Author: Jade Donno

Hand with iPhone

What is the job retention scheme bonus?

Posted on | by Jade Donno

Employers will be able to claim a one-off payment of £1,000 for every employee they have previously received a grant for under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), and who remains continuously employed through to the end of January 2021.

To be eligible, the employee must have received earnings in November, December and January, and must have been paid an average of at least £520 per month, and a total of at least £1,560 across the three months.

As the employer, you will be able to claim the bonus after you have filed PAYE information for January 2021, and the bonus will be paid from February 2021. More detailed guidance, including how you can claim the bonus online, will be available by the end of September.

What you need to do now 

If you intend to claim the Job Retention Bonus you must:

  • ensure all your employee records are up to date
  • accurately report employees’ details and wages on the Full Payment Submission (FPS) through the Real Time Information (RTI) reporting system
  • make sure all of your CJRS claims have been accurately submitted and you have told HMRC about any changes needed (for example if you have received too much or too little).

Reminder of changes to CJRS

From 1 August 2020 CJRS continues to provide grants for furloughed employees but no longer funds employers’ National Insurance (NI) and pension contributions. You now have to make these payments from your own resources for all employees, whether furloughed or not. HMRC guidance has been updated to reflect these changes.

Making sure your data is right

It is important that you provide the data HMRC need to process your claim. Payment of your grant may be at risk or delayed if you submit a claim that is incomplete or incorrect. HMRC may be in touch to request employee data if it’s missing from your previous claims.

National Insurance numbers

You need to provide a National Insurance number (NINO) for all employees as part of your CJRS claim. The only exception is in the very limited circumstances where an employee genuinely does not have a NINO, for example if they are under 16 years old.

If you are claiming for an employee whose NINO you do not currently know, you can check their number by searching GOV.UK for ‘Check a National Insurance Number using basic PAYE Tools’.

HMRC can no longer accept claims for fewer than 100 employees by phone where you do not have all employee NINO’s unless the employees you are claiming for genuinely do not have these.

Claimed too much in error?

If you have claimed too much for a CJRS grant and have not repaid it, you must notify HMRC and repay the money by the latest of whichever date applies below:

  • 90 days after receiving the CJRS money you’re not entitled to
  • 90 days from when circumstances changed so that you were no longer entitled to keep the CJRS grant
  • 20 October 2020 if you received CJRS money you are not entitled to or if your circumstances changed on or before 22 July.

Eat out to help out scheme

Claim Money Back Through Eat Out To Help Out Scheme

Posted on | by Jade Donno

The Government has announced details on how to claim the reimbursement for discounts given to diners with the Eat Out to Help Out Scheme.

Please talk to us if you need help with your claim and record keeping. 

Who can claim?

If you have registered your establishment for the Eat Out to Help Out Scheme and offered scheme discounts to diners on Mondays to Wednesdays between 3 and 31 August, you can:

  • claim back the discount given on food and non-alcoholic drinks
  • submit weekly claims for August until 30 September

You must make the claim ONLINE yourself. You cannot ask us to do it for you. We can help you calculate the claim if you want us to.

You must enter accurate details for all the establishments you’re claiming for before submitting your claim. If you need to amend information later your payment may be delayed.

When you can claim

You can make a claim after 7 days from the date of your registration. You can only claim for scheme discounts you offered on or after the date you registered.

What you will need

You will need the records you’ve kept for each day you have used the scheme, including the:

  • total number of diners (covers) who have used the scheme, including children
  • total amount of discount you’ve given
  • period you’re claiming for

If you are making a claim for more than one establishment, you will need to have the:

  • records for each establishment
  • overall total value of the claim for all establishments ready before you claim

How to claim

You must enter accurate details for all the establishments you’re claiming for and check your claim carefully before submitting.

If you claim too much, HMRC will not be able to correct this until 14 August.

If you claim too little, HMRC will not be able to correct this until 21 August.

You can make up to 5 claims before 30 September. You cannot claim after that.

