Teenagers To Get Access To Child Trust Funds

Children born after 31 August 2002 and before 3 January 2011 were entitled to a Child Trust Funds (CTF) account provided they met the necessary conditions. These funds were long-term saving accounts for newly born children. The first of these children will begin turning 18 from 1 September 2020.

HMRC has confirmed that millions of teenagers are set to benefit as their accounts mature. Approximately 6.3 million Child Trust Funds (CTF) accounts have been set up since the scheme was launched in 2002, roughly 4.5 million by parents or guardians and a further 1.8 million set up by HMRC where parents or guardians did not open an account.

From September, an estimated 55,000 accounts will mature each month and HMRC has created a simple online tool to help young people find out where their account is held.

Economic Secretary to the Treasury, John Glen, said:

We want to make sure all young people can access the money which has been set aside for them, to invest in their future and continue a savings habit, as they turn 18.’

If you’re unsure if you have an account or where it may be, it’s easy to track down your provider online.

The actual CTF accounts are not held by HMRC, but by a number of CTF providers who are financial services firms. Anyone can pay into the account, with an annual limit of £9,000, and there’s no tax to pay on the CTF savings interest or profit.

Source: HM Treasury Wed, 26 Aug 2020 05:00:00 +0100

Eviction Ban Extended By 4 Weeks

The government has announced a further four-week extension to the eviction ban for tenants affected by the Coronavirus pandemic. This means that landlords in England and Wales will be banned from eviction ban tenants until at least 20 September 2020. This takes the total ban to 6 months.

The government has also announced plans to give tenants greater protection from eviction over the winter by requiring landlords to provide tenants with a new 6 months’ notice period (extended from 3 months’) in all bar those cases raising other serious issues such as those involving anti-social behaviour and domestic abuse perpetrators, until at least 31 March 2021. The Scottish government has also introduced a ban on evictions until March 2021 and there is currently an extended 12-week notice period in Northern Ireland.

The government has said it will keep these measures under review with decisions guided by the latest public health advice.

When courts do resume eviction hearings they will carefully prioritise the most egregious cases, ensuring landlords are able to progress the most serious cases, such as those involving anti-social behaviour and other crimes, as well as cases where landlords have not received rent for over a year and would otherwise face unmanageable debts.

According to independent research, 87% of tenants have continued to pay full rent since the start of the pandemic, with a further 8% agreeing reduced fees with their landlords. However, landlords and tenants continue to face situations where tenants are unable to pay their bills resulting in lost rental income.

Source: HM Revenue & Customs Wed, 26 Aug 2020 05:00:00 +0100

Agent Update August 2020

HMRC has released the latest bi-monthly issue of the ‘Agent Update’ publication which includes summaries of recent changes and agent update that have been announced. The document, that is aimed at taxation and accountancy practitioners, includes links to more detailed information on each of the topics covered.

The topics covered in the latest edition include the following:

  • COVID-19. A reminder that the GOV.UK portal includes details of all the various financial support and other measures available to employers, businesses and employees.
  • VAT payment deferrals period. The option to defer your VAT payments ended on 30 June 2020. The Coronavirus VAT payment holiday gave businesses the chance to defer the payment of any VAT liabilities between 20 March 2020 and 30 June 2020. VAT payments now need to be made as normal.
  • Confirmation of Payee process. Some UK banks have introduced Confirmation of Payee (COP) as a new way of giving individuals or businesses greater assurance that they are sending payments to the intended recipient. When you request a repayment from HMRC you must ensure that the details you provide match the details of the recipients account.
  • Top Slicing Relief (TSR) on life insurance policy gains. New legislation has been introduced that changes how reduced personal allowances interact with the calculation for top slicing relief. It will provide additional relief for taxpayers whose entitlement to the personal allowance has reduced because a gain is included as part of their income. The new legislation to TSR cases will apply from tax year 2018-2019.
  • Disguised Remuneration Loan Charge. Taxpayers that have outstanding disguised remuneration loans that are subject to the loan charge need to file their 2018-19 Self-Assessment tax return by 30 September 2020, including a report of any loan balances subject to the loan charge, and put in place any arrangements they need to pay the charge due on that date. Taxpayers can now elect to spread the loan balance over 3 tax years.
  • Links to new Revenue & Customs Briefs.
Source: HM Revenue & Customs Wed, 26 Aug 2020 05:00:00 +0100

Green Homes Grant Scheme

One of the measures announced by the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak in his Summer Economic update on 8 July 2020 was the launch of the new £2 billion Green Homes Grant scheme.

