Company Directors salary (updated for 2016-17)
26 May 2015
The new tax year started on 6 April and with it came a rise in personal tax-free allowances and National Insurance (NI) limits. How do these and other factors affect the level of company directors salary? View image | gettyimages.com Company Directors salary If you’re a major shareholder of a private company it’s usually a […]
Badges of Trade
22 May 2015
Do I have to pay tax on my hobby? If you run a business from home the likelihood is that you will have to pay tax on profits. Not all activities related to buying and selling are recognised as trading by HMRC. To establish whether a person is carrying on a trade you need to […]
Pre-registration input VAT
12 May 2015
Input VAT is the VAT you pay on purchases of good and services. Once a business is registered for VAT, this input VAT can be reclaimed as long as it relates to taxable supplies. Under specific circumstances pre-registration input VAT can be reclaimed. View image | gettyimages.com Reclaim pre-registration input VAT Goods In most cases […]
Start up VAT registration
12 May 2015
Cut your start up costs The timing of start up VAT registration can help you to cut costs at the most vulnerable time for your business. Most start ups find that it can take a while before they are receiving income. Rather than wait for sales before registering for VAT, you can register from the date […]
Childcare vouchers
5 May 2015
As one door opens another closes A new tax-free childcare voucher scheme will start in Autumn 2015. When this happens the current scheme for employees will close to new entrants, but still remain in place for existing employees. If you are an employee, you will need to think about signing up now if the existing […]
Accounts for Artists
3 May 2015
Tax breaks for artists Douglas Connell, a tax lawyer at Turcan Connell and chairman of Museums and Galleries Scotland has proposed preferential treatment in preparing tax accounts for artists. His view is that tax breaks for artists would enrich Scotland’s cultural life. He would like to see Irish-style tax breaks for “players in orchestras, craft […]
Marriage Allowance 2015
12 April 2015
HMRC announced in February 2015 that registration had opened for the new marriage allowance tax break which enables couples to save the princely sum of up to £17.66 a month (£212 a year). View image | gettyimages.com Marriage Allowance not just for the married The new tax relief, which came into effect on 6 April […]
Top Rated Accountant in Scotland
12 April 2015
Tim Alter is the only top rated accountant in Scotland According to the 2015 VouchedFor listings, Tim Alter is the only Top Rated Accountant in Scotland! Alterledger’s founder, Tim Alter is focused on customer service, and is delighted to have positive feedback from clients. How VouchedFor works The VouchedFor website is like a tripadvisor […]
National Insurance for under 21s
18 March 2015
April 2015 changes to National Insurance From 6th April 2015 employers will no longer have to pay National Insurance for under 21s. To take advantage of this change, you will need to make sure your payroll software is up to date, but you will also need to use one of the new National Insurance category […]
Class 2 NI small profits threshold
25 February 2015
Changes to Class 2 National Insurance from April 2015 The self employed have to pay Class 2 National Insurance if their profits are over the small earnings limit (£5,885 in 2014-15). HMRC has overhauled the system with the small earnings limit being renamed the Class 2 NI small profits threshold (SPT). Until recently self employed workers had to […]
Relaxed PAYE late filing penalties
24 February 2015
HMRC will not impose PAYE filing penalties for short delays All UK employers are required to report wage payments as Real Time Information (RTI) to HMRC. Until now this has meant that you need to submit your payroll information to HMRC on or before the date you pay your employees. However HMRC announced that they have relaxed PAYE […]
Auto enrolment categories of workers
22 February 2015
Who is entitled to a pension? The three auto enrolment categories of workers are defined by their age and earnings. Each category is explained in the table below. Workers must be assessed each pay reference period (pay day) and anyone moving from one category to another must be dealt with according to the regulations. Entitled […]
Auto enrolment minimum contributions
18 February 2015
Employer and employee contributions From an employer’s staging date, they are required to provide a pension scheme and monitor the pay of workers according to thresholds set by legislation. View image | gettyimages.com Employer contributions of 1%, rising to 3% must be paid into a pension scheme on earnings between the lower level of qualifying […]
Auto Enrolment Multiple Postponement
18 February 2015
Can an employer postpone automatic enrolment duties on multiple occasions in relation to the same worker? Postponement is described as ‘postponement of automatic enrolment’ and sometimes referred to as a ‘waiting period’. Essentially it means the postponement of the assessment of the worker and therefore a postponement of whichever employer duty may apply, depending on […]
SASEN Conference 2015
17 February 2015
South Ayrshire Social Enterprise Network (SASEN) The SASEN Conference 2015 is taking place at the Carrick Centre in Maybole on 27th February. It is free to attend for social enterprises by signing up at the Firstport website. SASEN Conference 2015 Workshops Alterledger is joining other social enterprise specialists in holding workshops on various topics to help […]
Know your staging date
16 February 2015
What is a staging date? Your staging date is the date your automatic enrolment duties come into effect. You must be prepared for this date, at which point you are obliged to have a suitable pension scheme in place. The law on the new employer duties and safeguards commenced in July 2012. Each employer is […]
Executive Income Protection
15 February 2015
Who pays the piper? For those individuals working for large organisations benefits such as death in service cover and long term sick pay are taken for granted. As a business owner what are the consequences if you are unable to work? Whilst an employee may have 6 months full pay and 6 months half pay, […]
What does my tax code mean?