When you sign into the service you must choose the periods that you are claiming for, from:

  • 3 to 5 August
  • 10 to 12 August
  • 17 to 19 August
  • 24 to 26 August
  • 31 August

You’ll also need to enter the total number of covers and claim value for each establishment that has offered the scheme discount.

Records you must keep

To show the link between the number of diners who got the discount and the total value of scheme discount being claimed for in each claim period, for each day, all you must keep is a record of the:

  • total number of diners who have used the scheme discount in your establishment
  • total value of all eat in food and non-alcoholic drink sold where the scheme discounts were given
  • total value of scheme discounts you’ve given and claimed for

If you are using the scheme for more than one establishment, you must keep these records for each.

HMRC may ask for your records relating to the scheme. You should keep records:

  • in a format that suits your business
  • with your other business records

Once you have claimed, you will get a claim reference number. HMRC will then check your claim is correct and pay the claim amount by BACs into the bank account you gave when you registered, within 5 working days.

Paying tax

You will still need to pay VAT based on the full amount of your customer’s bill before the scheme discount is applied. This amount needs to be reflected in the correct VAT return for the period the transaction took place.

If your point of sale system does not allow you to account for VAT accurately under this scheme, you can manually adjust your VAT account after the sale.

If you cannot include the adjustment in the period the transaction took place, you should estimate the VAT and you must account for any difference in your next VAT return.

The payment you receive will be treated as taxable income.

If you need to make a correction

If you need to correct any information given during registration or to a claim, you will need to contact HMRC. There is a dedicated helpline for this scheme: 0300 322 9429.

For further information or assistance with the claim please contact us.

See:  https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-money-back-through-the-eat-out-to-help-out-scheme?utm_source=6eff9a4f-29d6-41f3-95e0-5d2811a0f51b&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=govuk-notifications&utm_content=immediate

a Van and a car

Is your van actually a car? – The answer may surprise you.

Posted on | by Jade Donno

“Should I buy a car or a van” is a question we frequently get asked at 1 Accounts. Our recommendation is usually van. This is because you can claim back the VAT and the taxable benefit in kind is usually much less than a car (unless electric).

As the benefits of buying a van outweigh the benefits of buying a car, It is important that your van is actually classified as a van. In our opinion HMRC have been fairly “woolly” over the definition. In most cases if the vehicle is capable of transporting goods and has a 1 tonne pay load it has been treated as a van.; regardless of if there are seats behind the driver.

HMRC have a published list of what they determine to be a car or a van. You will see in some cases that the pack purchased can affect the classification:  However due to the developments in the recent Coca-cola case these classifications may come under scrutiny from HMRC.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/428510/Car_derived_Van_updateMay2015.pdf 

The coca-cola case

Coca-cola provided their employees with vehicles based on a panel van design, however these vehicles had a second row of seats behind the driver. Employees could use them for both personal and work purposes. Coca-cola argued that these vehicles were vans. HMRC said they were cars.

The first tier tribunal determined that because the vehicles were multi-purpose they couldn’t be considered a van. Therefore by default they had to fall into the ‘car’ bracket and should be taxed accordingly.

Classification

Your van could be classed as a car if:

  • It has a row of seats behind the driver
  • It has a dule purpose eg. It can carry goods and passengers

If you van has these things you will seriously need to consider if it is used as a van or a car. We believe that now it has come to light, HMRC will be looking more closely at the classifications and will be taking a much harsher approach than before.

The judgement as you can see from this link is extensive and has tax implications for both Tax and VAT.

https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/HMRC-v-Payne-Ors-Approved-Judgment-002.pdf

We recommend that you review your fleet and make the necessary adjustments now.

speech bubble "how to network remotely"

How to network when you can’t network in person

Posted on | by Jade Donno

Small to medium-sized businesses have to go the extra mile to stand out from competitors, particularly when those competitors can afford the best advertising campaigns. In the past we could compensate with networking, by attending conferences, trade fairs, or local groups. Now those options have gone, how can you compete with bigger businesses?

