Other news in brief

The date of this year’s Autumn Statement has now been confirmed – the Chancellor of the Exchequer will present the Autumn Statement to Parliament on Wednesday 22 November 2023. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) will also prepare an economic and fiscal forecast to be presented alongside the Autumn Statement. There has already been press comment that tax cuts are unlikely to be announced given the inflationary backdrop and the fact that it has been designated a ‘Statement’ rather than a full Budget may suggest a relatively ‘light touch’ fiscal event from a tax perspective. We will publish our predictions nearer the time. 

In the last edition of Tax Matters Digest we reported that HMRC had updated the guidance at SAOG10300 in the Senior Accounting Officer (SAO) Guidance manual to include two new taxes in the list of taxes included within the scope of the SAO provisions: the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) and Land Transaction Tax (LTT). The reasoning behind this change was unclear. Since then, on 11 September 2023, HMRC updated the guidance again to remove LTT but, at the time of writing, CIS is still listed. We are still seeking clarification on the position from HMRC and will provide further updates when the position is clearer.

The Tonnage Tax training requirement has been amended with effect from 1 October 2023 by The Tonnage Tax (Training Requirement) (Amendment etc.) Regulations 2023 (SI 2023/983). The change made is to increase payments in lieu of training (PILOTs) in line with UK inflation. A company which is unable to provide the required training may propose to make PILOTs. The new regulations increase the PILOT from £1,326 to £1,421 per calendar month per trainee with effect from 1 October 2023. There are penalties for non-compliance in the form of a 50 percent or - for repeated non-compliance – 100 percent increase in the basic rate of PILOTs payable in following periods. The regulations also increase the basic rate from £1,234 to £1,329 per calendar month per trainee with effect from 1 October 2023. We note that these rates were not increased in October 2022 hence the increase represents two years’ worth of inflation.

New rules for the reporting of Common Reporting Standard (CRS) avoidance arrangements and opaque offshore structures under MDR came into force in the UK from 28 March 2023. HMRC had previously released partial guidance but, as expected, comprehensive guidance has now been published in the International Exchange of Information Manual at IEIM700000. 

As the school holidays come to an end and with Christmas holidays on the horizon, we underline key points for employers to remain compliant with their holiday pay obligations. This article by Eloise Knapton, Head of Employer Reward Services, KPMG in the UK, looks at the basics, potential changes and practical tips.

You’ve probably seen press coverage of recent high profile cyber-attacks targeting outsourced payroll providers. These highlight the business critical importance of running and maintaining a secure payroll, and the importance of employee data handling across organisations both locally and globally. In a recent blog post, Emily Salathiel, Elizabeth Huthman, and Isabel Simpson, KPMG in the UK, discuss the latest in a series of attacks and how being able to respond to the resulting cyber, legal and security considerations is the priority. 

Over the past three years, remote work has become an integral part of our working world. The ability to work from anywhere has transformed how we work, removing geographical limitations and reshaping the traditional office-based model. Based on the views of more than 580 global mobility professionals from 52 countries who participated in the KPMG International webcast, “Work from Anywhere: It’s been three years”, this recently published report provides insights into their current remote work policies and applications.

Read KPMG’s latest macroeconomics report which looks at long-term fiscal challenges in Europe and provides analysis on government spending pressures, sources of government revenue, rising cost of public sector debt and the outlook for fiscal reforms.