- My Bookkeeping Online

Contactless Cards – Good for retailers and consumers

07/01/11 (1:51 p.m.)

Contactless cards are here to stay. Recent reports suggest that 12m were in issue by the end of last year, primarily marketed by Barclaycard.

So what are contactless cards? If the scheme...

Change in the VAT treatment of entertainment of overseas customers

07/12/10 (2:19 p.m.)

Finally a bit of assistance from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) on entertaining expenditure!

Everyone is aware of (and frustrated by) the fact that HMRC offers no support in the cost of entertaining customers. Well I am delighted to say that this HMRC policy is set to change – not through any change of heart, but because the EU is forcing a change of approach....

5 Tips for simple bookkeeping

17/08/10 (11:57 a.m.)

Running your own business is challenging enough, without the bookkeeping getting in the way. Believe it or not, bookkeeping does not need to be the stressful; challenging nightmare that it is often perceived to be. Here are my 5 top tips:

Get your VAT registration online now!

04/07/10 (9:12 a.m.)

If you have a VAT registered businesses with an annual sales of more than £100,000 (net of VAT), or you registered your business for VAT after 1 April 2010, new legislation now requires that the business files its VAT returns online, and pays its VAT electronically.

Such VAT registered businesses must now file their VAT returns online by 7^th day of the second month after the end of the period, or face fines

Limited Company or Limited Liability Partnership (“LLP”)?

26/06/10 (9:22 a.m.)

Conventional thinking is to use a Limited Company, and it will suit the vast majority of circumstances well.

The benefit of an LLP is that it allows much more flexibility in the allocation of profits. If you are in business with others, or you imagine offering a profit share to staff, it might suit your circumstances better, because adjusting the profits share in an LLP is far simpler than adjusting the share capital percentages in a Limited Company.

This is a brief introduction of how the two legal entities work.

Identity thieves turning to corporate fraud

29/05/10 (11:51 a.m.)

There is a slightly worrying article in today’s Weekend FT about identity thieves turning their attentions to companies, and cloning the identities of entire businesses.

The way they are doing this is by submitting paper documents to Companies House changing the name of the registered office and company director details. Companies House does not verify the validity of every paper item it receives.

There is a very simple way of dealing with this risk.

PAYE Annual Return - Deadline Extension

24/05/10 (12:18 p.m.)

Well well well. HM Revenue & Customs (or maybe it is the new government?) has a heart after all. Who knew?

If your business employs staff, it had to submit its 2009-10 PAYE Annual Return by 19 May 2010. The deadline has obviously passed however, HM Revenue & Customs has confirmed that the deadline has been extended by a week,

Categories:Financial

Crowd funding

22/05/10 (6:07 p.m.)

Crowd funding is a great idea in principal – rather than raising £100,000 by getting a small number of business angels to invest, get your mates, family, their friends and anyone else who is up for it to put in a much smaller amount. 5 business angels could put in £20,000, or 50 people could put in £2,000.

In times where finding investment is tough, the benefits of crowd funding are obvious:

Categories:Financial

Are Capital Gains Tax rules about to change (again)?

17/05/10 (7:10 p.m.)

The weekend papers were full of gossip about plans being made by the new Government to change the Capital Gains Tax rules, and I am not surprised that changes are planned. I have never been a fan of the 18% “one size fits all” rate – it was open to creative tax planning, and didn’t fully reward hard working business owners who have spent years grafting, employing and paying taxes.

Under the previous rules, introduced when Gordon Brown was Chancellor,

Categories:Financial

Registering for VAT with sales under the £70,000 threshold

05/05/10 (7 a.m.)

There is a lot of talk online about the rate of VAT being raised to 20% after the General Election.

If the VAT rate does rise, businesses with turnover of below £70,000 may be more minded to register for VAT, and here, broadly, is why:

PAYE Changes

20/04/10 (4:25 p.m.)

We have seen many new taxes come in under the radar over the last few years, but for me, this is probably the most badly thought out, badly communicated of the lot. And once again, it is being left well intentioned individuals (such as me) to communicate the bad news.

If you employ staff, you will be familiar with the need to pay PAYE and NI contributions over to HM Revenue & Customs on a monthly or quarterly basis, by the 19^th of the month following.

Categories:Financial, Industry News, Small Business Help
Tags:PAYE, industry

Budget 2010 – Nothing if you run your business from home

26/03/10 (7 a.m.)

This years budget is incredibly frustrating. All the politicians go on about helping small businesses, and then in the next breath, talk about tax breaks for businesses with 10 staff!

Politicians and, unfortunately, most commentators have little concept of what a small business is.

In the real world, small businesses are one or two man bands that run their businesses from home, the little shops, restaurants, the IT contractors, freelancers & consultants, chiropractors, doctors, and so on, some of whommight employ 1-5 people.

Sian Williams tells HMRC she'd read News Naked

23/03/10 (7 a.m.)

Last week, Sian Williams said she would read the breakfast news naked because HMRC would not allow her to claim her clothing costs as a business expense.

As there seems to be much misunderstanding about what constitutes a business expense, I have set out below the general rules that apply to the vast majority of circumstances. Hopefully this will help Sian, and other frustrated tax payers /naturalists, avoid future accountancy and legal costs!

Purchase Invoice Management – The Four Step System

19/03/10 (6 a.m.)

Trying to manage the amount you owe suppliers using any bookkeeping software, including Excel, is tricky. What commonly happens is that mistakes are made and then, more time is spent correcting errors than on the bookkeeping itself! I have come to the conclusion that the most efficient solution for small business owners remains a simple paper filing system.

Organise the papers as described in this “The 4-step system” and you will always...

