In this week’s Enews, we look at spreading the cost of tax bills for self assessment taxpayers and the continued rise in cash usage in shops. There is also news on the latest tax guidance for employers from HMRC to update you on.

• HMRC urges self assessment taxpayers to spread the cost
• Cash usage on the rise for second successive year
• Latest guidance for employers

HMRC is reminding people who pay tax by self assessment of the opportunity to spread the cost of their bill with the Time to Pay facility.

More than 15,000 self assessment customers have already set up a Time to Pay payment plan for the 2023/24 tax year to help spread the cost, according to the tax authority. And there is still an opportunity to sign up for such an arrangement.

HMRC says it offers these payment plans to support taxpayers unable to pay their tax bill in full and looking to manage their tax payments over regular monthly instalments.

The online deadline to file a tax return for the 2023/24 tax year and pay any tax owed is 31 January 2025.

Taxpayers who are unable to pay their tax bill in full, owe less than £30,000 and are eligible, can quickly and easily apply online without the need to contact HMRC directly. Those that owe more than £30,000 are still able to apply but would need to contact HMRC.

Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s Director General for Customer Services, said:

‘We’re here to help customers get their tax right and if you are worried about how to pay your self assessment bill, help and support is available.

‘Customers can set up their online payment plan to suit their own financial circumstances and can spread those payments across a maximum of 12 months. It is a valuable option for someone needing extra flexibility in meeting their tax obligations.’

Internet link: GOV.UK

Cash use in the shops rose for a second year in a row in 2023 after a decade of falls, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

Notes and coins were used in a fifth of transactions last year as shoppers found cash helped them to budget better, said the BRC.

Overall, customers visited shops more frequently but made smaller purchases. The total number of transactions rose from 19.6 billion to 21.0 billion while the average amount spent per transaction fell from £22.43 to £22.03.

Meanwhile, card fees paid by retailers continued to grow. The total amount paid by retailers to banks and card schemes rose by over 25% in 2023. This brought the total card fees paid to £1.64 billion.

Chris Owen, Payments Policy Advisor, British Retail Consortium said:

‘Persistent inflation and the cost-of-living crisis continued to affect households across the country and many consumers used cash to budget more effectively.

‘However, the dominance of card payments continues apace, accounting for over 85% of spending. Card fees continue to rise at a substantial rate and the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) must act upon the harms it has identified in its current market reviews. It must move swiftly to reform the market and implement remedies including price caps on fees and price rebalancing measures.’

Internet link: BRC website

HMRC has published the latest issue of the Employer Bulletin. The December issue has information on various topics, including:

• employer National Insurance contributions and Employment Allowance changes announced at Autumn Budget 2024
• automatic enrolment duties for festive season workers
• confirming plans to mandate the reporting of benefits in kind through payroll software from April 2026
• official rate of interest from 6 April 2025
• Investment Zone employer National Insurance contributions relief guidance
• help your employees top up their State Pensions.

Please contact us for help with tax matters.

Internet link: Employer Bulletin