All Tax and legislation articles – Page 42
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Article
Call for single pensions regulator
The government should reassess the case for establishing a single body with sole responsibility for regulating workplace pensions, according to a report by the Work and Pensions Committee.Its report, Improving governance and best practice in workplace pensions, raises concerns over current gaps in regulation and the potential for further gaps ...
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Article
Employee ownership scheme passed in House of Commons
Members of Parliament have voted in favor of the government’s proposed employee ownership scheme.The policy, which is part of the Coalition government’s Growth and Infrastructure Bill, passed in the House of Commons with 277 votes in favour and 239 against.This comes after the proposal, dubbed ‘shares for rights’ by Chancellor ...
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Article
Minimum wage to increase from 1 October
The government has accepted the independent Low Pay Commission’s (LPC) recommendations for this year’s adult and youth national minimum wage (NMW).It also opted to increase the apprentice rate rather than freeze it, as recommended by the LPC.From 1 October 2013:The adult rate will increase by 12p to £6.31 an hour.The ...
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Article
Unison wins pay case for fire and rescue staff
Trade union Unison has won a legal case in the Court of Appeal for pay which could affect around 800 employees of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA). The union challenged the LFEPA’s decision not to honour the third year of an agreed pay deal that would have ...
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Article
DWP publishes guidance on fit notes
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has published a guidance document on the government’s fit note system.Getting the most out of the fit note: guidance for employers and line managers explains what employers should do if they are given a fit note by an employee, what different sections of ...
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Article
Round-up of tax and legislation changes coming in from 6 April
A number of tax and legislation changes that come into effect from 6 April 2013 will have an impact on employee benefits.Real-time information (RTI) reporting begins.From 6 April, employers will have to start reporting pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) information to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) in real time. Employers with fewer than ...
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Article
Government criticised for state pension changes
The key to the successful implementation of the single-tier state pension lies in the government informing the public as soon as possible about how it will impact individuals, according to a report by the Work and Pensions Select Committee.In its Single-tier state pension: part 1 of the draft pensions bill, ...
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Opinion
Jenna Poon: Legal pitfalls of changing a benefits strategy
Employers need to ensure that the benefits being replaced do not form part of an employee’s terms and conditions, that they are not cemented in contracts of employment. If this is the case, an employee’s consent will be required in order to change those benefits.When examining employment contracts, any collective ...
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Opinion
Steve Wade: Five steps to prepare for RTI reporting
There are five practical steps for employers to follow to be ready.First, they need to know their start date. The 6 April is a Saturday, so an employer’s first RTI submission may be its second payroll run. Read more here.Second, employers must know their new starter process. After their start ...
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Article
Employee Benefits Connect: Esop chief criticises share scheme stance
Speaking at Employee Benefits Connect, Poole said he was worried that all the government departments involved in the employee share ownership agenda would head in different directions.“If the communication between those departments isn’t up to scratch, you risk everyone tripping over each other and nothing being achieved,” he said.Poole (pictured) ...
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Article
Employee ownership scheme blocked
The government’s employee ownership scheme has been blocked in the House of Lords.The scheme, which was announced by Chancellor George Osborne in October 2012, would allow employees to give up some employment rights in return for shares in their employer. It was defeated by 232 votes to 178.The scheme was ...
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Article
Tax exemption for travel season ticket loans doubles
Budget 2013: The threshold for tax exemption on employment-related ‘taxable cheap’, low-cost or interest-free loans, such as travel season ticket loans, will double.Chancellor George Osbourne revealed in his 2013 Budget speech that the current threshold of £5,000 will increase to £10,000 for the 2014-15 tax year. As long as the ...
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Article
Employee owners to receive tax breaks
Budget 2013: Following on from the introduction of a new employee ownership status in October 2012, Chancellor George Osborne has announced in the Budget 2013 that the first £2,000 of share value that any employee receives under the new status will be free from income tax and national insurance (NI) ...
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Article
Government brings forward increase to personal allowance
Budget 2013: The government has brought forward its plans to increase the personal allowance to £10,000 to 2014/15.It means the first £10,000 of an employee’s annual salary will be exempt from income tax as a result of the increase, which was originally intended for 2015.Consequently, the average basic-rate taxpayer will ...
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Article
Government confirms state pension brought forward to 2016
Budget 2013: Chancellor George Osborne has confirmed that the government will bring forward its plans to introduce a new single-tier £144 per week state pension by one year.As Employee Benefits previously reported Osborne first announced the changes on 17 March on BBC’s Andrew Marr Show.The new state pension was originally ...
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Article
HMRC to relax RTI payroll reporting for small employers
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has relaxed real-time information (RTI) reporting arrangements for small employers.Employers with fewer than 50 employees will have until 5 October 2013, rather than 6 April 2013, to comply with the legislation.Until the revised date, these employers will be able to send information to HMRC by ...
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Article
Single-tier state pension brought forward to 2016
The government is to bring forward its plans to introduce a new single-tier £144 per week state pension by one year.On the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show on 17 March, Chancellor George Osborne said the new state pension would be introduced in 2016 rather than 2017 as originally planned.He added: “People ...
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Article
HMRC warns employers about RTI
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is reminding employers about real-time information (RTI) reporting, one month before the legislation takes effect on 6 April.From that date, employers will be required to move to a new way of reporting pay-as-you-earn (PAYE), doing so each time employees are paid rather than annually.HMRC suggests ...
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Article
Employee owners to receive CGT relief
Budget 2013: The government has announced it will fund the introduction of a capital gains tax (CGT) relief on the sale of a controlling interest in an organisation into an employee ownership structure.The government will fund the CGT relief, which it aims to introduce in the Finance Bill 2014 in ...
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Article
European Union agrees cap on bankers’ bonuses
The European Commission and the European Parliament have reached a preliminary agreement on limiting bonus payments in the financial services sector.The cap will limit bankers’ bonuses to one-time salary, or two-times salary if a majority of shareholders agree. There will be some leeway for long-term incentives, although the details of ...