Catch up on your Bookkeeping - get Back Dating!

16/03/10 (10 a.m.)

Small businesses, the chances are that your business year-end is approaching, or has just passed and you are once again worrying about pulling together the information that your accountant needs to do the year-end accounts? Am I right? You can make your life easier, a lot easier, using My Bookkeeping Online.

The benefits are...

VAT Rate Change - The Essential Guide

01/12/09 (5:56 p.m.)

The essential guide covers everything you need to know about the VAT rate change this December.

VAT Rate Change

17/11/09 (1:23 p.m.)

It has been announced, our thoughtful Government are changing the VAT rates again. An impulsive decision made a year ago with little thought for the administration burden on small businesses.

Now, of course, they are going to change it back again and have finally settled on the 1 January as the date to do it.

Categories:Bookkeeping, Financial, Small Business Help
Tags:VAT, rate

Accountant Relationships

09/11/09 (12:47 p.m.)

It is sad to say, but many small businesses have a stressful relationship with their accountants. Looking at the bald facts, it is perhaps not hard to see why...

Steps to Setting up a Business at Home: Commercial

26/10/09 (1:40 p.m.)

1. Think of a business name. If you need them, make sure that a suitable domain name is available (for emails and website). If you are struggling to find a name, think about using your own name – credibility is essential and your willingness to use your name will reassure potential customers. Alternatively, stick with the simplest explanation of your business that you can find. “My Bookkeeping Online” is a good example of this.

2. ...

Retirement Age

12/10/09 (6 a.m.)

Last week, the high court stood by the current law regarding employee rights when an employee reaches retirement age. As we know it, the law states that an employee retires at the age of 65 without further financial burden on the employer. This was challenged – the suggestion being, I think, that some sort of redundancy payment be made.

Small business owners will view the ruling with a sigh of relief.

Rewarding Key Staff with Share Options

07/10/09 (8 a.m.)

As a business owner you’ll know how important keeping and rewarded key employees is. I have found share options a great route to incentivising mine. Here’s how...

Share options are such a good, well intentioned idea. They reward and incentivise key staff by passing on shares or share options in the business. On the face of it, as a small business owner, it can be the perfect solution.

Unfortunately, the Government has made it a problematic from a legal and a tax perspective.

Tax breaks if your Business Fails

02/10/09 (8 a.m.)

Not a cheery topic I am afraid to say - but one worth of attention.

This is mainly because it limits the downside risk for the investors in your business. In addition, as owner manager, you are eligible for the tax break too.

It is not widely known about and my guess is that 1,000s of small business fail without full advantage being taken.

Categories:Financial, Small Business Help
Tags:tax, breaks, business, fail

Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS)

24/09/09 (10:35 a.m.)

Start-ups are you looking into angel investment as a finance option? You need to ensure you’re EIS compliant...

If you are raising capital for a start-up business and you plan to use angel investment, the investors will probably want to know whether the business will be EIS compliant. The EIS is a government backed scheme that gives tax breaks to investors. The benefits of investing in an EIS compliant business are principally two-fold...

Employees Verses Contractors

21/09/09 (9 a.m.)

Fortunately there are some very good employers out there – people who thrive on building teams and getting the most out of their staff.

For me – I know I am not the best employer. It is not that I am rude or offensive – very much the opposite I would hope. It is that I, like many entrepreneurs, am very absorbed in what I am doing – thus for me the business comes first, and that means everything else second.

Changing and Adapting to Market Conditions

21/08/09 (3:46 p.m.)

As I’ve mentioned before – my first break into entrepreneurial freedom was back in the 90s, via the purchase of a pub with my brother. For the first five years, the pub was packed full.

During that time, the local area was swarming with single 20-30 year-olds looking for a good time on Friday and Saturday nights and we gave it to them. The cash was piling in and we thought we had made it. That was until we got broadsided by a fundamental change in the market conditions. Property prices were rising rapidly, resulting in our target market being forced to look to other, cheaper areas of London to live in. As a result the size of the market we were competing for reduced dramatically and competition became fierce.

To Incorporate or Not to Incorporate

20/08/09 (3:27 p.m.)

Five years ago, it was a no brainer at almost any level. But as the current climate has changed so has the answer... The tax system was such that incorporating simply put cash in your pocket because you paid less tax. However over the last three years Gordon and his merry men have tweaked the system. These days - savings can still be made but by the time you have paid extra costs to your accountant and dealt with the excess administration, there’s no financial gain in choosing this option. Read more to find out my pros and cons.

Categories:Financial, Small Business Help
Tags:incorporating

Top Rated Articles

My Bookkeeping Online Blog

By Tim Haggard

Posts in category Financial:

Contactless Cards – Good for retailers and consumers

Change in the VAT treatment of entertainment of overseas customers

5 Tips for simple bookkeeping

Get your VAT registration online now!

Limited Company or Limited Liability Partnership (“LLP”)?

Identity thieves turning to corporate fraud

PAYE Annual Return - Deadline Extension

Crowd funding

Are Capital Gains Tax rules about to change (again)?

Registering for VAT with sales under the £70,000 threshold

PAYE Changes

Budget 2010 – Nothing if you run your business from home

Sian Williams tells HMRC she'd read News Naked

Purchase Invoice Management – The Four Step System

Catch up on your Bookkeeping - get Back Dating!

VAT Rate Change - The Essential Guide

VAT Rate Change

Accountant Relationships

Steps to Setting up a Business at Home: Commercial

Retirement Age

Rewarding Key Staff with Share Options

Tax breaks if your Business Fails

Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS)

Employees Verses Contractors

Changing and Adapting to Market Conditions

To Incorporate or Not to Incorporate