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Flat Rate Calculator

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    Flat Rate Calculator

    So, got a letter this morning about the flat rate changing, knew it was happening (Though was slightly surprised they managed to be organised enough to send letters out!)

    Anyway, the letter says that there is a calculator, Im fairly sure Ill be in the new rate but I'd like to check.

    However rather than actually giving the address of the calculator the letter says to go to gov.uk and search for it*


    So my question, has anyone actually found the calculator? if so whats the address?


    *This advice ranks up there with "Ask your accountant" in the usefulness stakes.

    #2
    If you pay accountants fees and have a company mobile phone then it's not worth being on the flat rate scheme. That's ignoring all the other things you buy for the company/expenses you claim.

    There are threads all over the board where someone has kindly made the calculation for others.
    "You’re just a bad memory who doesn’t know when to go away" JR

    Comment


      #3
      Originally posted by Snarf View Post
      So, got a letter this morning about the flat rate changing, knew it was happening (Though was slightly surprised they managed to be organised enough to send letters out!)

      Anyway, the letter says that there is a calculator, Im fairly sure Ill be in the new rate but I'd like to check.

      However rather than actually giving the address of the calculator the letter says to go to gov.uk and search for it*


      So my question, has anyone actually found the calculator? if so whats the address?


      *This advice ranks up there with "Ask your accountant" in the usefulness stakes.

      Here we are.

      UI looks familiar.

      https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/check...-return-period

      Comment


        #4
        @SueEllen - Thought that might be the case, still want to have a look at the calculator. Ill have a look for some of the posts that you mentioned!

        @MudSkipper - Thanks !

        Edit - As I thought, 16.5%
        Last edited by Snarf; 18 March 2017, 14:13.

        Comment


          #5
          Once they'd updated the original advice and excluded services and T&E it means pretty much we're all going back to doing VAT as before FRS.

          Comment


            #6
            So how much 'stuff' do we need to buy per quarter (or can it be annually) to stay on our original FRS [12% in my instance].

            I'm thinking;

            Projector
            Brief case
            External HDD
            Office chair
            Laser printer
            Laser cartridges
            Company stationary
            Company workwear

            For starters...
            http://www.cih.org/news-article/disp...housing_market

            Comment


              #7
              When I followed the instructions and didn't include my accountancy bill in the expenses it told me to use the 16.5% rate. When I put them in despite being told not to, it told me to use FRS. However my quarterly expenses of the types it allows appear to be £0.

              I'd also not even heard of the AAS until just now. I assume my accountant (InTouch) has put some guides and explanations together so I'd best go look for them
              Last edited by d000hg; 21 March 2017, 10:07.
              Originally posted by MaryPoppins
              I'd still not breastfeed a nazi
              Originally posted by vetran
              Urine is quite nourishing

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by d000hg View Post
                When I followed the instructions and didn't include my accountancy bill in the expenses it told me to use the 16.5% rate. When I put them in despite being told not to, it told me to use FRS. However my quarterly expenses of the types it allows appear to be £0.

                I'd also not even heard of the AAS until just now. I assume my accountant (InTouch) has put some guides and explanations together so I'd best go look for them
                Accountancy fees are deductible if you do the full VAT and not FRS. As are a lot of things.

                If you turn over £100k then the FRS deduction equates to £200. That's £1000 of expenses, which is f all.

                The whole thing is a crock.
                http://www.cih.org/news-article/disp...housing_market

                Comment


                  #9
                  Why is it a crock? The point of FRS is not for you to turn a profit. The new system appears to be much closer to break-even... that might mean you're £2k worse off but as long as VAT isn't making you a loss you don't really have grounds to complain.

                  Regular VAT is very easy to do for us - our expenses are quite simple. A tiny company involved in trading actual stuff might benefit from the simplicity of FRS but then they're not going to be caught by the new rules. I was regular VAT for the first couple or three years of contracting as I simply didn't know about FRS or care enough and it was very easy.
                  Originally posted by MaryPoppins
                  I'd still not breastfeed a nazi
                  Originally posted by vetran
                  Urine is quite nourishing

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by d000hg View Post
                    Why is it a crock? The point of FRS is not for you to turn a profit. The new system appears to be much closer to break-even...
                    You're right that the FRS was never intended to be profitable, but not sure how you came to the conclusion that the new system is "closer to break-even". Far from it - for most service-based businesses it will almost certainly result in a loss compared to the standard scheme or the existing FRS percentages. Which is why most people are moving back on to the standard scheme (which should be VAT neutral).

                    Comment

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