In many ways, the principles of virtual networking and prospecting are the same, but unlike a crowded coffee break, you have to work harder to strike up a conversation. Online you need to build up small talk, such as likes and shares, over a longer period of time.

The best place to network depends on who you need to talk to. People tend to use LinkedIn to sell professional services, but if your target market is people and businesses in your area, you should be able to find Facebook groups covering the parts of the country that you would like to sell to. Instagram and Twitter can be more difficult to network on, so we’ve focussed on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Get your profile right

Use a photo that shows your face clearly, or if you’re very shy, something innocuous. In person we all build rapport by talking to faces, whether we’re good at reading body language or not. When people interact with posts and comments, they’re building a rapport with your photo, so pick an image that you’re comfortable with as your work persona and you’ll attract the kind of people you want to work with.

You should also have a look at your profile as other people will see it and think about what it says to potential clients.

Follow any group administrator rules

When you know who you’d like to interact with and where, you can find and join as many groups as possible on LinkedIn and Facebook. The first rule for any social media platform is to make sure you follow the rules of any group you join. If a group states that you aren’t allowed to advertise your business, be careful about how your posts might appear. You could leave a bad impression if you get told off or banned by group administrators!

It’s still worth joining groups so you can see your competitors, find out what your potential clients are interested in and contact those that you’d like to work with.

Be visible

Whichever platforms you use, it’s best to post regularly. Not posting on a social media platform is worse than being a wallflower at an in-person event, because no one can see you at all virtually.

On LinkedIn and Facebook, the usual advice is that it’s better for your visibility if you write a new post on your own newsfeed, but to build relationships with potential clients, you need to be more generous. Sharing, liking and commenting on the posts of people you’d like to network with helps their visibility at the same time as introducing you to their circle.

Comment sections are a great way to network with people that you aren’t already connected with. They’re a little like small talk in the queue for refreshments, except that you don’t need to find your business cards while holding a coffee. Having had a discussion, it’s much easier to send a message to talk further.

Show them that you’re worth talking to

Since you can’t usually post traditional adverts in virtual groups, being helpful is a more subtle way of advertising your expertise. People won’t read a long explanation and you don’t want to give your expertise away for free, so a brief answer followed by “if you need more help, please contact me” is enough.

Remember to specify how they should contact you, so it’s as easy as possible for them to follow up. If they have to stop and think “did they mean email or private messaging?”, they’re less likely to follow through.

Look for mutual contacts

All of the main social media channels allow you to see friends of friends, or second connections, if those people have opted in. 15 years ago someone might have hesitated to ask a contact to introduce them to a new contact virtually, but it’s normal now that so many businesses use social media platforms for marketing and networking.

Return favours and share goodwill

Offline it can be difficult to make introductions unless the two people you think could work together are in the same room. The beauty of online networking is that it takes seconds to tag someone in a comment and say “this person could help you”. It may seem a small gesture at the time, but every little introduction is a step on the way to success for you and anyone that joins your network.

Business bounce back loan - boy on trampoline

Business Bounce Back Loans

Posted on | by Jade Donno

Business Bounce Back Loans – what are they and should you apply for one?

Since the scheme launched in May 2020 (just 3 months ago), more than 860,000 bounce back loans have been issued. This means that thousands of small businesses who are struggling due to the coronavirus have applied for and received financial help; help of which will hopefully get them through this turbulent time. So what are bounce back loans? Here is what you need to know about them including a list of questions to help you decide whether you should apply for one.

Business Bounce Back Loans

While there has been a lot of financial support being dished out due to the impact of the Coronavirus, there are small businesses that can’t access this funding quickly enough; self-employed people who don’t qualify for the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, and limited company directors who have fallen through the cracks.

For these businesses and individuals, the ones who aren’t covered by other schemes, bounce back loans are a saving grace.

So what are bounce banks loans?

