The trouble is, that’s the last thing you should do. Despite continuing Government promises to simplify the tax system, most people still find sorting out their tax complicated and confusing. And what’s true for individuals is just as true for businesses.

That’s why taking some specialist tax advice is such a good idea. According to recent studies, both individuals and companies in the UK are overpaying their tax – in simple terms, giving money to the Government that they don’t need to.

Some people think they don’t need tax advice because they already have an accountant. The trouble is not all accountants are tax specialists, especially the one-man bands. Even for the small, local firms, keeping up with the ever changing complexities of the tax system is a difficult and time-consuming job.

So what can a good tax adviser do for you? Jim Smith, senior taxation partner at PKF accountants and business advisers said, “The list is almost endless. Obviously businesses and individuals are our starting point. Some people think you need to be wealthy, or be a multi-million pound business to benefit from tax advice. Nothing could be further from the truth.”

Smith pointed out that increasingly PKF were helping clients with international tax, as well as advising on employment tax and inheritance tax. “Despite the threshold for inheritance tax going up,” he said, “There’s still clear evidence that the beneficiaries of estates are paying more tax than they need to.”

Another area where PKF are doing an increasing amount of work is with VAT – and the increase to 20% in the New Year is bound to bring accounting and tax problems for business.

Jim Smith finished off with a warning. “Remember,” he said, “the Revenue now has increased powers to levy fines and penalties if you get your tax wrong or if you miss deadlines. So a good tax adviser can save you time and money – and a lot of heartache.”

By loading account details into the software, with the press of a button, Kashflow can pay staff whilst producing accounts which are HMRC recognised.

The fully integrated option on Kashflow is called PayEscape, whereby you simply enter into the website the number of hours your staff have worked and they take care of the rest from producing payslips to sending the accounting data to KashFlow.

Another key benefit is that it automates the accounting of all sales and purchases that a small business makes via Paypal. Totally eliminating hours of data entry. The Kashflow / Paypal package is the first of its kind and means small business owners who run online retail sites or eBay shops will now have an automated and seamless online process for logging sales on their accounting software.

Chairman of KashFlow and former Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Lord Young of Graffham said,

“This is an exciting announcement and there is a great deal of synergy between the two brands, the demonstrated ability to be able to predict and be prepared for future market trends along with the fact that we have both won awards that have been chosen by our users rather than a judging panel. To get the chance to partner with such a globally renowned brand such as PayPal not only demonstrates how far KashFlow has come as a business, but also speaks volumes about the team behind the company and of whom I am immensely proud”.
Cameron McLean, General Manager of Merchant Services, at Paypal comments,

“We are delighted to have partnered with KashFlow who like PayPal, have a strong foothold in the SME market and offer PayPal a great way to reach a significant audience. Enabling small businesses to link directly to PayPal accounts at the click of a button not only offers convenience but helps safeguard against sales data being lost or entered incorrectly due to human error. In addition a number of SMEs that use KashFlow are also PayPal customers saving business a huge amount of time.”

The long-running spat between Kashflow and Sage has subsided, with an agreement by the SaaS vendor to remove pricing comparisons with Sage from its website. The resolution followed the intervention of Newcastle Trading Standards, which was contacted by Sage at the end of 2008.

In a blog post entitled ‘Sage Multiple Anticlimax’, Kashflow founder Duane Jackson revealed details on the agreement:

“I’ve agreed a resolution with Newcastle Trading Standards. We agreed that it’d take considerable time and resources on my part to prove my case…the easiest thing is for us just to remove the comparison that they objected to so we can focus on growing the business.”

Tensions between the two companies came to a head when SageLive, the company’s SaaS solution, was unveiled last year. In a Kashflow blog post on 21 January, Jackson criticised the security within the beta version of Sage’s prospective product. The response from Sage was dramatic: just days after Jackson’s post appeared, SageLive’s beta was taken offline, and is yet to make a re-appearance.

SageLive’s current status was mentioned in Jackson’s ’Sage Multiple Anticlimax’ post, where he commented: “I’ve been hearing on the grapevine that the problems are so fundamental that [Sage Live will] never be back – not in anything like it’s former guise anyway.” Sage has refused to comment on the outcome with Trading Standards, and isn’t expected to provide an update to SageLive’s future until the publication of its interim financial results, due on 6 May.

