Why have accountants slipped into emotion in describing a tax proposal as 'nonsensical'?
There are examples of tax rate deduction, where the tax take increased in total. Tinkering with the 45% rate may have had a positive impact. Similarly a Corporation Tax rate of 25% sounds counterintuitively to be regressive. Finally the 40% threshold is impacting me personally and my actions and my proposals to clients.
We're regulated by pathetic bits of paper, whilst today opinions are bandied about as accounting theory.
A most bizarre approach to customer demand. Let them have what you want them to have instead. Harra should do a spell of work in hospitality or supermarket retail. That would show him how to encourage demand in your direction, rather than simply block it.
On a specific accountants note, surely the reason we phone in is because we have a specific nuanced query that is not answered by online interaction.
Back to hospitality. Harra will be the first type to resort to a condescending Trip Advisor review when his meal is 5 minutes late to the table.
From something like a three day application to issue of vat number turnaround, it now takes weeks. It beats me why HMRC don't let the applicant in with a low hurdle, and check later.
Putting in a requirement for a UTR, which also takes time, just pushes Vat registration back further.
HMRC need a complete volte-face to their approach. 'What would be the best service for the taxpayer and how can we accommodate it.' I know it will never happen.
I've read this once and not a clue what its on about! Alas I also don't care.
Any attempt to forecast annual profit and tax liability in my seasonal hospitality businesses and my building contractors, just by maths will be plain wrong.
I'll just wait and see whilst another £1b of our money that could be spent on deserving people is wasted here on something so misguided its criminal.
I'll pay attention when I read a hard introduction date and the rules that align.
I can see no gain from MTD for Vat. All that has happened is that clients email me their spreadsheet, we attach on the bridging software tab and send on. Thus charging the client +£25 for nothing.
Unless something looks masively awry we don't check. Leave that to year end as before.
Clients that used accounts software continue to do so as before.
To suggest that businesses with income below £85k will benefit in any way from MTD is for the birds. Basically we have HMRC and the London-centric government trying to kill the multitude of small traders who enjoy ploughing their own destiny as self employed.
The timetable is irrelevant until its recognised a need to go back to base.
What is the benefit or business = none. What tax will be gained from this = none, or less
Quarterly reporting for businesses below Vat threshold is a waste of time and money. Its also irrelevant in hospitality and construction, where each quarter can vary so much from the last. To suggest that the small jobbing builder is going to waste time valuing quarterly WIP is living in fantasy.
Forcing small businesses to have a 31st march year end is wrong for businesses and wrong for the accounting profession. For us it polarises work to one point in the year - thus pushing out work completion date to the future, when with variable dates we are able to schedule a more timely completion.
These points may sound low level and trivial, but thats from where the project should have started.
Just picking up on this concept of 'forgetting things'.
If a client forgets to tell us of a purchase that's not gone through the business bank account, then sure the client will pay MORE tax. This is a not infrequent scenario. And its usually a big capital item.
The client is unlikely to forget income, as they are aware of it at the time and it will follow usual business practice.
If the client wants to back-pocket income, no system in the world will pick that up, by definition.
For most of my clients, that have seasonal businesses, quarterly reporting will be near impossible to interpret in any meaningful way.
The most reliable figure in terms of trends and activity is of course turnover, already reported in the vat return, along with headline income and headline Vat purchases. Have HMRC ever truly made use of this data, before they want businesses to imncur the cost of providing more?
I see they are sorry towards the software industry, who have their snouts in the trough of small businesses, that need nothing more than a spreadsheet. I feel so sorry for Quickbooks and hangers on that provide poor service and in my view poorly functioning software.
I was waiting to read the next line:
I'm sorry I underestimated the complexity and caused this cost overrun, so I resign forthwith and do not expect to be honoured in any way with a knighthood or Lordship.
But it wasn't forthcoming.
So, quarterly reporting and the tax take. Year begins 1st April at the beginning of the holiday season. Holiday season ends two quarters in, with a high profit level recorded. Would the business pay tax on this? And then get refunds over the winter period, when incurring heavy losses? All to get back to square one.
So sorry mate. Until you get out of London and engage with real businesses that you are trying to inflict, yes inflict, upon, you'll never get it right. These businesses pay your wages.