Bounce back loans are 100% government-backed loans which include the following:

  • Loan amount from £2,000-£50,000 or 25% of your annual turnover (whichever is lower)
  • No interest charged in the first 12 months (the Government covers the first year)
  • No repayments needed in the first 12 months
  • After 12 months, all banks charge a fixed 2.5% interest rate/year
  • 6-year loan with no early repayment charges
  • Straightforward application and quick access to funds

Obviously, your business will always remain responsible for the repayment of the whole debt amount, but bounce back loans will provide you with significant support over the next 12 months.

Should I apply?

To help you decide whether you should apply for a bounce back loan, here are some questions for you to consider. If your answer is yes to a number of these questions then you are eligible to receive support.

  • Am I a UK-based business that has been impacted by Covid-19?
  • Was my business established before 1 March 2020?
  • Is this the only support that I am applying for (with the exception of personal support)?
  • Do I need financial help in addition to the self-employment income support grant and universal credit?
  • Do I need to repay existing finance, i.e. lenders?
  • Do I need help to pay investments or working capital for the business – including bills, running costs and wages?
  • Do I need capital immediately (within 24 hours)?

Things to note

If you would like to apply for a bounce back loan, all you have to do is contact a bank directly and fill in a short online application. You will need details of your annual turnover, your account number, the amount you wish to borrow, a copy of your tax return, and proof that your business has been negatively impacted by Covid-19.

In terms of repayments, there are no interest or repayments in the first year but after those 12 months, you will need to make 60 repayments of the amount borrowed. Unlike a personal loan, however, you won’t have fixed payments. Each month, you’ll repay 1/60th of the capital plus the interest that has accumulated that month. This means that the amount you owe will decrease over time and in turn, your repayment amount will decrease too.

If you would like to know more about the Business Bounce Back Loans book in a no-obligation free meeting TODAY!

The Donno family

Family board meetings – you still need to take minutes

Posted on | by Jade Donno

Paul and Jenni had a board meeting yesterday revolving around the cycle to work scheme and Boris Johnsons announcement regarding the new grants for Electric bikes.   Now when we say ‘board meeting’ it was actually a discussion over their ‘Avo’ on toast. The vote was a very formal “that sounds like a good idea” and the minutes were as follows:

1 Accounts Online Ltd

Meeting of the board of Directors

Kitchen of the Directors in Haverhill Suffolk – 7:45am

Present:

Paul Donno

Jenni Donno – Chairperson and PSC

Apologies:

Paul Donno – for not getting the toast quite right!

Minutes of last meeting

JD required an amendment to the last meetings minutes in so far as she didn’t say that PD could have more time off to play golf.  It was agreed that PD could play golf three times a month and not a week as per the minutes.  JD also said that she would write the minutes in future.

It was resolved

PD having read the Times’ article that Boris Johnson is going to give a grant for an electric bike, PD suggested that it would be a good idea to look at the Cycle to work scheme. He then suggested for JD to get an electric bike so that the board of 1 Accounts could stay fit and work out together.  PD advised that then they could cycle to their local café for tea and cake for their next board meeting and claim subsistence.

JD felt that this was a good idea and asked PD to look into the scheme and find her a bike suitable to get to the café.

AOB

PD thought that as JD is only fulfilling her statutory duties as part of the Furlough rules, tea making is not illegal and should be actively encouraged.  After much debate PD agreed to make his own tea.

There being no other business the meeting was closed

Jenni Donno

Chairperson

Cyclist - The cycle to work scheme

Is the new electric bike grant right for your business?

Posted on | by Jade Donno

Boris Johnson announces grants for Electric Bikes, but are they a good idea for small business owners?

Bikes (including E-bikes) costing over £1000 will now be included in the Governments ‘Cycle to Work’ scheme. If any of your team members are keen to cycle to work, this is a great opportunity for your business to get involved.

