Tax

A Supreme Court VAT ruling issued today in favour of care home operator Balhousie Holdings sets a significant precedent for UK businesses. The ruling – the culmination of a lengthy legal battle dating back to 2015 – hinged on the process by which Balhousie, owner of Scottish-based Balhou

HMRC will not penalise Self Assessment customers for filing late online tax returns as long as they file by 28 February 2021. Taxpayers are still obliged to pay their bill by 31 January and more than 8.9 million customers have already filed their tax return. Interest will be charged from 1 February

Richard Douglas-Home looks at proposed changes to the capital gains tax regime. The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) is an independent office of the Treasury, set up in 2010 to provide advice to the government on simplifying the UK tax system. It will produce reports either on its own initiative o

Taxes on land and property could help Scotland develop a robust economy, according to a new report published today. The report – Land and property taxation in Scotland: Initial scoping of options for reform – has been written for the Scottish Land Commission by Alma Economics.

The European Commission has decided to appeal a court ruling that US tech giant Apple did not receive illegal state aid from Ireland and does not have to pay €14 billion in back taxes. The Commission concluded in 2016 that Ireland broke EU state aid rules by granting undue tax benefits to Apple

Judgment in a tax case will be handed down by the Supreme Court next Wednesday via video link. Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (Respondent) v Parry and others (Appellants) is principally about whether the pension scheme transfer by the late Mrs Rachel Staveley, an

The expected cut to stamp duty land tax (SDLT) being announced today by the Chancellor must be matched in Scotland to avoid a housing market collapse, according to property firm apropos. The firm believes that cutting the SDLT in England and Northern Ireland without a comparable reduction in land an

The Scottish Law Agents Society (SLAS) has been successful in its campaign to extend the period during which a refund of additional dwellinghouse supplement tax (ADS) may be claimed by people who have purchased a new home but are still to sell their existing one due to delays caused by the pandemic.

The Scottish Law Agents Society (SLAS) has called on Revenue Scotland to extend the period within which additional dwelling supplement tax can be reclaimed – to 24 months. SLAS raised concerns that its clients will suffer financial loss as a result of the current coronavirus pandemic wher

The Edinburgh Tax Network, in conjunction with Terra Firma Chambers, will present a two-part series of seminars on IR35. The first, on Thursday 21st November 2019, will be presented by Derek Francis and is entitled “IR35 and interposing Personal Service Companies: Where can you do it? Where wi

Families can undertake inheritance tax planning for incapacitated relatives, an expert has said in the wake of a ruling from the Court of Protection. A judge allowed the family to make tax exempt gifts on behalf of their millionaire brother, who has been in a coma for more than a decade, The Telegra

Offshore private registers detailing who owns which companies in the Channel Islands are to be made public. The move follows sustained pressure on the islands to do their part of tackle tax avoidance.

As someone who has worked in an M&A specialist law firm, I have great respect for the important role these lawyers play in advising clients involved in a transaction. It is, however, surprising that tax considerations are often overlooked in the initial stages of the deal process only to have ta

Jason Collins looks at efforts to ensure tech giants pay their taxes.HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) believes that US-based multinational businesses may have underpaid £4.6 billion of UK tax last year, up 35 per cent from £3.4bn in 2017.Figures obtained by Pinsent Masons show that HMRC w

On Monday 1 April HMRC launched a consultation regarding two changes to Private Residence Relief (PRR) which were announced in the 2018 Budget. PRR applies to the sale of a property which has been the owner’s only, or main, residence at some point during the ownership period. Max Chassels