People with prepayment meters should get priority for new, money-saving energy technology, charities say.
Source: BBC
Monthly Archives: June 2021
Brewdog: Watchdog urged to probe 'solid gold can' prize
The brewery company could be in hot water as winners dispute the value of the “solid gold” beer cans.
Source: BBC
Makeup firm Revolution Beauty plans share sale
The move comes eight years after the firm behind brands such as Makeup Revolution was founded.
Source: BBC
Press release: Almost 800,000 tax relief claims for working from home
Employees who have worked from home during the pandemic but are now returning to offices can still claim tax relief on household expenses for this tax year.
Source: HMRC
Senior execs can avoid full quarantine when visiting England
Senior executives from overseas will no longer need to quarantine when arriving in England if their trip is likely to be of “significant economic benefit to the UK”, it has been announced.
Source: Sky Business News
Basics of small business accounting: tips and tools for beginners
Originally written by Alice Feilden on Small Business
Small business accounting can be daunting. But, this handy guide will help in getting your small business accounting right from the very beginning.
Step one: Know what’s required
It’s important to keep financial records from the very beginning of a business, no matter how incidental the expenses or how rudimentary the system. Companies based in the UK must be listed on Companies House and businesses must be registered with HMRC. Make sure to organise a financial record-keeping system too, which is legally required, and set up a business bank account. This will allow your business to take out a loan, use a business credit card and take card and online payments from clients.
Step two: Understand bookkeeping and accounting
Small business bookkeeping and small company accounting are often confused with one another or taken to mean the same thing. But they’re not! Bookkeeping is the process of recording and reporting company finances and acts as a small but crucial part of basic business accounting.
By extension, accounting is the process of analysing and examining financial information to create a business strategy, establish forecasts and make decisions.
As a small business, it’s worth first getting to grips with the fundamentals of coherent bookkeeping, as there is a legal obligation to record financial data. You can always expand to accounting once you and your business are ready.
Step three: Choosing a system
In the past, businesses ran a general ledger, a physical book full of written financial records. This is perhaps the most important accounting record for a small business. These days, most use computer software to maintain their ledgers and record incomings, outgoings and general accounts.
There are three methods of basic bookkeeping for small businesses. Many opt for the most straightforward and choose a spreadsheet software, something like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, to track finances. Before you choose, it’s useful to know whether you will be using a single- or double-entry bookkeeping system.
Spreadsheet software is often cheap and straightforward — many small business owners will find they already have Excel downloaded onto their computers. But woefully, we’ve all heard the tales of Excel nightmares and spreadsheets have their downsides. Famously, J.P. Morgan lost more than $2bn thanks to a spreadsheet issue, compounded as a single error which fed into other calculations.
Another option for small company maintenance is desktop accounting bookkeeping software, a downloaded external programme. Examples of this kind of software include QuickBooks Desktop and Sage 50cloud, a desktop accounting system that can be used to share data with productivity applications using the cloud.
Desktop software can help mitigate some of the flaws inherent to spreadsheets. Perks to this kind of small business bookkeeping include the ability to make forecasts, reduced time spent manually
inputting data and greater support and security from providers. Small business owners, however, can be put off by the higher price to entry, need to update software and difficulties sharing data.
The most advanced option of the three is cloud accounting, which uses cloud-based bookkeeping software. Examples of cloud accounting software include var appWikiRequestUrl = “https://appwiki.nl”;
https://appwiki.nl/js/appwikiwpplugin.js
QuickBooks Online, Zoho Books and Wave. This method means you don’t have to install software onto your device and can access accounts from anywhere in the world, provided you have an internet connection. You don’t even need a computer – a phone or tablet will suffice.
Take time to shop around and have a look through the software available on the market. Some of the most useful basic accounting features for small businesses include timesaving automation, which can be set up to help save time on invoicing and handling accounts. This article discusses some of the best accounting software available for small businesses.
Software can also help with tax preparation. Programs offer automatic calculations, reporting and multiple tax rate features. Forgo the payday headache: also available in the market are payroll and payment processing services which can make it easier to pay employees.
