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Christmas crackers
Welcome to the silly season. This is the busiest time of year for many of the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) where IFA members are usually to be found; while some of you are focussed on your busiest sales period of the year, some of you are focused on your busiest service period.
So this month the IFA e-newsletter aims to relieve you of at least some of the many burdens you face. As you will see below, the main news section will help you to appreciate the implications of the Finance Bill 2011; the institute has introduced a collection of new online courses to help you stay on top of CPD; Belmont International is offering more members the chance to benefit from its Professional Indemnity Insurance; there has been an exciting development between the IFA and the Forum of Private Business.
After signing a joint memorandum of understanding on 15 February 2011 at the House of Commons, we will be working more closely together, in a partnership that will be good for the IFA, the Forum, their many members, and SMEs. ‘The UK has entered a new era in which small businesses are expected to work smarter when it comes to financial management,’ comments Phil Orford, chief executive of the Forum, ‘and this is a step forward in the process of providing the support, protection and reassurance small businesses need to drive private sector growth.’
You can look forward to learning more about this, and the many associated benefits and joint initiatives, during 2012. Meanwhile, I’d like to wish you all a very merry Christmas, and a happy New Year.
David Woodgate
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| In the news |
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| BUSINESSES DIVIDED ON HOW TO DEAL WITH VAT INCREASE Businesses are split about how to deal with the increase in VAT scheduled for January next year, according to research by the ICAEW. more |
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| FINANCE BILL 2011 Bank levy rate goes up in 2012 The bank levy tax, which will be applied to any UK banking group, building society group, a foreign banking group, or a relevant non-banking group, is to increase from 0.05% to 0.075% in 2012, according to the Treasury’s draft Finance Bill. more |
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| FINANCE BILL 2011 Anti-avoidance rules simplified As part of the draft legislation published within the 2011 Finance Bill, the Treasury is proposing to simplify anti-avoidance rules which apply to the computation of corporate capital gains and losses. more |
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| FINANCE BILL 2011 HMRC data gathering changes The government said there would be legislation in the Finance Bill 2011 to modernise the information powers of HM Revenue & Customs to update powers used by the tax authority to gather specific pieces of information about a group of taxpayers, for use in risk analysis. more |
| | FINANCE BILL 2011 Changes to CFC rules The government announced interim improvements in the Finance Bill 2011 to controlled foreign company (CFC) rules as a first step to making them more competitive ahead of full reform in 2012. more |
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| SUBSCRIPTION BUSINESSES FACE VAT HIT Smith & Williamson is warning that membership clubs and subscription businesses could be facing an extra VAT bill from next year as a result of proposed changes to the rules about the supply of printed material by a third party. more |
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| HMRC CONSULTS ON REAL-TIME PAYE HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has launched the second stage of its consultation on plans to move to a real-time PAYE system. more |
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| CHARITY WARNS OF END-OF-YEAR CHRISTMAS STRESS Christmas is the ‘toughest time of the year’ for many accountants with some struggling to cope with the pressures that the end of year brings, the Chartered Accountants’ Benevolent Association (CABA) has warned. more |
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| MORE FOR MEMBERS IN 2011 The expanded range of IFA benefits will include: additional technical updates, joint initiatives with the Forum of Private Business, more branch networking opportunities, plus specialist support for members in commerce, industry and practice. Learn more here. |
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| NEW ONLINE CPD COURSES A number of new courses have been added to the IFA online course portfolio. These include: Assessing going concern, Buying a business, Financial management in turbulent times, Innovation skills for accountants, Selling a business – and more. So visit here and see what’s on offer. |
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PII FOR PRACTISING MEMBERS In recognition of the exemplary cover and service it provides, Belmont International has been selected by the IFA as its preferred provider of Professional Indemnity Insurance. Members can learn
more here. |
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| IFA LEADS ON FRSME The Financial Reporting Standard for Medium-sized Entities (FRSME) proposed from 2013 is already reflected in the IFA professional qualification and the Diploma in IFRS for Business (SME). Learn more here. |
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IFA PRIVILEGES IFA Privileges has negotiated a selection of money saving discounts to help you through the festive season. One of these is Cashback Gift Cards – an exciting way of making the most of your money. You can save when shopping on the High Street and in many cases online, earning between 5% and 15% cashback on retailers including M&S, ASDA, Sainsbury, Amazon, Comet and many more.
To access this benefit and to explore all the other offers you can receive at IFA Privileges visit here. |
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