Harnett Accontants

Tag: accountants in kensington

  • Property Development: A Note From Your Accountants In Richmond

    Tax Insights

    Property Development: A Note From Your Accountants In Richmond

    As accountants in West London we understand the high prices involved in buying a new property, especially if you plan to develop it. That is why we at Harnett Accountants in Richmond have these few simple facts/tips to try and keep those tax issues at bay.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    If you purchase a property with the intention of developing it for profit it will become subject to income tax worth up to 50% rather than the usual capital gains tax of 18-28%. If you make it a habit of developing properties and selling them on the Taxman will want to view the property as a trade. This means your free capital gains tax when you sell your property will become exempt – if caught still receiving it you will be open to tax investigation. Furthermore, if your new property includes a significant amount of land (excess of half a hectare) you will be eligible for capital gains tax.

    It is also important to remember when developing a property the cost of VAT. If you are not a registered VAT builder you cannot reclaim VAT on the development costs. However there is a scheme (although a number of conditions apply) that allows DIY builders to reclaim VAT when a non-residential building is being converted into a home. Another possibility to save on VAT is if the building you are developing has been empty for at least two years you will be charged at a lower rate of 5% VAT. Once again a number of conditions apply for this.

    If you are looking at property development it is important to get advice before proceeding. Harnett Accountants in Richmond can help you with this, and don’t forget we offer a free hour no obligation consultation for all our new clients. Additionally, why not continue to follow our regular informational blogs or add us on Facebook or Twitter.

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with VAT returns and compliance?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • Our Accountants In Kensington Answer Your Tax Releated Questions

    Tax Insights

    Our Accountants In Kensington Answer Your Tax Releated Questions

    As accountants in West London we’re used to clients coming to us with their Tax related issues. Recently a client came to one of our accountants in Kensington with an enquiry about reclaiming excess tax deducted from his severance pay.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    On 15th April 2012 the client received severance pay of £80,000 equal to his annual salary; however, £23,000 had been deducted as tax. He believed that too much tax had been deducted as the first £30,000 should have remained tax free while the rest would be taxed at 20%.

    We informed him that although it was likely that the first £30,000 was tax free, since the 6th April 2011 employers are now required to apply an OT tax code on a month 1 basis to such severance payments. This means that tax is deducted at the basic (20%), higher (40%) and additional rates (50%) without the benefit of the personal allowances. The month 1 basis means only 1/12 of the basic rate and higher rate limits for the year are taken into account.

    The taxable part of his severance payment (£50,000) would have generated a tax deduction of £23,166 using an OT code as follows…

    Basic rate: 35000/12 = 2916.67 x 20% = 583.33 Higher rate: 115,000/12 = 9583.33 x 40% = 3,833.33 Additional rate: (50,000-9583.33-2916.67) x 50% = 18,750.00 Total = £23,166.66

    The client could then reclaim any excess tax charge found in the tax return for 2012/13.

    Don’t forget that Harnett Accountants in Kensington do offer a free hour no-obligation consultation for all new clients. Alternatively you can add us on Facebook, Twitter, or or continue to look out for our daily blogs.

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with accounting and tax?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • Our Accoutants In Kingston: Repayment Claims For Tax On Interest

    Tax Insights

    Our Accoutants In Kingston: Repayment Claims For Tax On Interest

    A client asked our accountants in Kingston whether she would be able to receive repayment claims for Tax on Interest. Harnett Accountants were more than happy to inform her that she may be able to claim a tax repayment from the Tax Office if her bank had deducted 20% Tax from interest paid.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    For example, If her tax-free allowance (up to £9,640 for those aged 75+) completely covers all of her income, then the full 20% tax deducted from the interest received can be reclaimed. Or she may only be due to pay 10% tax on the interest if her tax-free allowance exceeded her savings income up to £2,440.

    Where a tax repayment is due, and you don’t submit a self-assessment tax return each year, the tax due back should be claimed on the form R40. You can claim tax repayment from the past 3 years also by completing separate R40 forms. However, it is important to remember that the R40 from can only be received through paper format! Furthermore, you cannot use the R40 from if you have a taxable capital gain to report for the Tax year. If this is the case, you must register for self-assessment and complete the full self-assessment Tax return form.

    To avoid these tax repayment claims being necessary in the future, if you have a low income you can register to receive interest from banks and building societies with no tax deducted. This is done by completing the R85 form for every account held.

    Don’t forget that Harnett Accountants in West London offer a free hour no obligation consultation for all clients and you can . Additionally, you can keep reading our daily blogs

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with accounting and tax?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • Your Accountants In Richmond Explain The 2011 Stamp Duty Land Tax Change

    Tax Insights

    Your Accountants In Richmond Explain The 2011 Stamp Duty Land Tax Change

    Harnett Accountants in Richmond are here to tell you that the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) has now been in effect for almost a year! As Accountants in West London we often hear mumbles through the street and from our clients on their misunderstanding of the changes made. So below is our brief explanation.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    The change occurred in April 2011 and became compulsory later that year in July. The lead purchaser on land or property transactions must now provide an identity number such as their NI number and date of birth. If the purchaser is from a company the company’s tax reference number (UTR) or VAT registration should also be provided. This is due to the Taxman needing to cross-reference tax payers’ files.

