Tax investigations - you are at risk!

As you may know the Inland Revenue and HM Customs and Excise have now joined forces. They are now known as HM Revenue & Customs.

This means they have even more power than before and access to each others database of information. I've attached an article from The Times about the bonuses paid to tax inspectors which may interest you.

This also means by their own admission that the number of tax investigations will be increased in the future. The average investigation costs around £3,000 in accountancy fees so we are anxious you should be covered if you were investigated.

Please follow the link below to download an application form for you to sign and send off for tax investigation insurance if you wish to join the scheme. The cover is dated to start 1 November 2007 and will cover you for any Inland Revenue investigation which opens during the year afterwards.

Please send the form with a cheque for £80 to: -

Icon Insurance.Plantation Place.30 Fenchurch Street.London. EC3M 3BD
Please make the cheque out to ICON INSURANCE.

I make no commission from this by the way - I just want you to be protected. And if you read the small print you are supposed to pay the first £250 of each claim but I will do the first £250 of work of any tax investigation for FREE if you sign up to this policy!

Just let me know when you have signed up and posted the form and cheque.

If you do not wish to join this scheme please reply and confirm this for my records.

If you are investigated at a later date we will ask for £1,000 up front as a working deposit and then bill you as the investigation progresses. We also may employ the services of investigation specialists who can charge up to £250 per hour for their time.

Please follow the links below to download the application form and article:-

Click here http://217.145.114.66/TaxSorted/Documents/0TaxSorted/Admin/Proff%20memberships%20and%20subscriptions/ICPA/Tax%20investigation%20insurance%20scheme/Tax%20investigation%20protection%20application%20form.pdf to download the application form.

Click here to read the Times article http://217.145.114.66/TaxSorted/Documents/0TaxSorted/Admin/Proff%20memberships%20and%20subscriptions/ICPA/Tax%20investigation%20insurance%20scheme/The%20Times%20article%20on%20tax%20inspectors%20bonus.pdf Times article on tax inspectors bonus.pdf

Don't wait too long - you could be next!

Business Tax Tip – Here’s a clever (and risky!) idea if you pay a lot of income tax

Invest £50,000 in a “Venture Capital Trust” – assuming you have paid enough tax, you will be able to claim 30% tax relief on the £50K.

Wait five years and make a contribution to your personal pension fund equal to the market value of the VCT investment at the time (let’s say it is still the same, at £50K). You will get tax relief at 40% on this. The fund uses the £50K to buy the VCT investment from you.

Your pension fund now has an investment worth £50K, and the cost to you has been:

Investment in VCT = £50K
Tax relief on VCT = (£15K)
Tax relief on pension = (£20K)
Net cost to you = £15K

FREE cash from the government!

There have been some recent changes relating to tax credits and quite surprisingly you are able to make a claim with an income of up to £60,000!

There are also tax planning opportunities to "manipulate" your income (legally of course!) to make a tax credit claim. And if your income doesn't increase by more than £25,000 the following year the claim still stands based on the previous years claim.

I know of some clients who are claiming around £1,000 each month so why don't you take stock and see if you are eligible to claim. Just contact me shaun@tax-sorted.biz and I will run some calculations for you to see if you can get some free cash from the government.

Most accountants are steering well clear of getting involved with tax credits but I feel it is my duty to help you claim what is rightfully yours.
Go on - what are you waiting for?

Its been too long!

Hello!

I have realised I have been neglecting this blog. I have made a resolution to add something weekly from now on. I see so many people doing the same as myself - starting then stuttering to a halt.

So watch this space and there will be more stuff appearing soon.