From September 2020, home owners and landlords in England will be able to apply for a grant to make their home more energy efficient. The Green Homes Grant scheme will cover at least two-thirds of the cost up to £5,000 per household. For low income households these grants will cover all costs up to £10,000. The scheme will run until 31 March 2021.

The Green Homes Grants will give homeowners, including owner occupiers and social/private landlords, vouchers to install one or more of the following primary measures:

  • solid wall, under-floor, cavity wall or roof insulation
  • air source or ground source heat pump
  • solar thermal

In addition, households can apply for a further voucher to install secondary measures for additional energy saving. Households will need to install at least one of the primary measures above to qualify for further funding for secondary measures. These secondary measures include the following:

  • double or triple glazing/secondary glazing, when replacing single glazing
  • upgrading to energy efficient doors
  • hot water tank/appliance tank thermostats/heating controls

Secondary measures can only be subsidised up to the amount of subsidy provided for primary measures. (e.g. if a household receives £1,000 for primary measures, they can only receive a maximum of £1,000 towards secondary measures).

The government is urging suppliers of the above-mentioned improvements to sign up for TrustMark or Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) accreditation in order to take part in this scheme.

Homeowners and landlords will need to apply for a voucher online. Once the works are agreed, vouchers will start to be issued from the end of September.

Source: HM Revenue & Customs Wed, 19 Aug 2020 05:00:00 +0100

Myths And Student Loans

Student Loans are part of the government’s financial support package for students in higher education in the UK. They are available to help students meet their expenses while they are studying. The Student Loans Company (SLC) is a non-profit making government-owned organisation that administers loans and grants to students in universities and colleges in the UK.

As many students have started securing a university or college place, the SLC has published a press release aimed at helping dispel some common myths on student finance and Clearing 2020. Clearing is the process by which universities and colleges fill any remaining places they still have on their courses by matching students looking for a university place with unfilled places. This represents the last opportunity to apply for a place at university before the start of the academic year.

The press release ‘busts’ the following myths:

  • Myth: If I get a place through Clearing it’s too late to apply for student finance.
  • Myth: If I’ve already applied for student finance and my course changes through Clearing, I don’t have to do anything.
  • Myth: I need to send my Passport and a signed terms and conditions to receive my student finance.
  • Myth: It takes ages to apply for student finance because my parents or partner need to send paper forms and evidence.
  • Myth: There’s no information available on student finance and Clearing.

For more information on any of these issues search for the press release on the GOV.UK website.

Source: HM Revenue & Customs Wed, 19 Aug 2020 05:00:00 +0100

Connected Persons CGT And Other Taxes

The definition of a connected persons for tax purposes can be complex and varies depending on the circumstances.

Section 839 of the Income and the Corporation Taxes Act (ICTA) 1988 sets out a statutory definition of “connected persons” for tax purposes.

The general situation in Section 839(2) of ICTA 1988 states:

Section 839(8) of ICTA 1988 states that, in this context, “‘relative’ means brother, sister, ancestor or lineal descendant.” Married partners are connected with each other.

The term ‘relative’ does not cover all family relationships. In particular it does not include nephews, nieces, uncles and aunts.

The definition of these people extends for Inheritance Tax to include the individual’s uncle/aunt, nephew/nieces, and their spouse, spouse’s uncle/aunt, and spouse’s nephew and niece.

There are further categories of connected the persons in respect of the trustees, acquisitions and disposals of partnership assets and in relation to companies.

Source: HM Revenue & Customs Wed, 19 Aug 2020 05:00:00 +0100
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