Oury Clark Blog

• Ian FriendcloseAuthor: Ian Friend Name: Ian Friend ACA CTA
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  About: Ian joined Oury Clark in 1982. Having qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1985, Ian specialised in tax, qualifying also as a Chartered Tax Adviser, before being invited into partnership in 1991. Ian has assisted a great number of businesses across a broad spectrum of industries, including sole traderships, professional partnerships, family companies and larger groups. Being an equity partner himself, Ian understands the pressures of running a business and uses his own life knowledge to supplement his professional experience and qualifications.In addition to his portfolio of local businesses, Ian has also assisted a large number of North American companies with their entry into the UK market and is a regular visitor to the east coast of America. Ian is a family man and is very much involved with family life. When he has time, Ian likes to play the occasional round of golf and, when his knees allow, he loves to play football. His more sedate pastimes include music, theatre and books.See Authors Posts (12)

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Ok so £2 a week won’t pay the bills.

How about £5 per night?

Yes you can pay your staff £5 a night for each night they have to stay away during business journeys anywhere in the UK (no not at their neighbours’!). You can pay £10 for each night away during overseas business journeys.

But don’t be saucey (plum or otherwise) as if you exceed these limits the whole amount becomes taxable!

• Ian FriendcloseAuthor: Ian Friend Name: Ian Friend ACA CTA
  Email: Ian.Friend@ouryclark.com
  Site: http://ouryclark.com/chartered-accountants/partners#IFriend
  About: Ian joined Oury Clark in 1982. Having qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1985, Ian specialised in tax, qualifying also as a Chartered Tax Adviser, before being invited into partnership in 1991. Ian has assisted a great number of businesses across a broad spectrum of industries, including sole traderships, professional partnerships, family companies and larger groups. Being an equity partner himself, Ian understands the pressures of running a business and uses his own life knowledge to supplement his professional experience and qualifications.In addition to his portfolio of local businesses, Ian has also assisted a large number of North American companies with their entry into the UK market and is a regular visitor to the east coast of America. Ian is a family man and is very much involved with family life. When he has time, Ian likes to play the occasional round of golf and, when his knees allow, he loves to play football. His more sedate pastimes include music, theatre and books.See Authors Posts (12)

• Position: Partner OCA
• Phone: +44 (0) 1753 551111
• Fax: +44 (0) 1753 550544
• Email: Ian.Friend@ouryclark.com
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  Ian Friend at ouryclark.com

2 is plural isn’t it?

So we are really beginning to take advantage of those concessions now.

So if you require your staff to work from home on a regular basis (not just taking work home in the evenings, sorry!) you can pay them as much as £2 per week tax free without needing your staff to provide evidence of the additional cost. Now you are winning them over!

Those following the earlier posts will now be equating this to as many as 5 family Chinese takeaways per annum now – ok perhaps 4 if you want crispy duck!

In truth you can pay more if there is supporting evidence but you cannot include costs which are already sunk costs – you will be paying your mortgage, domestic rates [...]

• Ian FriendcloseAuthor: Ian Friend Name: Ian Friend ACA CTA
  Email: Ian.Friend@ouryclark.com
  Site: http://ouryclark.com/chartered-accountants/partners#IFriend
  About: Ian joined Oury Clark in 1982. Having qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1985, Ian specialised in tax, qualifying also as a Chartered Tax Adviser, before being invited into partnership in 1991. Ian has assisted a great number of businesses across a broad spectrum of industries, including sole traderships, professional partnerships, family companies and larger groups. Being an equity partner himself, Ian understands the pressures of running a business and uses his own life knowledge to supplement his professional experience and qualifications.In addition to his portfolio of local businesses, Ian has also assisted a large number of North American companies with their entry into the UK market and is a regular visitor to the east coast of America. Ian is a family man and is very much involved with family life. When he has time, Ian likes to play the occasional round of golf and, when his knees allow, he loves to play football. His more sedate pastimes include music, theatre and books.See Authors Posts (12)

• Position: Partner OCA
• Phone: +44 (0) 1753 551111
• Fax: +44 (0) 1753 550544
• Email: Ian.Friend@ouryclark.com
• More information about
  Ian Friend at ouryclark.com

Just in case you have missed this “opportunity” over the past 40 years or more, Meal vouchers can also be tax free. Must be non-transfereable, only used for meals (makes sense) and again available to all. So reward those staff – oh did I mention that the tax free limit is 15 pence per working day! Perhaps “meal” voucher is a bit strong nowadays but I do recall being given my father’s allocation as a child and being able to buy a bag of chips from the local chippy! We sometime saved them up for a family Chinese Take away evening – not sure how many days that would now take?

Perhaps you can submit ideas for a nourishing meal within the 15 pence limit – [...]

• Ian FriendcloseAuthor: Ian Friend Name: Ian Friend ACA CTA
  Email: Ian.Friend@ouryclark.com
  Site: http://ouryclark.com/chartered-accountants/partners#IFriend
  About: Ian joined Oury Clark in 1982. Having qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1985, Ian specialised in tax, qualifying also as a Chartered Tax Adviser, before being invited into partnership in 1991. Ian has assisted a great number of businesses across a broad spectrum of industries, including sole traderships, professional partnerships, family companies and larger groups. Being an equity partner himself, Ian understands the pressures of running a business and uses his own life knowledge to supplement his professional experience and qualifications.In addition to his portfolio of local businesses, Ian has also assisted a large number of North American companies with their entry into the UK market and is a regular visitor to the east coast of America. Ian is a family man and is very much involved with family life. When he has time, Ian likes to play the occasional round of golf and, when his knees allow, he loves to play football. His more sedate pastimes include music, theatre and books.See Authors Posts (12)

• Position: Partner OCA
• Phone: +44 (0) 1753 551111
• Fax: +44 (0) 1753 550544
• Email: Ian.Friend@ouryclark.com
• More information about
  Ian Friend at ouryclark.com

Or perhaps you were of the Many a Mickle makes a Muckle faith?

Whichever you were weaned on, the message is the same – there are apparent benefits out there that are tax free! Yes, it is true but don’t rub youur hands together too glibly as they will not make you instant millionaires or employer of the year but some times it is still the thought that counts..

One or two perhaps more practical to start with:

Free or Subsidised Meals – so long as the meals are reasonable, avaialble to all staff and made available on the employer’s business premises, or in any canteen where meals are provided for staff generally, then there should be no taxable benefit. One of my own clients, based on an [...]