Fraud and How to Spot It – Ten Step Guide

Major corporate frauds and collapses hit the headlines from time to time and many of these were high profile and the amounts involved quite spectacular. With the current pressures we are still facing from a slow economy, challenges associated with difficulties in renewing finance, the challenge of achieving targets, even simply paying suppliers bills and it becomes easy to see that the risk of fraud for all sizes of businesses has increased significantly.

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Making Tax Digital for VAT

Over the coming years, the government will phase in its landmark Making Tax Digital (MTD) initiative, which will see taxpayers move to a fully digital tax system. This factsheet outlines some of the key issues for businesses.

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Stamp Duty Land Tax

Who pays the tax? SDLT is payable by the purchaser in a land transaction occurring in England and Northern Ireland. For land transactions occurring in Scotland, Land & Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) applies and in Wales land transactions are chargeable to Land Transaction Tax (LTT).

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Insolvency

Facing financial difficulties can cause a great deal of stress as well as taking its toll on health and relationships. There are a number of options available, but it is important to tackle the problem as early as possible. Here we outline the options available and their implications for both personal and corporate insolvency.

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Capital Allowances

The cost of purchasing capital equipment in a business is not a revenue tax deductible expense. However tax relief is available on certain capital expenditure in the form of capital allowances. The allowances available depend on what you are purchasing. Here is an overview of the types of expenditure which qualify for capital allowances and the amounts available.

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Credit Control

Obtaining new customers is great for business, unless they fail to pay you. If you fail to check that the customer can support the amount of credit you are granting, then commencing legal action when they do not pay can be a long, drawn out and potentially costly process. If payment from the customer is not obtained and the goods or services have been provided, your cash flow is likely to be under pressure.

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Grants

Ensuring adequate finance is a fact of life if you run a business. Whether you are looking to expand, undertake a specific project or simply fund your day to day purchases, finance is essential. Obtaining finance is not always easy, especially if yours is a small business and particularly if it is a recent start-up. Borrowing may be difficult due to lack of security. A grant may be the answer.

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Managing Absence

Recent surveys indicate that the adverse impact of absence on business profitability today is significant, with thousands of man hours lost every day. Recent statistics show that an average of 4.3 days are lost each year per employee with a median cost of £522 per employee. Approximately two-thirds of working time lost to absence is accounted for by short-term absences of up to seven days.

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Preparing for your Accountant

Whether we are producing your accounts or carrying out your annual audit, being prepared for us will ensure our work is carried out smoothly and efficiently and with the minimum disruption to yourselves. You may also be able to help by preparing some of the routine schedules for us. This will mean our time can be better spent advising you on the running of your business.

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