Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
The rollout of Making Tax Digital, HMRC’s rolling scheme for businesses to self-report tax owed, should be halted before it reaches the smallest of businesses.
So says the cross-party public accounts committee in its report on bridging the £31bn tax gap between tax owed and what actually comes into the Treasury’s coffers.
MPs warned that it was unclear whether the controversial rules had achieved their stated aim of reducing tax errors.
>See also: Making Tax Digital bridging software: what is it and how much does it cost?
Since April 2019, VAT-registered businesses and the self-employed people with a turnover in excess of the £85,000 VAT threshold have been forced to use accounting software when they file their returns.
From April 2022, HMRC wants all VAT-registered businesses to adhere to Making Tax Digital. Self-employed people and landlords with a turnover of more than £10,000 will face the extra requirements from 2023.
Critics say the cost of applying the new rules has been unreasonably high. A report by trade body Association of Taxation Technicians found that some small businesses had been forced to spend more than £5,000 on software and training.
>See also: Five steps for small businesses Making Tax Digital
Extending the
Tag Archive for Microbusinesses
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5 winning traits 5 top entrepreneurs all have in common
by Tony Robinson • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Tony Robinson on Small Business
For the last 34 years I have been starting and running my own businesses. Throughout this time I have been lucky to learn from hundreds of entrepreneurs, some famous, about what helps a new business to survive and thrive.
These tips are rarely included in books or talks on entrepreneurship because successful business owners just regard them as normal everyday activities. All successful entrepreneurs I have met work extremely hard and love what they do but their hard work is rarely glamorous, risk taking or disruptive.
Growth is not exponential, ups and downs are guaranteed, and businesses often scale up not by increased productivity but by the entrepreneur exploiting a new opportunity, contract or acquisition.
>See also: Small business marketing 101, all the latest tips in 2020
Maverick start-ups that are investor led most often do not survive the first three years whereas four out of five start-ups that obey my five rules will survive three years.
5 rules to survive your first 5 years
Bootstrap don’t borrow (until you’ve got customers)
Test trade first
Build multiple income streams
Ask for help from a business owner who understands your customers
Enjoy what you do
Professional speakers may not see these activities as exciting enough
Hot Business News Today
5 winning traits 5 top entrepreneurs all have in common
by Tony Robinson • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Tony Robinson on Small Business
For the last 34 years I have been starting and running my own businesses. Throughout this time I have been lucky to learn from hundreds of entrepreneurs, some famous, about what helps a new business to survive and thrive.
These tips are rarely included in books or talks on entrepreneurship because successful business owners just regard them as normal everyday activities. All successful entrepreneurs I have met work extremely hard and love what they do but their hard work is rarely glamorous, risk taking or disruptive.
Growth is not exponential, ups and downs are guaranteed, and businesses often scale up not by increased productivity but by the entrepreneur exploiting a new opportunity, contract or acquisition.
>See also: Small business marketing 101, all the latest tips in 2020
Maverick start-ups that are investor led most often do not survive the first three years whereas four out of five start-ups that obey my five rules will survive three years.
5 rules to survive your first 5 years
Bootstrap don’t borrow (until you’ve got customers)
Test trade first
Build multiple income streams
Ask for help from a business owner who understands your customers
Enjoy what you do
Professional speakers may not see these activities as exciting enough
Hot Business News Today
Rishi Sunak eyes offering 100% guaranteed loans for microbusinesses
by Timothy Adler • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Chancellor Rishi Sunak is preparing to offer 100% guaranteed loans of up to £25,000 to Britain’s microbusinesses.
Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey, three ex-Conservative chancellors and Tory MPs have put the chancellor under sustained pressure to amend the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme (CBILS) for a third time.
On Monday, the chancellor said he was “not persuaded” to increase guarantees for small businesses borrowing up to £5m through the scheme.
This is despite just 16,600 loans being approved so far out of 36,000 applications. This out of a potential market of 5.9m small businesses.
>See also: Coronavirus emergency business loans may be changed yet again
Would-be borrowers say they can either never get through to their bank or the bank rejects them as being too risky. The Catch-22 here is that banks are only lending to businesses it deems would have been viable before the coronavirus pandemic.
A recent survey by payment processor Tide showed small businesses expect revenue is set to decline by 57 per cent by the end of April. Over one in three small businesses (36 per cent) expect their year-on-year income to plummet by more than 90 per cent this month.
According to the Financial
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Half of the UK’s micro businesses do not accept card payments
by Timothy Adler • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Half of the UK’s micro businesses do not accept card payments, according to payments provider Square.
Square’s research has found that 56pc of shoppers aged between 25 and 34 prefer paying by card, and 47pc of shoppers overall.
Jack Dorsey, CEO of Square, told the Daily Telegraph that payments technology could save small businesses now that consumers are turning away from cash.
“The real challenge is keeping small businesses in business,” Dorsey said.
Dorsey, who is also chief executive of Twitter, said he is convinced there is a future for bricks-and-mortar businesses on the UK high street.
“There are going to be a lot that moves on but the pub isn’t going to move on and restaurants aren’t going to move on,” he said. “There are lots of businesses that won’t be served by Amazon. In the worst case this will push some businesses to be a lot more creative. It will never get rid of the physical spaces that we love to hang out [in].”
Square is targeted at micro businesses, those employing fewer than 10 people, enabling them to offer card payments in store with accompanying valuable consumer insights via a tablet or smartphone.
Under pressure
So-called “micro businesses”
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Microbusiness staff are the most engaged, study finds
by Owen Gough • • 0 Comments
The UK’s smallest businesses boast the most committed staff, according to new research from card machine provider Paymentsense. The study of 1,000 SME UK workers finds almost half (47 per cent) of respondents in firms of ten or less people often work unpaid overtime because they want the business to do well. This figure drops
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