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Gaps in your National Insurance record

National Insurance credits can help qualifying applicants to fill gaps in their National Insurance record. This can assist taxpayers to build up the number of qualifying years of National Insurance contributions which can increase the amount of

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Scotland’s non-domestic rates reliefs

Business rates is the commonly used term for non-domestic property rates. Business rates are charged on most non-domestic premises, including most commercial properties such as shops, offices, pubs, warehouses and factories. Some properties are

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Moving goods to and from Northern Ireland

There are special procedures for moving goods in and out of Northern Ireland. Under the Northern Ireland Protocol, all Northern Ireland businesses continue to have access to the whole UK market. HMRC lists the following six-steps that should be

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Newly self-employed taxpayers

Newly self-employed taxpayers should notify HMRC as soon as practicable when they begin working for themselves. However, HMRC must be officially notified by the 5 October following the end of the tax year so that a Self-Assessment return can be

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Making a claim on an unclaimed estate

There are special intestacy rules that govern how assets are divided if you die without making a will. If this happens your assets are passed on to family members in accordance with a set legal formula. This can result in a distribution of assets

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Passport fee increase

The government introduced new passport fees for all applications from 2 February 2023, the first time in 5 years that the cost of applying for a passport has increased. The new fees include the following changes: the fee for a standard online

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Late tax payment interest rate rise

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) met on 2 February 2023 and voted 6-3 in favour of raising interest rates by 50 basis points to 4% in a move to try and continue to tackle upward pressures on inflation. This is the tenth time in a

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Record number of taxpayers file on time

HMRC has confirmed that more than 11.7 million people submitted their 2021-22 Self-Assessment tax returns by the 31 January deadline. This included over 861,000 taxpayers who left their filing until the final day and over 36,000 that filed in the

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Half-term help with childcare costs

HMRC is reminding parents that they may be eligible for Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) to help pay for February half-term holiday clubs and wraparound care during the school terms. The TFC scheme can help parents of children aged up to 11 years old (17

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Register as a childminder

There are fines for not registering as a childminder if you were required to do so. GOV.UK guidance on the matter states that you must register as a childminder if all of the following apply: the children are under the age of 8; you look after

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