps in tax relief for research and development (R&D) on transition to the new merged regime;
• provide for consequences of non-compliance with the information requirements for creative sector tax relief; and
• introduce an exemption from the electricity generator levy.

The Bill is due to have its report stage and third reading on 5 February 2024 before proceeding to the House of Lords.

NAO reports on Scottish and Welsh income tax

The National Audit Office (NAO) has published reports on the administration of Scottish income tax and Welsh income tax for 2022/23. The NAO has statutory responsibilities for auditing HMRC’s collection of Scottish and Welsh income tax. Key findings include that HMRC has adequate rules and procedures in place to ensure the proper assessment and collection of Scottish and Welsh income tax.

Changes to insolvency guidance for VAT

HMRC has made several changes to VAT Notice 700/56, which covers insolvency guidance for VAT-registered businesses. The key change to note is that, as per section 20.6 of the guidance, HMRC no longer removes insolvent members from VAT groups automatically if they continue to meet the VAT group control criteria. An out of date address has also been removed from section 21 of the guidance.

Updated guidance for a CIV making an exemption election

HMRC has updated its guidance on a UK property rich collective investment vehicle (CIV) making an exemption election (CG 73998Y). The guidance now sets out the circumstances in which HMRC will give consent to an election where the date on which the election is specified to take effect is more than 12 months before the date of the election.