My answers
Why have accountants slipped into emotion in describing a tax proposal as 'nonsensical'?
There are examples of tax rate deduction, where the tax take increased in total. Tinkering with the 45% rate may have had a positive impact. Similarly a Corporation Tax rate of 25% sounds counterintuitively to be regressive. Finally the 40% threshold is impacting me personally and my actions and my proposals to clients.
We're regulated by pathetic bits of paper, whilst today opinions are bandied about as accounting theory.
A most bizarre approach to customer demand. Let them have what you want them to have instead. Harra should do a spell of work in hospitality or supermarket retail. That would show him how to encourage demand in your direction, rather than simply block it.
On a specific accountants note, surely the reason we phone in is because we have a specific nuanced query that is not answered by online interaction.
Back to hospitality. Harra will be the first type to resort to a condescending Trip Advisor review when his meal is 5 minutes late to the table.
From something like a three day application to issue of vat number turnaround, it now takes weeks. It beats me why HMRC don't let the applicant in with a low hurdle, and check later.
Putting in a requirement for a UTR, which also takes time, just pushes Vat registration back further.
HMRC need a complete volte-face to their approach. 'What would be the best service for the taxpayer and how can we accommodate it.' I know it will never happen.
I've read this once and not a clue what its on about! Alas I also don't care.
Any attempt to forecast annual profit and tax liability in my seasonal hospitality businesses and my building contractors, just by maths will be plain wrong.
I'll just wait and see whilst another £1b of our money that could be spent on deserving people is wasted here on something so misguided its criminal.
I'll pay attention when I read a hard introduction date and the rules that align.
I can see no gain from MTD for Vat. All that has happened is that clients email me their spreadsheet, we attach on the bridging software tab and send on. Thus charging the client +£25 for nothing.
Unless something looks masively awry we don't check. Leave that to year end as before.
Clients that used accounts software continue to do so as before.
To suggest that businesses with income below £85k will benefit in any way from MTD is for the birds. Basically we have HMRC and the London-centric government trying to kill the multitude of small traders who enjoy ploughing their own destiny as self employed.
The humiliation of HMRCs leadership team needs to be total.
The timetable is irrelevant until its recognised a need to go back to base.
What is the benefit or business = none. What tax will be gained from this = none, or less
Quarterly reporting for businesses below Vat threshold is a waste of time and money. Its also irrelevant in hospitality and construction, where each quarter can vary so much from the last. To suggest that the small jobbing builder is going to waste time valuing quarterly WIP is living in fantasy.
Forcing small businesses to have a 31st march year end is wrong for businesses and wrong for the accounting profession. For us it polarises work to one point in the year - thus pushing out work completion date to the future, when with variable dates we are able to schedule a more timely completion.
These points may sound low level and trivial, but thats from where the project should have started.
Just picking up on this concept of 'forgetting things'.
If a client forgets to tell us of a purchase that's not gone through the business bank account, then sure the client will pay MORE tax. This is a not infrequent scenario. And its usually a big capital item.
The client is unlikely to forget income, as they are aware of it at the time and it will follow usual business practice.
If the client wants to back-pocket income, no system in the world will pick that up, by definition.
For most of my clients, that have seasonal businesses, quarterly reporting will be near impossible to interpret in any meaningful way.
The most reliable figure in terms of trends and activity is of course turnover, already reported in the vat return, along with headline income and headline Vat purchases. Have HMRC ever truly made use of this data, before they want businesses to imncur the cost of providing more?
Damn, its got me going again.
I see they are sorry towards the software industry, who have their snouts in the trough of small businesses, that need nothing more than a spreadsheet. I feel so sorry for Quickbooks and hangers on that provide poor service and in my view poorly functioning software.
I was waiting to read the next line:
I'm sorry I underestimated the complexity and caused this cost overrun, so I resign forthwith and do not expect to be honoured in any way with a knighthood or Lordship.
But it wasn't forthcoming.
So, quarterly reporting and the tax take. Year begins 1st April at the beginning of the holiday season. Holiday season ends two quarters in, with a high profit level recorded. Would the business pay tax on this? And then get refunds over the winter period, when incurring heavy losses? All to get back to square one.
So sorry mate. Until you get out of London and engage with real businesses that you are trying to inflict, yes inflict, upon, you'll never get it right. These businesses pay your wages.