Tag Archive for Freelancing

MPs give taxman six weeks to sort out Covid payments for freelancers

Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
MPs have given HMRC six weeks to come up with solutions for freelancers and others excluded from receiving Covid financial support.
In its report, the influential Public Accounts Committee has asked the taxman to explain why 1.6m freelancers alone have been excluded from Covid help, let alone the 3m excluded overall.
MPs blamed “quirks in the tax system” making groups of workers, including freelancers and the self-employed, ineligible for furlough payments.
>See also: Thousands of self-employed mothers miss out on COVID-19 SEISS payments
Meg Hillier MP, chair of the PAC, said: “As public spending balloons to unprecedented levels in response to the pandemic, out-of-date tax systems are one of the barriers to getting help to a significant of struggling taxpayers who should be entitled to support.”
The PAC MPs are just one group calling for the chancellor to give financial support to freelancers excluded from Covid support.
Meanwhile, former Brexit secretary David Davis has written to chancellor Rishi Sunak asking him to ensure that the newly self-employed are included in the final found of Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grants.
This could see more than half a million freelancers qualifying for emergency Covid financial support after all. This is because

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MPs give taxman six weeks to sort out Covid payments for freelancers

Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
MPs have given HMRC six weeks to come up with solutions for freelancers and others excluded from receiving Covid financial support.
In its report, the influential Public Accounts Committee has asked the taxman to explain why 1.6m freelancers alone have been excluded from Covid help, let alone the 3m excluded overall.
MPs blamed “quirks in the tax system” making groups of workers, including freelancers and the self-employed, ineligible for furlough payments.
>See also: Thousands of self-employed mothers miss out on COVID-19 SEISS payments
Meg Hillier MP, chair of the PAC, said: “As public spending balloons to unprecedented levels in response to the pandemic, out-of-date tax systems are one of the barriers to getting help to a significant of struggling taxpayers who should be entitled to support.”
The PAC MPs are just one group calling for the chancellor to give financial support to freelancers excluded from Covid support.
Meanwhile, former Brexit secretary David Davis has written to chancellor Rishi Sunak asking him to ensure that the newly self-employed are included in the final found of Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grants.
This could see more than half a million freelancers qualifying for emergency Covid financial support after all. This is because

Read more...

1m self-employed face having to pay tax bill larger than what they earnt

Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
One million of the UK’s 4.5m self-employed face having to prepay tax bills higher than what they actually earned this year.
Many freelancers pay self-assessment tax bills on account twice a year, with the first prepayment falling due this January.
This is despite the Covid pandemic decimating many self-employed profits since March.
>See also: MPs to fight Sunak over move to hike national insurance for self-employed
The problem is that prepayments are based on the previous year’s profits, in this case what the self-employed earned in 2019-20 – before the pandemic hit.
TaxScouts, an online self-assessment tax service provider, estimated 1m people could be hit with an inflated tax bill because payment on account is based on the previous year’s earnings.
“While this is well and good in normal times, it doesn’t take into consideration the huge loss of earnings that so many of the self employed will have faced during the pandemic,” said TaxScouts.
However, anticipating the problem, HMRC has allowed the self-employed to defer payment on account and to request a reduction in their tax bill if they are facing financial difficulty and know their earnings will be down.
>See also: MPs urge Government to do more to help

Read more...

1m self-employed face having to pay tax bill larger than what they earnt

Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
One million of the UK’s 4.5m self-employed face having to prepay tax bills higher than what they actually earned this year.
Many freelancers pay self-assessment tax bills on account twice a year, with the first prepayment falling due this January.
This is despite the Covid pandemic decimating many self-employed profits since March.
>See also: MPs to fight Sunak over move to hike national insurance for self-employed
The problem is that prepayments are based on the previous year’s profits, in this case what the self-employed earned in 2019-20 – before the pandemic hit.
TaxScouts, an online self-assessment tax service provider, estimated 1m people could be hit with an inflated tax bill because payment on account is based on the previous year’s earnings.
“While this is well and good in normal times, it doesn’t take into consideration the huge loss of earnings that so many of the self employed will have faced during the pandemic,” said TaxScouts.
However, anticipating the problem, HMRC has allowed the self-employed to defer payment on account and to request a reduction in their tax bill if they are facing financial difficulty and know their earnings will be down.
>See also: MPs urge Government to do more to help

Read more...

How to start a freelance career in the UK – a beginner’s guide

Originally written by Dave Chaplin on Small Business
As the UK economy recovers from the impact of coronavirus, now might be the perfect time to take the leap and go it alone in a new freelance career.
For risk-averse businesses in this current climate, the immediate access to key skills which freelancers provide presents a more economically viable recruitment solution than a permanent hire. If you possess an in-demand skillset, you are well placed to capitalise.
Though other key concerns include deciding upon a business model, registering with HMRC and enlisting an accountant, Chaplin advises on setting a contract rate, marketing yourself and finding work.
>See also: 7 tips on how to manage freelance workers remotely
Setting your contract rate
Setting a freelance contract rate in the UK is a careful balancing act. You want to establish a competitive rate that ensures you receive a good return for your efforts without risking pricing yourself out of the market.
There are useful sites online that share survey results of the standard rates that specific skills command.
However, while these sites provide useful guidelines, they don’t account for the combination of skills or the level of experience required. Therefore, you should create a baseline rate based on your current salary,

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