Corporation Tax Struggles and closing down ltd company

[jmo21]

Yep, I have.

Well done, you're not a total dumbass then!

[stek]

I could be wrong but I'm sure that the HMRC can come after the directors for unpaid CT, under the old 'lifting the veil' rules.

Especially under one-man companies like wot we have.

[xchaotic]

I am owed a little bit back from my current assignment 4 weeks in arrears plus the 4 weeks notice period which should cover the 7k. However I will then struggle to pay the 3rd years CT on 1st Jan 2012.

Everything you will receive you should pay CT on it.
If some of clients went under or for some other reason didn't pay you you can write it off and don't have to pay CT on it obviously.

You should have set aside the money for the taxes owed (CT VAT etc), pay it back even if you think you'll be paying back from you permie salary, it's money you should have never given yourself in the first place.
With accounts in order and lessons learned no need to close down the Ltd Co, just keep it dormant and arrange a deal with an accountant to do minimal paperwork while it's dormant.

[Wanderer]

But what I am trying to say is, if I stop trading as a LTD company and I accept a permanent possition with someone, I wont be able to afford my 3rd years CT payments. So in that case, will my company just get struck off? Or will I need to work out a payment plan from personal account?

Hey yeah, great idea. Start a LTD company, trade for a couple of years, take all the money out and then just close it down without paying Corporation Tax! I'm sure HMRC won't mind at all if you do this but you should give them a quick call to check first.

Seriously though, what you have to do is keep the company open then take out a personal loan to pay your company back the money you borrowed from it's funds which should have been set aside to pay corporation tax. Once all that's squared, you can shut the company down.

[BillHicksRIP]

As an aside, what is generally the best way to ensure this type of thing can't happen? VAT + ~25% of each invoice into a savings account? My instant acess savings account is paying something daft like 0.02%.

[Clare@InTouch]

As an aside, what is generally the best way to ensure this type of thing can't happen? VAT + ~25% of each invoice into a savings account? My instant acess savings account is paying something daft like 0.02%.

If you transfer 20% of each invoice into a business savings account (not your own personal savings account, or there could be tax implications) then that should be more than enough to pay the tax when it falls due.