Bright Beans Accountancy

08/08/2024

Below are some of the types of businesses that can benefit from this tip.

Agencies: 📢 Marketing agencies get retainer fees for ongoing services. PR firms collect advance payments for PR campaigns. Talent agencies receive fees for future bookings and management services.

Subscription-Based Services: 📡 Companies like Salesforce or Adobe Creative Cloud charge annual or monthly fees upfront. Media and streaming platforms like Netflix or Spotify where customers pay for access over a period.

Membership Organisations: 💪 Fitness centers and gyms collect membership fees paid annually or monthly in advance. Professional associations like the Medical Association or Bar Association receive annual dues.

Professional Services: ⚖️ Legal firms get retainer fees paid for ongoing legal services. Consulting firms receive advance payments for projects that span several months.
🏛️ Architects get upfront or milestone-based payments for design and planning services. Engineering firms receive advance payments for project phases like initial design or feasibility studies.

E-commerce and Retail: 🎁 Retailers like Amazon or Walmart record the sale of gift cards as deferred revenue until they are redeemed.

Educational Institutions: 🎓 Universities and colleges collect tuition fees paid before the semester starts. Online course providers like Coursera or Udemy receive payments for courses delivered over time.

Event Organisers: 🎟️ Conferences and seminars sell tickets for future events. Entertainment events like concerts, sports, and theater performances receive advance ticket sales.

Insurance Companies: 🛡️ Health and life insurance premiums are paid annually or semi-annually for coverage over the policy period.

Construction and Real Estate: 🏗️ Construction companies receive progress payments for long-term projects. Real estate developers collect advance payments for units in under-construction properties.

Travel and Hospitality: ✈️ Airlines get payments for flight tickets booked in advance. Hotels and resorts receive advance bookings and deposits for future stays.

Telecommunications: 📞 Phone and internet providers bill in advance for services like internet, phone, and cable subscriptions.

Utilities: 🔌 Energy companies receive prepayments for services like electricity or gas.

Technology and Hardware: 💻 Companies like Cisco or IBM receive payments for maintenance contracts and support services for hardware over time.

As always, take professional advice before you act on this.

23/08/2023

Save £££ when receiving/transferring money abroad

21/07/2023

🚨 Short Term Landlords - Airbnb has sent your contact information to HMRC. 🚨

👍 The Good: Airbnb has stated on their website that only hosts who had a listing in the UK or were required to pay tax in the UK during the 2017/18 and 2018/19 tax years are included in the recent data sharing with HMRC.

⚠️ The Bad: However, this could potentially mislead newer landlords into thinking they don't need to declare their income. In reality, it's an opportune time for these hosts to seek an accountant's help to correct prior year returns.

💀 The Ugly: Failing to do so could lead to HMRC launching investigations going back up to 20 years, resulting in hefty fines and possibly even criminal prosecution.

💡 TL;DR: Airbnb is legally obliged to share your income data with HMRC to ensure tax compliance. The recent data shared contains information of hosts who had a listing in the UK or were required to pay tax in the UK during the 2017/18 and 2018/19 tax years. It's crucial to disclose your income voluntarily, particularly if you're profiting beyond the £1,000 a year "trading allowance" or £7,500 "Rent-a-Room scheme". Non-disclosure may lead to penalties and potential criminal prosecution.

📢 What should you do?
If you think you may have failed to disclose your rental income correctly, you have a couple of options.
For the 2021-22 tax year you have until 31 Jan 24 to amend your tax return. For earlier years you can notify HMRC of the error through their Let Property Campaign.
The penalties that you may be charged are reduced if you contact HMRC before they reach out to you.
If you do receive a letter from HMRC do not ignore it and either contact them directly or seek tax advice.

01/06/2023

How we helped Rebecca (name changed for privacy) claim a tax refund of £8,596.72

Rebecca is in employment, a higher rate tax payer and was making contribution to her pension every month from her pay. But she felt she was paying too much tax. We took a close look at her payslip and found out she was right.

The problem was that Rebecca was making her pension contributions through something called "relief at source". This meant she wasn't getting all the tax relief she should have been. So we went back through her tax for the last four years, and claimed back the relief she'd missed out on.

Now Rebecca has an unexpected mid-year bonus - just in time for the summer break!

This shows how important it is to make sure you're not paying too much tax, especially if you are making pension contributions and not claimed the relief.

Are you a higher rate tax payer in employment and making monthly pension contributions? And you think you might have overpaid tax ? We've made a simple quiz for you to find out.

https://taxrefund.scoreapp.com/

24/04/2023

Do you need to declare your income from abroad?

15/03/2023

CAPITAL GAINS TAX TIP - ACT BEFORE 06 APRIL 2023!

24/11/2022

We were looking for ideas on how to make our gifts more memorable ..

A suggestion came up

"...try and say something weird or funny - and make it bold - otherwise people tend not to notice it. Maybe a sugary accounting pun?"

Below is the result :)

24/10/2022

08/06/2022

This ONE LINE in your Financial Statements can tell you if you are putting yourself first.