Charity Total Return Accounting
Charities in England and Wales are permitted (subject to conditions) to adopt total return accounting in respect of their permanent endowment funds, but how is this accounted for? Normal treatment Without total return accounting, investment income earned from endowment funds is credited to unrestricted or restricted funds in the Statement of Financial Activities (SoFA). It […]
Fuel Scale Charge
What is it? The VAT Fuel scale charge is an adjustment that you add to your VAT return to account for the private element of fuel paid for by the business. HMRC update the fuel scale charge valuations annually on 1 May. Who is it for? VAT registered businesses who reclaim input VAT on all […]
Related parties: Do you really know who they are?
How can you capture a complete picture of your related party transactions when you haven’t a complete picture of who your related parties are? Gravita investigates the definition of a related party under FRS 102 and the Charity SORP and considers whether entities are doing enough to fulfil their statutory obligations. No one likes to […]
Top five tips to reduce Inheritance Tax on your estate
With increased property values and frozen Inheritance Tax exemptions, Inheritance Tax is becoming more of an issue for many. We can help with bespoke planning to minimise the potential liability and maximise the available reliefs and exemptions. When reviewing your estate’s exposure to Inheritance Tax, there is no one-size fits all approach to reducing […]
Why are Dividend Vouchers Important?
What is it? Dividend vouchers are a document given to shareholders of a business when the company declares a dividend to be paid out. They act as evidence of payment but are also very important for those completing self-assessment tax returns. Who is it for? Private and Public companies limited by shares. How […]
Charity Tax Issues
Most charities will have to complete corporation tax returns if notified to do so by HMRC or where they have non charitable trading profits that are liable to corporation tax. Charities where all income and expenditure have been incurred for charitable purposes will not be liable to corporation tax but may still need to […]
Do I need more than one Director?
By law, every private limited company registered in the UK must have a minimum of one appointed Director that is a natural person (i.e. an individual). Public companies must have a minimum of two Directors. Most company articles contain provisions which do permit sole director decision making; but it is advisable to have another Director […]
Charities and trading subsidiary companies
For charities, setting up a trading subsidiary company can prove to be a very tax efficient way of raising funds. We explore below how this works, when it can be used and how to overcome the pitfalls that might arise. How does it work? Non-primary purpose trading of a charity can be operated through […]
Employment law the US vs the UK
Some of our clients with an overseas parent company and a UK subsidiary have an extra challenge understanding employment law. For example, a US client employing UK employees needs to be aware of US and UK employment right differences. Here are some key differences. Right to an employment contract UK: all employees must be provided with […]