Archive for January, 2011

A Double Taxation Arrangement and Protocol between the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, signed in London on 26 September 2008, entered into force on 25 December 2010.  The text of the Convention and Protocol is available at the link below. The provisions of the Convention and Protocol will take effect in the United Kingdom from [...]

A Double Taxation Arrangement between the United Kingdom and the Cayman Islands, signed in London on 15 June 2009, entered into force on 20 December 2010.  The text of the Arrangement is available at the link below. The provisions of the Double Taxation Arrangement will take effect in the United Kingdom and the Cayman Islands [...]

A comprehensive Double Taxation Convention between the United Kingdom and the Federal Republic of Germany, which was signed in London on 30 March 2010, entered into force on 30 December 2010.  The text of the Convention is available at the link below. In the UK the provisions of the Convention will take effect from 1 [...]

The Protocol to the Double Taxation Agreement between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Singapore, signed in Singapore on 24 August 2009, entered into force on 8 January 2011.  The text of the Protocol is available at the link below. The provisions of the Protocol took effect from 8 January 2011. Further information: Protocol [...]

HMRC has identified common errors made by employers who use EP Appendix 7A and 7B procedures.  This following article was published on 6 January 2011 and provides guidance which should help employers to follow the procedures correctly. EP APP7A – Modified Class 1 and Class 1A National Insurance contributions for expatriate employees subject to an [...]

On 6 January 2011, HMRC published a revised version of booklet HMRC6 Residence, Domicile and the Remittance Basis.  This booklet replaced the former IR20 Residents and non-residents: Liability to tax in the United Kingdom from 6 April 2009. Part 5 of the HMRC6 booklet was last updated in February 2010 to reflect legislative changes made [...]

HMRC’s online booklet listing all of the current Extra-Statutory Concessions has been updated as at 6 January 2011. Further information: Extra-Statutory Concessions

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has updated the draft letter that employees may use to apply to their employer for flexible working.  It clarifies that, from 6 April 2011, employees with caring responsibility for a child aged 17 may also apply. Employers are helped if they provide this form to employees who [...]

As expected, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) confirmed on 13 January that default retirement age (DRA) will be abolished completely in three stages during 2011: from 6 April 2011, employers will not be able to issue any notifications for compulsory retirement using the “DRA procedures” (see below) between 6 April and 1 [...]

Revenue’s first eBrief of the year explains the factors that employer should consider when making a claim for a P35 refund and when amending a P35 using the P35 amendment form or on ROS. Further information: P35 Refunds and P35 Amendments

The Treasury has confirmed approval by Tynwald of a statutory Order fixing Friday, 29 April, the day of the royal wedding, as a Bank Holiday in 2011. Further information: Bank Holiday (Royal Wedding) Order 2010

Each week we receive a number of payroll questions on our forum, and here are this week’s batch. Can you help with any answers? Forum Posts: Backdating SMP If an employee has been on maternity leave, for around 6 months, but has continued to be paid her full salary as normal, for whatever reason, is [...]

A welcome quiet week with no specific new items to write about.  But I’m sure you have no illusions about 2011 being a quiet year! We have included the second of two articles about reservists this week, this time looking at the implications for employers of mobilisation. A correspondent on the Forum is involved with [...]

The following question was posted over the past week.  Can you contribute to  the discussion?… Can anyone help with guidance on the payroll aspects of a TUPE transfer? We are in the middle of a TUPE transfer, although I have read all the legislation this is the first time I have been involved in one [...]

Been looking back over the past year? Made any New Year resolutions for this one? Well, we at the Learn Centre have certainly been looking at 2010 and are appalled at the number of Employment Tribunal cases that have been lost by employers simply because they have failed to follow acceptable disciplinary processes. So, prepare [...]

Do you talk to your employees? Of course you do! But does your message get across the way you intended it? And in any case, do you talk enough? And about the things that are important? Unfortunately what is important to one person may not be to another, and this certainly is true in the [...]

Here we take our weekly look at answering some of the tricky HR questions we’ve been emailed. If you have a tricky HR question you needs answering email it to help@payroll-help.com and we’ll post the best here with an answer each week. Bullying boss I am secretary/PA to a man who is a bit of a [...]

The new employee arrives, we are relieved, there is so much work piling up, so now our cares have vanished! But have they? It is so easy to assume that the new employee will walk into the workplace, settle down, and be working at 100% performance within five minutes. But in reality this is most [...]

Last month’s nice little problem was this: The busy housewife had just had an argument on the phone with the local council about an issue with one of her stepchildren when there was a knock on the door. On the doorstep stood a man with a clipboard. “I’m from the Council” he said, “and I [...]