“Accounting staff really are the unsung heroes of the small business community,” said Adam Harper, Director of Professional Development at the AAT.  “Keeping on top of developments in legislation is a technical challenge and is likely to be time-consuming for most small business owners.”

A 2007 HBOS survey found that 75% of small businesses were run by Directors with no financial training and 55% of SME business owners, with sole responsibility for financial matters within their firm did so without any form of external professional financial assistance.

“It’s a false economy for business owners not to get professional help with their finances, or to get some financial training themselves”, continued Harper.  “The costs incurred by basic errors or ignorance could make a big difference to a small business at this time.”
The Government is now providing additional training support for privately-owned SMEs, employing up to 250 people, to help them increase their productivity.  A number of key SME Finance areas have been identified and training is available through stand-alone modules or ‘thin’ qualifications that address specific skill areas, like introductory accounting and bookkeeping which are awarded by the AAT.

For further information about the AAT, its financial qualifications and the accountancy services offered by its members, check the ATT site or call 0845 863 0802

To find out more about the UK Government’s ‘SME Flexibilities’ funding programme*, please contact your local ‘Train to Gain’ Broker or call  0800 015 55 45.  (*This funding scheme is not available in Scotland)

Watch the video ‘Colin: A new kind of Superhero’ here.

Business rates are the third largest cost to SMEs per annum and rate relief could be worth up to £1200 per firm. Despite this, over £400m of Business Rates Relief goes unclaimed each year, in large part because firms are not aware of the opportunity. The scheme, introduced in 1990 but is due to close on April 1st (today), further impacting on small businesses.

Over a quarter of a million British companies filed their accounts late in 2007, an increase of 25% since 2003, and the trend is expected to continue in 2009 as firms struggle in a recessionary climate.  Fines for late filing increased dramatically in January 2009, with companies now being charged £150 for forms submitted up to four weeks late, or £375 if this period extends to three months. Small businesses also have to pay a 5% surcharge if they are three months late in paying.  In addition, fines automatically double if firms are found to have submitted the previous year’s returns late. Late filing costs for 2007/8 exceed £53m and are likely to increase 2008/9.

Ignorance of the ‘Time to Pay’ scheme, which was introduced in November 2008 (with immediate effect) and is administered by HMRC Business Payment Support Service, adds to the loss.  Only 60,000 businesses, out of a potential 4.7 million, have arranged to spread their tax burden with HMRC.

AAT concedes that it is unsurprising that business owners struggle with the nightmare of the UK tax system – Only India has a more complex tax code. Director of Corporate Resources Tom Kelman has called for greater clarity and easier access to support and guidance from the authorities, but adds that business owners must shoulder some of the responsibility;

“It really is a false economy for business owners not to get professional help with their finances, or to get some financial training themselves.  The costs incurred by basic errors or ignorance could have a major impact and could make or break a small business at this time.”

Adra Match specializes in software for the correlation of data for the reconciliation of accounts within an organisation.

Account match can work independently while working with data from different sources and programs, without interfering with any process or without any extra configuration from existing accounting packages which means that you are able to have a system working to your needs within your timeframe.

Accounting departments are experiencing deadlines that are becoming shorter, while the demands of fast and accurate reporting are increasing.

Reconciliation of the accounts is an important factor in ensuring that the delivered reports are correct. Manual processes also depend on the person performing them.

With electronic reconciliation you can now introduce a standard routine for all reconciliations throughout your organisation.

The Account match solution takes advantage of the newest technology to meet the challenges rising in reconciliation. The tool can be used in many different areas such as:

• Bank Reconciliation
• Reconciliation of different settlements such a credit cards etc
• Reconciliation of transactions between customers and suppliers
• Internal accounts
• Suspense accounts
The solution is delivered as a package consisting of the software, consulting, support and continual development of the solution to match your needs for years to come.

The architecture of the software is designed to support your organisation with flexible solutions in setting up account structure, clients and other departments.

The range of customer types and reconciliation needs differs from company to company and even within departments in the same organisation.

Adra Match is designed by accountants for accountants