In the news: March 2024

‘The new rules have caused a great deal of confusion, but they simply mean that HMRC is receiving more information from online platforms than they were before. If you are following existing rules, then you don’t need to worry, or do anything differently.’

Victoria Todd, head of LITRG, Daily Telegraph on HMRC reporting rules for online platforms, 12 January

‘According to the CIOT, if a worker was earning £27,850 a year last year then they would pay the same amount of income tax in both Scotland and England. However, those earning less would pay less tax in Scotland than in England and those earning more would pay more.’

The Daily Mirror, 16 January

‘The ATT said in its Monday letter to Treasury there are outstanding tax treatment concerns across environmental land management programmes when it comes to income tax, inheritance tax, value added tax and stamp duty land tax that need to be addressed in the government’s consultation response, expected in the spring.’

Bloomberg Law, 23 January

‘We worry that HMRC’s desire to push taxpayers towards digital resources will mean some people are left behind, and the services available to taxpayers and professional advisers via digital channels are too often incomplete, disjointed and poorly designed even for those who can go digital.’

Helen Thornley, ATT, Daily Telegraph, 30 January

‘This might be the case if something outside your control stopped you from filing on time. HMRC won’t accept being too busy or forgetting about the deadline as a reasonable excuse. They’ll also expect you to have filed your tax return as soon as the excuse ended.’

ATT technical officer Emma Rawson, Daily Telegraph on those who missed the tax return deadline, 1 February

‘A survey by the CIOT of over 500 tax advisers revealed 95% were not confident about HMRC’s ability to oversee the introduction of the Making Tax Digital plans for income tax, and 70% thought even postponing the start date to April 2026 was unrealistic.’

The Daily Telegraph, 5 February