7 February 2015
Why does my tax code change? HMRC reviews your tax code, often in the autumn and early in the new year, for many people this prompts the question “What does my tax code mean?”. The purpose of your tax code is to indicate how much of your earnings you can receive before tax is payable. It […]
Sage Final Accounts Online
18 December 2014
Major upgrade to Sage One Accounts Sage has been a leader in the market for desktop accounting packages to Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) for some time, but it has been slow in catching up with other online accounting packages. What has changed? Enhanced subscriptions have been added over time, including the Accounts Extra […]
Class 2 National Insurance Contributions
13 December 2014
Changes to Class 2 National Insurance payments If you currently pay your Class 2 National Insurance Contributions by Direct Debit Instruction (DDI) or have recently applied to do so, things are about to change! The Government announced plans to simplify the way self-employed people pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions from April 2015. Most self-employed people will […]
Orchestra Tax Relief
4 December 2014
Creative Industries Tax Relief The autumn statement from George Osborne announced a consultation on whether or not to extend Creative Industries tax relief and introduce an Orchestra Tax Relief. See below for the existing creative industry relief arrangements. Who can get the Orchestra Tax Relief? The Orchestra Tax Relief in common with the other […]
Tax and accounts seminar for musicians
7 November 2014
Free tax and accounts seminar for Musicians’ Union members Members of the Musicians Union are invited to a free seminar in Glasgow on 17th November or Edinburgh on 18th November. See below for booking forms on Eventbrite. Proposed tax breaks for musicians The Smith Commission, headed by Lord Smith of Kelvin is considering a proposal […]
Move from quickbooks to Xero
5 November 2014
Move to Xero for free! There are plenty of good reasons to consider using Xero for your accounting software. Now you have an extra reason to change before 31st December 2014. If you are currently using quickbooks and would like to upgrade to an international cloud accounting system, you can take advantage of a free service to […]
Changes for Scottish charity reporting
28 October 2014
To maintain public confidence in the work of charities, charity law requires most charities (income over £10,000) to have an external scrutiny of their accounts.
Tax breaks for artists and musicians?
9 October 2014
Should there be extra tax breaks for artists and musicians? The Republic of Ireland has had special tax breaks for artists since 1979. Lord Smith of Kelvin will oversee the process of devolving additional powers over tax, spending and welfare to Scotland following the ‘No’ vote in the country’s independence referendum. Douglas Connell, a tax […]
Alterledger is a Xero Partner
17 September 2014
Alterledger is proud to be a Xero Partner Xero has created beautiful accounting software (yes really!) and works in partnership with accountants across the globe. Alterledger is Xero Partner and is pleased to be able to announce that Xero will be coming along to the Creative Industries Networking for Business event on 19th September. If you […]
Creative Networking – Premium Tickets
17 September 2014
Premium tickets released for Creative Networking Event Free tickets are still available for the Creative Industries Networking for Business event on 19th September. If you would like a little extra and a £100 voucher for Alterledger, premium tickets are now available. Online Ticketing for Creative Industries Networking for Business powered by Eventbrite Terms for Premium […]
Free networking for creatives – early bird offer
14 September 2014
Free networking event for creatives in Soho If you want to meet some like-minded people for free networking and get some free advice on setting up and running your business, sign up on Eventbrite! Online Ticketing for Creative Industries Networking for Business powered by Eventbrite It is happening on Friday 19th September from 6pm in […]
Guide for start-ups part 2
10 September 2014
How does my start-up get clients? You’ve set up your business and made decisions about forming a limited company, you are ready to trade, but how do you get clients for your start-up? Hopefully you already had some contacts before you started your business, but whatever your situation it is always good to expand your network. […]
Guide for start-ups part 1
9 September 2014
Should my start-up be a company? You’ve got a great idea, you’ve thought of a name for your business, but you are not sure whether or not you should set up a company. You will hear from lots of people in your industry that they have set up a limited company, but is this right for […]