GCI founder Rob Howes said in the Forbes article ‘E-Bikes And Other £1,000+ Bicycles Added To U.K. Government’s Money Saving ‘Cycle To Work’ Scheme’ :

We think the electric bike has an enormous part to play and making it possible to get one using the popular Cycle to Work scheme is a step in the right direction by the Government. We have multiple clients who have given up their cars and swapped to e-bikes, and we have helped lots of people who now have a cargo bike instead of a second bike

Rob Howes

ELECTRIC BIKES

Many cyclists will say that the electric bike is not for the ‘true cyclist’. However for the people who can’t keep up, need a little push up the hills or just don’t want to be sweaty when they arrive at work the electric bike is perfect and keeps cycling inclusive for all abilities.

There is also a myth that electric bikes are heavy, ugly things with wires hanging off the frame linking to a large battery that you have to get your legs around. This is not the case. Paul visited our local bike shop Aerocycles  and he was amazed at how good the electric bikes looked. They are definitely worth checking out.

Electric Bike

WHAT IS THE CYCLE TO WORK SCHEME?

The Governments Green Transport plan aims to reduce pollution, promote healthier lifestyles and makes cycling to work cost effective. All companies in the UK qualify for the scheme (providing they are UK tax payers). Earnings must remain above the level of national minimum wage after the salary sacrifice has been deducted. Unfortunately sole traders do not qualify for the scheme. The scheme gives employees a tax exemption. The savings are typically about 25-39%. You can implement this as a ‘salary sacrifice’ or as a ‘company perk’.

The added health and environmental benefits of cycling to work are huge. We would definitely recommend this scheme to get you and your work force cycling.

For more detailed information please look at Cyclescheme.co.uk https://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/get-a-bike/how-it-works

If you have a bike already don’t forget the £50 voucher to get your bike back on the road. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-53558629

Happy Cycling

How to deal with nit-picking clients

How to deal with nit-picking clients who are asking for a discount

Posted on | by Jade Donno

Are you finding that some of your clients, some who have previously been good clients, have suddenly become quite fussy? Maybe they have been getting obsessed with the tiniest of mistakes when previously they would have just breezed over it, or maybe they are finding new issues that have never come up before. Whatever problems that are arising, here is how to deal with nit-picking clients, especially if they are asking for a discount.
Why postet note

The global pandemic has caused a considerable amount of stress. Some obvious, such as financial and health problems, and some not so obvious, emotions that can bubble and brew under the surface affecting our daily lives without us even realising.

As you can imagine, the net result of 3-4 months of anxiety and stress is starting to take its toll and people are trying to take control of what they can to ease some of that pressure.

Finances is a big one. Many people are worrying whether their businesses will bounce back, whether they’ll have a job to go back to, and their financial future, and to try and take control of this, many are now looking for that discount where they can. They are looking to shed overheads and for any opportunity to lighten the pressure of such a tight cashflow.

If you have clients who are asking for discounts, who are highlighting mistakes that you’ve made or who are trying to get more out of you, here are 3 things that you should do:

  1. Apologise – if you’ve made a mistake, acknowledge it. Put your hand up and own it and reassure them that you are investigating how it happened as well as putting in the necessary measures to prevent it from happening again.
  2. Offer additional value – don’t offer a physical discount, unless you’ve made a mistake that is of great magnitude. Always look to offer extra value instead. Is there any other way that you can help your client? Is there an add-on or service that doesn’t require too much from you that you can offer to the client for the same price?
  3. Listen and empathise – with how stressful it’s been, everyone is having a difficult time in their own way and they just want someone who can empathise and acknowledge this. If you can show them that you care and maybe even help them to see that this small mistake or issue they see is causing no material loss to them overall, that might be all they need.

Discount

It’s a difficult situation to be in, to have clients asking for discounts, but be strong. You are providing a service and you deserve to be paid for that service. It might only take an apology or for you to show your client that you want to help them in other ways.

If you start offering discounts, you will start training your clients to ask for discounts every time they see a mistake or if they’re not completely satisfied. Appeasing them now will only cause further issues for you down the line, so offer additional value and listen to their worries. They’ll soon start to value what you’re doing for them and you’ll be remembered for it when you need it most.

laptop and phone

Returning to work post-covid19: how do you assess your office needs?

