Contractor client conference to reveal key contract worker strategies by leading clients
Contractor clients are expected to reveal a range of key strategies for managing the UK’s contingent workforce at the 5th Annual Temporary & Contract Workforce Conference on Tuesday 31 March. The speakers are from major client organisations including Thales Group, Travelex and SearchFlow. Additional presentations on legislation and regulation and trends will come from Staffing Industry Analysts, Paris Smith LLP and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation’s (REC). More...
IR35 will no longer be relevant if OTS ESR recommendations are implemented
IR35 could become irrelevant if the recommendations made by the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) in its Employment Status Review are implemented by the government. ContractorCalculator CEO Dave Chaplin notes: “One of the proposed solutions is to devise a statutory employment test. Should such a test be created and come into force, then it is likely to become the de facto standard for determining employment status for the purpose of taxation. IR35 would no longer be relevant.” More...
Oil and gas contractors need to seek contracts further afield, following job losses
Oil and gas contractors working in the North Sea should consider marketing their highly sought-after skills in other oil and gas provinces following the news that Royal Dutch Shell plans 250 contract and job cuts. The Telegraph’s Andrew Critchlow reports that Shell: “Will reduce the number of staff and agency contractors in employs in the North Sea by 250 in 2015 in a bid to cut costs.” This is despite the range of tax measures introduced in the Budget 2015 to incentivise exploration and production in the region. More...
Contractors need pension and maternity pay reforms, says IPSE
Contractors deserve a more effective pensions and maternity pay regime that better accounts for the needs of the self-employed. This is according to the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE), which is proposing a range of measures that include allowing self-employed mothers to claim statutory maternity pay. “If government reformed such benefits, particularly maternity/paternity pay and pensions, it would help independent professionals reach their full potential and the wider economy would reap the rewards,” believes Simon McVicker, director of policy and external affairs at IPSE. More...
Umbrella contractors with compliant providers won’t be affected by holiday pay ruling
Umbrella company contractors using compliant service providers are unlikely to be affected by the Lock v British Gas Trading ruling over sales commission and holiday pay. The ruling says that holiday pay for workers on commission should be varied according to their commission – this means many workers could see an increase in their paid holiday. “Compliant, professional umbrella employers…offer contractors and temporary workers holiday pay as part of their employment terms,” explains Juliet Byrne, legal director at professional umbrella employer Parasol. “We have always factored commission into our contractor employees’ holiday pay where relevant, and continue to do so. The ruling will therefore have no impact on either us or our employees.” More...
Contractors across Europe to gain greater representation following EFIP expansion
Contractors in five European nations will have greater representation now that their national contracting organisations have joined the European Forum of Independent Professionals (EFIP). Organisations from Romania, Poland, Croatia, Spain and Sweden have expanded EFIP’s membership. According to EFIP vice-president Francesca Pesce, the new members bring: “New faces, new energy and new colours to EFIP. The organisations from Eastern European countries are characterised by young members, above all young women. They have many ideas and a great deal of enthusiasm.” More...
HMRC’s management of contractor tax reliefs targeted by PAC
HMRC’s management of contractor tax reliefs have been criticised by the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC), with the taxman accused of underestimating how much they cost the Exchequer. In a new report, the PAC highlights that reliefs cost £100bn a year and that HMRC lists only 398 of the 1,140 tax reliefs that the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) identified in its own study. The PAC criticised HMRC, saying: “HMRC does not keep track of those tax reliefs intended to influence behaviour. [It] does not adequately report to Parliament or the public on whether reliefs are working as intended and what they cost and whether they represent good value for money,” More...
Contractor prospects in the manufacturing sector are “broadly steady”, says the CBI
Contractors targeting clients in the UK manufacturing sector can expect “broadly steady” market conditions, according to the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) latest Industrial Trends Survey. Prospects over the next quarter are also looking positive as “manufacturers expect to ramp up production even further over the next three months”. CBI director of economics Rain Newton-Smith says: “Measures in the Budget to support exporters should be a welcome boost for the sector’s longer-term prospects.” More...
Contractors can access the latest list of approved professional bodies from HMRC
Contractors can check whether their professional organisation or learned society is on HMRC’s approved list following the publication of the latest Professional bodies approved for tax relief list. If a contractor’s membership organisation is on the list, they can qualify for tax relief on the costs of membership. “You can reclaim tax you pay on fees or subscriptions to some approved professional organisations - but only if you must have membership to do your job or it’s helpful for your work,” explains HMRC. More...
Contractors at risk of overzealous enforcement of new offshore tax evasion laws
Contractors with offshore assets may be at risk of criminal prosecution under proposed new offshore tax evasion laws even if they did not intend to evade tax. The Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) warns the government that, unlike other criminal law, the new ‘strict liability’ offence does not require there to be ‘criminal intent’ for an individual to face criminal charges. “Any new measures should be based on sound legal principles,” explains CIOT Tax Policy Director Patrick Stevens. “One of these is that in order to make a criminal conviction it should generally be required to show that the act was committed with criminal intent. The proposed strict liability offence for failing to declare overseas income and gains fails this test. A taxpayer may fall within the ambit of the offence without any intention or knowledge on their part.” More...