Each system has individual pros and cons, and it is worth spending time trying to figure out what might work best for an individual business. Alternatively, some small businesses choose to renounce all financial duties and outsource, employing an external bookkeeper or accountant.
var appWikiRequestUrl = “https://appwiki.nl”;
https://appwiki.nl/js/appwikiwpplugin.js
Step four: Getting started
Once you’ve picked an accounting system and settled in, it’s important to start recording financials to get an accurate picture of what’s happening under the bonnet of your business. At this stage, small businesses must make sure they are recording transactions correctly and in the right account. Mismatched account balances mean companies won’t be able to balance or close their books every quarter — by zeroing out income and expenses and entering net profits or losses into the balance sheet — or make informed financial decisions.
Small businesses can also take the opportunity of investigating their finances to manage taxation, set up payroll and calculate gross margins.
With the books balanced, you can start to use the accounts to generate financial reports. Many will find it useful to create a balance sheet – a document which summarises assets, liabilities and equities within a business. The balance sheet shows the current health of a company and can indicate things like whether a business can expand or should concentrate on cutting costs.
Similarly, a quarterly profit and loss statement can be a useful resource for small business accounting. This document breaks down revenues, costs and expenses over an established time period. A profit and loss statement can also be used to compare sales and expenses and make forecasts.
Cash flow statements are a mandatory part of a company’s financial reports. They are similar to profit and loss statements but do not include non-cash items. Cash flow statements help show where businesses are earning and spending money as well as immediate viability and their capacity to pay bills.
As you grow, you will want to continuously reassess your chosen bookkeeping method. While a business is small, it might make sense to begin with a simple Excel spreadsheet, but as the company
expands you may want to think about a new bookkeeping system. Eventually, perhaps, you could grow big enough to hire an in-house accountant.
Step five: The takeaway
Whichever small business bookkeeping and accounting system you choose, getting to grips with the basics will help you understand your company, make savvy business decisions and better manage finances. Put the work in early and save time, money and heartache by setting up a scalable, coherent system right from the start — you will always be pleased you did so.
Basics of small business accounting: tips and tools for beginners
Source: SmallBusinessUK
Basics of small business accounting: tips and tools for beginners
Originally written by Alice Feilden on Small Business
Small business accounting can be daunting. But, this handy guide will help in getting your small business accounting right from the very beginning.
Step one: Know what’s required
It’s important to keep financial records from the very beginning of a business, no matter how incidental the expenses or how rudimentary the system. Companies based in the UK must be listed on Companies House and businesses must be registered with HMRC. Make sure to organise a financial record-keeping system too, which is legally required, and set up a business bank account. This will allow your business to take out a loan, use a business credit card and take card and online payments from clients.
Step two: Understand bookkeeping and accounting
Small business bookkeeping and small company accounting are often confused with one another or taken to mean the same thing. But they’re not! Bookkeeping is the process of recording and reporting company finances and acts as a small but crucial part of basic business accounting.
By extension, accounting is the process of analysing and examining financial information to create a business strategy, establish forecasts and make decisions.
As a small business, it’s worth first getting to grips with the fundamentals of coherent bookkeeping, as there is a legal obligation to record financial data. You can always expand to accounting once you and your business are ready.
Step three: Choosing a system
In the past, businesses ran a general ledger, a physical book full of written financial records. This is perhaps the most important accounting record for a small business. These days, most use computer software to maintain their ledgers and record incomings, outgoings and general accounts.
There are three methods of basic bookkeeping for small businesses. Many opt for the most straightforward and choose a spreadsheet software, something like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, to track finances. Before you choose, it’s useful to know whether you will be using a single- or double-entry bookkeeping system.
Spreadsheet software is often cheap and straightforward — many small business owners will find they already have Excel downloaded onto their computers. But woefully, we’ve all heard the tales of Excel nightmares and spreadsheets have their downsides. Famously, J.P. Morgan lost more than $2bn thanks to a spreadsheet issue, compounded as a single error which fed into other calculations.