    If you would like to hear more about Stamp Duty Land Tax or even Harnett Accountants in general then why not book your free hour no obligations consultation or

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with VAT returns and compliance?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • Missing Trader Fraud Described By Your Accountants In Richmond

    Tax Insights

    Missing Trader Fraud Described By Your Accountants In Richmond

    We were recently contacted by one of our fellow accountants in West London about one of their clients being affected by Missing Trader Fraud, which costs the UK millions of pounds each year. They wanted to know if any of our clients from Harnett Accountants in Richmond had also been affected. Luckily none of them had been, but it made us think that more of you out there need to be more informed on the concept.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    What Is It

    What is Missing Trader Fraud?

    The best way to describe Missing Trader Fraud is through an example. For instance A VAT registered company based in the UK purchases small high-value goods (such as mobile phones) in another EU country and imports them into the UK (with zero-rate VAT). The importer then sells those goods at a VAT-inclusive price within the UK. However, before the VAT can be collected by HMRC from the UK customers, the importing company is liquidated and its directors disappear (become a missing trader), leaving the VAT unpaid. If you are the UK customer who bought said goods from said company, the Tax Office will block your claim for repayment of the VAT you paid on your purchase, whether you knew you were part of the fraudulent supply chain or not.

    What should I look out for?

    There are about nine key signs that a company may be a criminal trader. These are:

    • The company has no prior financial or trading history • The company has been recently acquired/established and the owners have no prevuiys involvement in your sector • The company trade from residential or short-term lease property • The company have poor knowledge of the market and products available • The company claim there is no apparent risk for you in the deal • The company repeat deals at the same/lower prices and small/consistent profit • The company instructs payments to third parties or offshore bank accounts • The company ask for a profit far less than the full market price of the good • The company offer you an unsecure loan with unrealistic interest rates/terms

    If you spot any of these factors when purchasing something then please stop immediately and contact your accountant so they can do a customer check on the company. This involves carrying out credit/identity checks on the supplier and directors of the company along with the product itself. If needed, the police will then be contacted.

    Key Considerations

    Don’t forget Harnett Accountants in Richmond offer a free hour no obligation consultation and can also be found on Facebook, Twitter and or wait for our next daily blog instalment!

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with VAT returns and compliance?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • Your Accountants In Richmond Answer Your Questions On Capital Gain Tax

    Tax Insights

    Your Accountants In Richmond Answer Your Questions On Capital Gain Tax

    As accountants in West London we are used to clients coming from all across London with their accountancy issues. Recently a young lady came to us at Harnett Accountants in Richmond with an enquiry about Capital Gains Tax.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    She had recently moved out of her home and moved into a rented apartment. While living in her new apartment her original home was sold. Our new client wanted to know if she still qualified for the capital gains tax exemption on that property even though she wasn’t living there when it was sold.

    Harnett Accountants in Richmond were more than happy to inform her that she would still be able to qualify for tax exemption as she had sold her home within three years of moving out. This assumes that she had been occupying the property for all of the period owned before moving out.

    Don’t forget that Harnett Accountants in West London do offer a free hour no-obligation consultation for all new clients. Alternatively you can add us on Facebook, Twitter, or or continue to look out for our daily blogs.

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with capital gains tax?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • Our Accountants In Kingston Confirm It’s Ok To Question That Taxman

    Tax Insights

    Our Accountants In Kingston Confirm It’s Ok To Question That Taxman

    With reference to one of our prior blogs on questioning that Taxman, our accountants in Kingston were presented with this query from one of their clients.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    “I’ve received a letter from the Taxman asking for my tax return for the year to 5th April 2011 to be submitted. But I submitted that tax return in September 2011, and I’ve paid all the tax due for that tax year. Do I have to submit that form again?

    Harnett Accountants in Kingston were happy to inform them that they did not have to re-submit their tax return and infact the Tax Office had made a mistake. About 40,000 of these standard letters (Notices SA316) are printed with the wrong tax year: 2010/11 rather than 2011/12. Our accountants in Kingston then informed their client that another notice SA316 asking for the tax return for 2011/12 and a letter of apology concerning the mistake would be sent out.

    Remember that Harnett Accountants in West London offer a free hour no obligation consultation for all clients, or you can follow us on our Facebook, Twitter and pages.