Posted on | by Jade Donno

In the short-term, it seems likely that many of us will remain working from home even after government orders to do so are lifted. Why? Because businesses have either found that remote working seems to be working favourably for them or they don’t know how to return to work safely. To answer the three most frequently asked questions from business owners today, here’s a quick guide to help.

Man on laptop - what are my options?

As businesses are slowly given the green light to return to work, business owners have a few options in front of them for how to move forward. Research shows that organisations have favoured one of these three below:

  1. Continue to work remotely and sublet their office space – don’t forget to check vital clauses in your rental agreement to see if this is an option for you.
  2. Using a blend of working from, team days, and hot-desking – this strategy has the benefits of both remote working and being in the office. Many businesses have been able to reduce their office space with this method.
  3. Phased approach to transition back to office work – this involves staggering the workforce where smaller groups or departments come in on alternate days until it’s safe for everyone to return.

To work out which is the best option for you, you need to consider who needs to be at the office the most. Many organisations have found that capping staff numbers off at about 30% is the social distancing sweet spot.

How much office space do I actually need

Business owners are reconsidering whether they need as much office space now that so many people are working from home. This is a smart question because miscalculations when it comes to space, even minor ones, can have a huge impact, especially when it comes to finances. Here’s some guidance to help you:

How do you calculate desk space?

As a rough estimate, you should allow 250 sq.ft. per employee. This means, for 50 employees, you will need 12,500 sq.ft. of office space. This guidance is for normal circumstances, so with the current Covid safety guidelines, you need to factor in 2 metres between each desk too.

How do you assess your office needs?

The formula above is just that, a rough estimate. This changes depending on factors such as office layout, employee density, and cost. For example, the most commonly accepted rule in London is that 100 sq.ft. per employee is the ideal amount of space per person.

To accurately assess the amount of space your business needs to thrive, you need to consider these variables:

  • How many employees you have/want to return to work in the office
  • What kind of staff you have (executive, administration, sales etc)
  • How many desks you will need (will employees need an individual desk or will you consider agile working?)
  • How much equipment you have to accommodate
  • What style of office works best for your organisation
  • Office layout and ceiling height
  • If you plan on taking on more staff in the next few years

What are the Health and Safety requirements now due to Covid?

All businesses will now need to carry out an extensive risk assessment to plan for a safe return to work post-lockdown. The purpose of this assessment is to identify the control measures that you’ll need to have in place to protect your employees and others from the risk of infection.

The main areas you need to consider are:

  • Offices and workspaces – these need to be set up to support social distancing (e.g. layout changes where desks are arranged with the minimum separation between them, appropriate signage and floor markings to denote safe distances etc).
  • Employee safety – as well as establishing maximum occupancy limits, work patterns and procedures will need to be changed to facilitate effective infection prevention. Employees will also need to be supplied with the appropriate PPE such as face masks and screen separators.
Defer your payment on account

Defer Your Self-assessment Payment On Account

Posted on | by Jade Donno

Choose how and when you can delay making your second payment on account for the 2019 to 2020 tax year.

You have the option to defer your second payment on account if you are:

  • registered in the UK for Self-Assessment and
  • finding it difficult to make your second payment on account by 31 July 2020 due to the impact of coronavirus

You can still make the payment by 31 July 2020 as normal if you are able to do so.

The June 2020 Self-Assessment statements showed 31 January 2021 as the due date for paying the July 2020 Payment on Account. This is because HMRC updated their IT systems to prevent customers incurring late payment interest on any July 2020 Payment on Account paid between 1st August 2020 and 31 January 2021. The deferment has not been applied for all customers by HMRC and it remains optional.

HMRC will not charge interest or penalties on any amount of the deferred payment on account, provided it’s paid on or before 31 January 2021.

See: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/defer-your-self-assessment-payment-on-account-due-to-coronavirus-covid-19?utm_source=5d97ee4d-9a24-4553-9a8e-56287f4de9f3&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=govuk-notifications&utm_content=immediate