All VAT-registered businesses, regardless of turnover, must be signed up to the Making Tax Digital service and follow MTD rules for their first tax return starting on or after 1st April 2022.

If you’re still not sure whether you’re completely MTD compliant, seek advice and act today.

To support the move to net zero the government has put certain tax breaks and incentives in place to help businesses make the shift to more sustainable decision making.

If you’re undertaking building upgrades or will be renewing company cars, for example, this is a good time to think green.

• VAT on energy-saving materials like insulation and solar panels has been removed
• You can claim enhanced capital allowances on new and unused equipment like electric cars, refuelling items like storage tanks, EV charging equipment and more
• You can also claim capital allowances when you buy energy-efficient, or low or zero-carbon technology for your business, reducing the amount of tax you pay
• There are grants available for those purchasing new electric cars and vans that can reduce the price of the vehicles and the cost of installing charging facilities (don’t forget all new buildings must now be fitted with EV charging)
• Fully electric cars also pay very little Company Car Tax (2%) and road tax (Vehicle Excise Duty), are exempt from the congestion charge, and of course, pay no fuel duty

As well as personal NI contributions, employers’ NI contributions have increased – to 15.05%.

Make sure your payroll teams are prepared to apply these changes from 6 April and communicate the individual impact on wages to your people, too.

The rates of primary class 1 NIC paid by employees are increasing on 6 April 2022 from 12% to 13.25%, and then from 2% to 3.25% for the upper rate.

Government investment in research and development is increasing year on year, distributed through tax reliefs, grants, training schemes, and other funding programmes, so putting innovation at the heart of your growth strategy makes sense.

• If you’re already undertaking research and development, make sure you’re claiming for R&D tax relief against those activities using an experienced advisor who will maximise the reward. If you’re not but you regularly adapt existing, or research new, technology or science then don’t put off claiming any longer. It could provide a valuable source of funding
• If you’re earning money from products or services containing a patented innovation, then ensure you’re claiming Patent Box relief. If you have intellectual property that isn’t already patented or commercialised, consider doing so. The two reliefs can work together
• If you have an innovative idea and are looking for funding, explore what Innovate UK has to offer in the way of grants and seek support on your application before spending time on it as grants are valuable but notoriously tricky to access

If you don’t currently innovate but work in a sector where your competitors do, consider whether you can or should also be investing in R&D to stay ahead of the game, take advantage of opportunities, attract the best talent, or simply provide better products/services.

The well-reported skills gap isn’t closing nearly quick enough, leaving many sectors desperate to find the talent they need.

It makes sense to regularly review your staffing requirements against your business objectives and there is additional support out there, including tax breaks, to help train people if that’s what you need.

• £550m is being invested to deliver new T-levels (technical based qualifications) for adults over the next three years (more for 16 – 19-year-olds)
• If you’re paying the apprenticeship levy you can use your levy funds to upskill existing staff. If a current employee wants to learn new skills, progress their career, or take on new responsibilities and it would be appropriate for them to do those things via an apprenticeship, your fund will cover those training costs. You can also gift some of the funds to other businesses – and of course, seek to be the recipient of transferred levy funds if you don’t.
• Corporation Tax, Income Tax and National Insurance Relief may also be available for employees receiving work-related training, depending on who is paying for it and what it's looking to achieve

It's an incredibly competitive job market, the cost of recruitment is high, and the talent pool is small, so reviewing what you need and how you’re supporting your people in their own progression can’t happen too soon.

There’s never really a good time to review accounting processes, especially if you outsource many of these services and don’t want the hassle of switching provider, but it’s important that you do so.

• Look at everything from practices to systems to spot inefficiencies, bad habits, and gaps – in service, skills, disciplines, etc. This is especially important for MTD, which will extend to more taxes beyond VAT in the coming years
• You should also calculate your assets and liabilities at the start of every tax year so you have a good idea of what you owe and own, that way no surprises should appear over the new 12 months
• It might be a good time to do a financial forecast and budget if you haven’t done one recently now that you know your tax obligations for the coming year
• It’s a good idea to check in on your cash flow, too. Balancing cash coming in vs cash going out is the best way to understand the health of your business, and forecasting your cash flow for the coming year will help you make sensible decisions around growth, diversification, and spending generally

Trading relationships have never been more important than in this unstable economic environment.

Now is good time to revisit shared objectives, update suppliers on your plans for the coming year, and to tease out any issues that may be bubbling under the surface.

There may also have been changes to taxes that affect both parties - that perhaps require new reporting, costings, or have strategic implications. For example, Plastic Tax, which came into force this April.

IR35 (off-payroll working) rules have been in effect for all public authorities, and medium and large companies, for over a year now. The rules make sure that workers, who would have been an employee if they were providing their services directly, pay broadly the same Income Tax and National Insurance contributions as employees.

If you’ve returned to or have started using off-payroll workers (contractors) since things have changed, get up to speed on the new rules and review your practices, including all documentation.

Outside of tax, it’s a good idea to review the way you work with contracted staff and freelancers regularly. Non-disclosure agreements, for example, need to stay up to date, and service level agreements should continue to reflect the needs and expectations of both parties.

Just as business owners are feeling the pinch, so are employees.

Good employers can help by reminding staff how to access benefits – both health and wellbeing, and financial – and continuing to support the best possible working conditions.

• Share personal tax tips like claiming marriage allowances and exploring schemes like Rent a Room
• Assess transport policies to ensure things like additional mileage claims for carpoolers and EV tax advantages are clear
• Support home workers by reminding them to claim relief on business expenses incurred at home
• And don’t forget, employers can provide trivial benefits worth up to £50 per employee without paying tax and class 1 NIC (as long as it’s not cash or a cash voucher, not a performance-related bonus, and not in their contracts)

You may also consider implementing tax-efficient employee reward schemes like Enterprise Management Incentives that can help with retaining and motivating staff while also having financial benefits for both parties.

While paperless is the goal for most offices it’s not always possible so there still needs to be some management of what happens to physical information, as well as digital. Particularly now when people are returning back to offices that have been empty for a while, or where home working has become permanent, these things can get forgotten about.

• Make sure you are GDPR compliant in the way you handle all externally gathered data
• Consider reviewing data protection policies for staff information, too
• Don't forget you need to keep accurate records for a variety of tax compliance issues and be ready to show HMRC your data

If you’re continuing hybrid or remote working and have no rules in place to secure off-site equipment and paperwork, make some and communicate them and the consequences of breaking them clearly.

Remind home workers to responsibly dispose of company paperwork and provide the means for them to do so if needed (sensitive documentation collection services, paper shredding equipment, etc). If you're back in the office, do a sweep to see if anything needs filing, archiving, or destroying.