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with accounting and tax?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • A Word On Web Bots From Your Accountants In Kingston

    Tax Insights

    A Word On Web Bots From Your Accountants In Kingston

    It was announced in 2011 that the Taxman is going to start targeting tax evasion by online traders, private tutors, personal trainers and life coaches. Our accountants in Kingston have recently received several queries about this from clients, so we thought a blog was necessary.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    The Taxman can now send out automatic search programmes (web bots) to trawl the internet for data on sales and services advertised by UK residents, which will be compared to bank interest and tax returns already held by the Tax Office to check everything is in order.

    If you have declared all your profits and earnings on your tax return then you have nothing to fear. Where costs are not recorded (say from selling jewellery through your private website) the Taxman will treat this income as profit, even if the turnover is very small, meaning you could land yourself in a lot of trouble!

    We at Harnett Accountants in Kingston advice that you complete the self-assessment registration form CWFI online or in paper form as soon as possible if this is the case. You will then receive a new tax return form to be filled out. If you have been trading online for several years without declaring income a more detailed disclosure to the Tax Office will be required.

    Harnett Accountants in West London offer a free hour no obligation consultation. Alternatively, you can .

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with VAT returns and compliance?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • Harnett Accountants In West London Discuss Paying Those Taxes On Time

    Tax Insights

    Harnett Accountants In West London Discuss Paying Those Taxes On Time

    It’s coming up to July, one of those big tax-paying months. So Harnett Accountants in West London thought it would be a good idea to remind you of what is due and what could go wrong if you accidently miss those all important payments.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    – If you are self-employed you need to pay your income tax and class 4 NIC on-account payments for 2011/12 by 31 July. – A company with a 30 September 2011 year end must pay its corporation tax by 1 July 2012. – Employers must pay class 1A NICs on benefits by 19 July. – Quarterly payments of PAYE are due by the same date. Monthly payments of PAYE and CIS deductions are due by 19th of every month, or by 22nd if paying electronically.

    In the current economic climate the Taxman is keener than ever to chase every penny of tax owed. If you or your company are even a day late you will start to receive aggressively worded letters and, if not reacted to promptly ,telephone calls and possible personal visits from debt collectors in toe. The situation can escalate quite quickly into bailiffs being authorised to seize your goods, or a court judgement being enforce.

    Our Accountants in Kensington advice that if you or your company know you will not be able to pay your tax on time to contact the Tax Office Business Payment Support Line (0845 302 1435) and try and negotiate a reasonable payment plan. The longer you leave this the harder this will be, so as soon as you receive a demanding letter, don’t ignore it!

    Remember, Harnett Accountants in West London offer a free 1 hour, no obligation consultation. Alternatively you can follow us on our Facebook, Twitter or our page or keep looking out for our daily blogs

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with corporation tax planning?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.

  • Must You Register For Vat? Harnett Accountants In Kingston Tell Us More.

    Tax Insights

    Must You Register For Vat? Harnett Accountants In Kingston Tell Us More.

    There is a myth in certain quarters that every legitimate business is required to be VAT registered. Harnett Accountants in Kingston insist that this is not the case. A sole-trader, partnership or company does not have to become VAT registered until the total sales for 12 consecutive months exceeds £73,000, this does however apply to all businesses you run.

    💡
    Reviewed for 2026/27: All tax figures and HMRC rules in this article reflect current guidance for the 2026/27 tax year.

    Key Considerations

    If/Once your business is VAT registered you must charge VAT at the appropriate rate of 20% on all sales. You also have to submit regular quarterly/monthly VAT returns of sales and purchases. If this all sounds a bit too much to cope with, Harnett Accountants in Kingston suggest a number of designed schemes you can sign up to which make VAT reporting much easier for smaller businesses to handle.

    For example, the Flat Rate Scheme, this allows you to just total-up your sales each quarter and not worry about your purchases, paying over a flat percentage of VAT to the Taxman. The percentage used will depend on your trade sector. If your business makes very few purchases you can benefit significantly from being within the flat rate scheme.

    Another option which some smaller companies take is to keep their total sales below the compulsory VAT registration threshold, so they don’t have to charge or submit VAT. Although not illegal the Taxman is very suspicious of businesses who manage their sales in this way. In late 2011 the Taxman offered a limited amnesty to those who had sales over the VAT threshold but who had not registered for VAT. Once that amnesty period was over he started to actively investigate traders who reported total sales just below the VAT threshold. If you do use this strategy then you will need to be able to prove all your sales are correctly recorded and declared to avoid investigation.

    Don’t forget that Harnett Accountants in West London offer a free hour no obligation consultation, alternatively keep reading our blogs or .

    📌 Important: Tax rules change regularly. Always verify current figures at gov.uk/hmrc or speak to a qualified accountant.
    📞
    Need help with VAT returns and compliance?
    Harnett and Co are ICAEW chartered accountants in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey. We give clear, practical advice to businesses and individuals across West London and Surrey. Book a free consultation today.