Another option for small company maintenance is desktop accounting bookkeeping software, a downloaded external programme. Examples of this kind of software include QuickBooks Desktop and Sage 50cloud, a desktop accounting system that can be used to share data with productivity applications using the cloud.
Desktop software can help mitigate some of the flaws inherent to spreadsheets. Perks to this kind of small business bookkeeping include the ability to make forecasts, reduced time spent manually
inputting data and greater support and security from providers. Small business owners, however, can be put off by the higher price to entry, need to update software and difficulties sharing data.
The most advanced option of the three is cloud accounting, which uses cloud-based bookkeeping software. Examples of cloud accounting software include var appWikiRequestUrl = “https://appwiki.nl”;
https://appwiki.nl/js/appwikiwpplugin.js
QuickBooks Online, Zoho Books and Wave. This method means you don’t have to install software onto your device and can access accounts from anywhere in the world, provided you have an internet connection. You don’t even need a computer – a phone or tablet will suffice.
Take time to shop around and have a look through the software available on the market. Some of the most useful basic accounting features for small businesses include timesaving automation, which can be set up to help save time on invoicing and handling accounts. This article discusses some of the best accounting software available for small businesses.
Software can also help with tax preparation. Programs offer automatic calculations, reporting and multiple tax rate features. Forgo the payday headache: also available in the market are payroll and payment processing services which can make it easier to pay employees.
Each system has individual pros and cons, and it is worth spending time trying to figure out what might work best for an individual business. Alternatively, some small businesses choose to renounce all financial duties and outsource, employing an external bookkeeper or accountant.
var appWikiRequestUrl = “https://appwiki.nl”;
https://appwiki.nl/js/appwikiwpplugin.js
Step four: Getting started
Once you’ve picked an accounting system and settled in, it’s important to start recording financials to get an accurate picture of what’s happening under the bonnet of your business. At this stage, small businesses must make sure they are recording transactions correctly and in the right account. Mismatched account balances mean companies won’t be able to balance or close their books every quarter — by zeroing out income and expenses and entering net profits or losses into the balance sheet — or make informed financial decisions.
Small businesses can also take the opportunity of investigating their finances to manage taxation, set up payroll and calculate gross margins.
With the books balanced, you can start to use the accounts to generate financial reports. Many will find it useful to create a balance sheet – a document which summarises assets, liabilities and equities within a business. The balance sheet shows the current health of a company and can indicate things like whether a business can expand or should concentrate on cutting costs.
Similarly, a quarterly profit and loss statement can be a useful resource for small business accounting. This document breaks down revenues, costs and expenses over an established time period. A profit and loss statement can also be used to compare sales and expenses and make forecasts.
Cash flow statements are a mandatory part of a company’s financial reports. They are similar to profit and loss statements but do not include non-cash items. Cash flow statements help show where businesses are earning and spending money as well as immediate viability and their capacity to pay bills.
As you grow, you will want to continuously reassess your chosen bookkeeping method. While a business is small, it might make sense to begin with a simple Excel spreadsheet, but as the company
expands you may want to think about a new bookkeeping system. Eventually, perhaps, you could grow big enough to hire an in-house accountant.
Step five: The takeaway
Whichever small business bookkeeping and accounting system you choose, getting to grips with the basics will help you understand your company, make savvy business decisions and better manage finances. Put the work in early and save time, money and heartache by setting up a scalable, coherent system right from the start — you will always be pleased you did so.
Basics of small business accounting: tips and tools for beginners
Source: SmallBusinessUK
Vauxhall owner: Government must back battery gigafactories to drive electric future
Government must back its commitment to electric vehicles with financial support for new battery gigafactories and manufacturers considering where to build the next generation of cars and vans, Vauxhall’s parent company has told Sky News.
