One week into IR35 reform and there’s an inevitable lull after the frantic activity in the lead up to the deadline. While it might be a case of no news being good news, it’s likely the real impact won’t be known for some time.…
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As the deadline for IR35 reform approaches, we’re beginning to see evidence of various approaches that reduce the risk of making incorrect assessments. Now the end client is the one left carrying the can, getting assessments wrong could have serious financial repercussions for companies with a large contractor base.…
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With only two months to go until IR35 reform, there’s a sense of déjà vu as news of blanket assessments and limited company bans starts hitting contractor forums. While many companies who adopted these approaches a year ago did a U-turn when the reforms were delayed, many are now reverting to their original decisions.…
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New government monitoring data shows that HMRC’s CEST tool delivers an inconclusive result a worrying 20% of the time. Between November 2019 and November 2020, CEST failed to deliver a verdict in 188,719 of cases out of 975,416. With reform fast approaching, we take a look at this ‘black hole’ in the tool’s logic and what it says about its’ ability to deliver a reliable verdict.…
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It’s been reliably reported that HMRC have resumed IR35 enquiries that were put on hold because of the Covid-19 pandemic. In recent weeks, contractors who were being investigated pre-pandemic received letters from HMRC, asking if they were ready for the investigation to resume, and giving them chance to put forward any circumstances that would make this difficult.…
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Last week Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered the Spending Review 2020. The document contained a calculation that his decision to delay private sector IR35 reform by one year has cost the government £740million in lost tax revenue. Contractor bodies have expressed shock that the government is placing this projected loss at the feet of limited company contractors who they suspect of operating as employees.…
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When it comes to contractor concerns, a recent industry poll showed that 62% view IR35 reform as a greater threat than Covid-19 and Brexit combined. This could explain the slow uptake with self-employment, despite the spate of recent redundancies. In times of economic crisis, entrepreneurship and microbusinesses have traditionally played a critical part in economic recovery, helping to establish new markets and increasing flexible access to skills.…
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The infamous IR35 rules have yet again come under fire during a Treasury Committee session last week. The Treasury Select Committee addressed how the UK taxation regime may need to change to accommodate the considerable increase in government borrowing caused by the coronavirus pandemic.…
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‘This Morning’ presenter Eamonn Holmes is to challenge an employment status decision made last February that confirmed he was liable to pay £250,000 in unpaid taxes. Holmes has filed an official court listing, claiming that the Treasury is attempting to rewrite the rules.…
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