Source: Sky Business News
The EU VAT e-commerce package: how accounting can help
Originally written by Dan Matthews on Small Business
On 1 July, the European Union will change the way in which VAT is reported and paid, potentially impacting anyone in the UK operating a business selling products & services online to consumers and practicing distance selling.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has caused a big shift in working patterns and, as a result, a lot of people have out of necessity or opportunity taken to start up an e-commerce business or switch to digital selling,”
“The change to EU VAT reporting will help. It’s designed to simplify tax reporting, promote ecommerce and increase online cross-border transactions. It will support small business and remove barriers in a post-Brexit environment.” says Asif Chaudhry, Director, Product Marketing at Sage.
What will change?
The changes are that for sales to consumers (basically anyone without a VAT registration) the VAT is charged based on which country the customer is in, not the country of the seller. Prior to this date there were thresholds, and businesses selling below these thresholds could charge their home VAT rates which avoided needing to know many different VAT rates.
Alongside this change the EU is expanding their one stop shop (OSS) simplifications which optionally allow businesses outside of the EU to report all service sales in a single VAT return. In addition, non-EU businesses can report the sale of goods where the value of each manifest is valued at less than €150 via the import one stop shop (IOSS). Businesses based in the EU still also need to report domestic sales using their normal VAT returns.
The OSS and IOSS systems are optional, but the alternative means a lot more paperwork, so it’s a good idea to understand the new system and take advantage of what’s on offer, according to Chaudhry.
If you sign up for the OSS, then this is how you will deal with VAT on all EU sales, regardless of which country’s consumers are buying from you, be they in Spain, Germany or France, for example.
The IOSS reduces complexity for your EU customers. Instead of zero-rating products for VAT to be added later, buyers see the full price of a product, including tax. Speeding up customs requirements could also mean goods arrive faster, giving you another chance to boost customer satisfaction. In both cases, sellers sign-up via a website and can report and pay VAT at the same online destination.
On top of these changes, the EU will remove distance selling thresholds, meaning that sellers need to know the VAT rates for the country where their customers are located, and apply the correct VAT rate on the invoice.
“The one stop system is optional and you have time to adapt,” Chaudhry explains. “There is no need to worry or feel you have to hit the deadline; if you are trading with the EU, it’s about knowing your options and understanding that Sage has you covered.
“A lot more people are selling online and attracting a global audience, whether they intended to or not, so it’s good to be aware of these beneficial changes. Be aware, but also know that this is not a trap.”
<div id=”attachment_2552988″ class=”wp-caption alignnone” 
Asif Chaudhry, Director, Product Marketing at Sage.
How can accounting software help?
The best accounting software packages, such as Sage, are HMRC compliant and automatically update with new regulations, making it easier for small businesses to comply whether changes are mandatory or simply recommended.
It removes the burden of having to keep up to date with the law, remember dates of introduction and update your system manually to account for new ways of working. Entrepreneurs can take advantage by switching attention to business development and expansion plans, instead of spending time on new rules.
“The Sage accounting system will be ready with VAT rates built into the system, as well as other tax and financial information at your fingertips. If you create an invoice for one of the 27 EU countries, it will display the rate and you can choose the most applicable option,” says Chaudhry.
An automated accounting system helps you adapt to a changing world. Exporters, whether they sell high-fashion or spare parts, must deal with a shifting legislative landscape, even more so when your business grows and hits new financial thresholds.
It can also shed light on how your business is performing, for example by isolating fast-selling units of stock, highlighting areas where cashflow is under strain or providing insights into seasonal peaks and troughs in activity.
“VAT rates change depending on how your business scales” says Chaudhry. “That’s just one way things can change, so it’s important to adopt a solution that grows with you. There’s no point going for a basic option that could cost more in the long run.
“Better to go for something compliant, that integrates with leading shopping cart software, provides options for growing businesses, offers excellent customer service and brings a repository of relevant business advice. We can adapt and expand with you, providing the best possible support.”
For full guidance on the EU VAT E-commerce Package, visit https://www.sage.com/en-gb/blog/ecommerce-vat-eu-need-to-know/
The EU VAT e-commerce package: how accounting can help
Source: SmallBusinessUK
The EU VAT e-commerce package: how accounting can help
Originally written by Dan Matthews on Small Business
On 1 July, the European Union will change the way in which VAT is reported and paid, potentially impacting anyone in the UK operating a business selling products & services online to consumers and practicing distance selling.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has caused a big shift in working patterns and, as a result, a lot of people have out of necessity or opportunity taken to start up an e-commerce business or switch to digital selling,”
“The change to EU VAT reporting will help. It’s designed to simplify tax reporting, promote ecommerce and increase online cross-border transactions. It will support small business and remove barriers in a post-Brexit environment.” says Asif Chaudhry, Director, Product Marketing at Sage.
What will change?
The changes are that for sales to consumers (basically anyone without a VAT registration) the VAT is charged based on which country the customer is in, not the country of the seller. Prior to this date there were thresholds, and businesses selling below these thresholds could charge their home VAT rates which avoided needing to know many different VAT rates.
Alongside this change the EU is expanding their one stop shop (OSS) simplifications which optionally allow businesses outside of the EU to report all service sales in a single VAT return. In addition, non-EU businesses can report the sale of goods where the value of each manifest is valued at less than €150 via the import one stop shop (IOSS). Businesses based in the EU still also need to report domestic sales using their normal VAT returns.
The OSS and IOSS systems are optional, but the alternative means a lot more paperwork, so it’s a good idea to understand the new system and take advantage of what’s on offer, according to Chaudhry.
If you sign up for the OSS, then this is how you will deal with VAT on all EU sales, regardless of which country’s consumers are buying from you, be they in Spain, Germany or France, for example.
The IOSS reduces complexity for your EU customers. Instead of zero-rating products for VAT to be added later, buyers see the full price of a product, including tax. Speeding up customs requirements could also mean goods arrive faster, giving you another chance to boost customer satisfaction. In both cases, sellers sign-up via a website and can report and pay VAT at the same online destination.
On top of these changes, the EU will remove distance selling thresholds, meaning that sellers need to know the VAT rates for the country where their customers are located, and apply the correct VAT rate on the invoice.
“The one stop system is optional and you have time to adapt,” Chaudhry explains. “There is no need to worry or feel you have to hit the deadline; if you are trading with the EU, it’s about knowing your options and understanding that Sage has you covered.
“A lot more people are selling online and attracting a global audience, whether they intended to or not, so it’s good to be aware of these beneficial changes. Be aware, but also know that this is not a trap.”
<div id=”attachment_2552988″ class=”wp-caption alignnone”
Asif Chaudhry, Director, Product Marketing at Sage.
How can accounting software help?
The best accounting software packages, such as Sage, are HMRC compliant and automatically update with new regulations, making it easier for small businesses to comply whether changes are mandatory or simply recommended.
It removes the burden of having to keep up to date with the law, remember dates of introduction and update your system manually to account for new ways of working. Entrepreneurs can take advantage by switching attention to business development and expansion plans, instead of spending time on new rules.
“The Sage accounting system will be ready with VAT rates built into the system, as well as other tax and financial information at your fingertips. If you create an invoice for one of the 27 EU countries, it will display the rate and you can choose the most applicable option,” says Chaudhry.
An automated accounting system helps you adapt to a changing world. Exporters, whether they sell high-fashion or spare parts, must deal with a shifting legislative landscape, even more so when your business grows and hits new financial thresholds.
It can also shed light on how your business is performing, for example by isolating fast-selling units of stock, highlighting areas where cashflow is under strain or providing insights into seasonal peaks and troughs in activity.
“VAT rates change depending on how your business scales” says Chaudhry. “That’s just one way things can change, so it’s important to adopt a solution that grows with you. There’s no point going for a basic option that could cost more in the long run.
“Better to go for something compliant, that integrates with leading shopping cart software, provides options for growing businesses, offers excellent customer service and brings a repository of relevant business advice. We can adapt and expand with you, providing the best possible support.”
For full guidance on the EU VAT E-commerce Package, visit https://www.sage.com/en-gb/blog/ecommerce-vat-eu-need-to-know/
The EU VAT e-commerce package: how accounting can help
Source: SmallBusinessUK