Here's What They Really Want for ChristmasWritten by L.A. Nelson
According to a new survey carried out by Alliance & where ID_NUM=9270; Leicester, one in five small business owners view tax as their greatest concern. The Chancellor has announced in his last budget that companies with profits below œ10,000 will not have to pay any corporation tax with effect from 1 April 2002. The question to be asked is: does that announcement make incorporation a more attractive option compared to being a sole trader?The answer is that from a tax point of view, it is advantageous to trade through a limited company as long as income is drawn from company by owners as dividends from their shares and amount of dividends drawn is restricted below 40% band rate (i.e. œ31,063 for tax year 2002/03). That way, owners have no further personal tax ("income tax") to pay. Moreover, dividends are not subject to national insurance contributions. This is excellent news of course. But, if dividend income falls within higher rate bracket of income tax (i.e. above œ34,515), they will be taxed at 22.5% on excess, which of course will increase tax burden. The company profits are subject to corporation tax rates. Those are lower than income tax rates. The most catastrophic scenario is when director takes his reward from company as salary. Then his/her salary is taxed at income tax rates (like a sole trader's income). That is because, unlike sole traders, tax system treats companies as separate from their owners because a company is a separate legal entity. The problem is that income taxes are higher than corporation tax rates. On top of that, they will be subject to employee and employer national insurance contributions, which of course increase tax burden and render his position worse than even an unincorporated business ("sole trader"), because NIC Class 1 on payroll are higher than NIC Class 2 paid by self employed. In contrast, a self employed person ("sole trader") is taxed at income tax rates on profits from his business, which are added to his other sources of income. As it has already been mentioned, income tax rates are overall higher than corporation tax rates. On top of income tax, national insurance contributions class 4 are payable on business profits within a specified band (7% on profits between œ4,615and œ30,420). National insurance contributions Class 2 are also paid by self-employed people, although those are lower than those payable by company directors on their salaries. To illustrate above, let's take a simple example. We have a limited company and a sole trader. They both make œ60,000 profits each in tax year 2002/03. We assume that company director takes a salary equal to amount of his personal allowances (untaxed income) of œ4,615 and balance as dividends. The company will pay corporation tax at 19% equal to œ10,523 and nothing else. The sole trader will pay income tax œ16,542, National insurance Class 2 œ104 and National insurance Class 4 œ1,806. Total œ18,452. The bottom line is that person that has incorporated his business into a limited company will make a tax saving of œ7,929 compared to a sole trader! Isn't that fantastic? Somebody might be wondering: why is this entire happening? The official explanation is that, this government, to help economy grow, encourages people to leave as much profits within their businesses to be reinvested, instead of being taken out and spent. The "unofficial line" is that, as a matter of fact, for years Inland Revenue has tried to reclassify self-employed. The 1% in NIC hike on staff salaries above NIC threshold from next April adds to both employees' and employers' tax burden and may more than offset saving from corporation tax zero rate on first œ10,000 of profits.
| | Holiday Gift Giving Ideas To Save You MoneyWritten by Gregory Thomas
It's that time of year again, time for traveling, decorating, holiday parties, family, friends, relatives and of course. . . . shopping. How many of you simply whip out credit card and start charging every gift you can find, only to dread day when your statement arrives in mail? Or are you one of few that save a little every month just to cover holiday expenses when they come around? Before you spend your money on latest, hottest, newest gadgets, take a look at these options that will really save you quite a pocketful. YOUR HOLIDAY LETTER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sending a yearly "wrap-up" letter to your family, friends and relatives is a great way to save time and money. Instead of buying expensive Hallmark cards and writing individual letters to everyone on your list, why not design your own holiday letter? When writing a "wrap-up" letter, remember this is perfect time to inform friends and relatives what's been happening in your family's life over past year. Even if something important happened in your life back in February or March, some of your acquaintances might not have heard about it, so let them know. After writing a rough draft, use your computer (or a friends) to help produce an attractive letter. You'll find programs such as Microsoft Word or Publisher with wonderful "wizards" that will walk you step by step through process so you will have a beautifully designed letter in about an hour or two. SIMPLE GIFT IDEAS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sit down and take time to think about what each person on your list would like to receive. Of course everyone would love to get tickets for a seven day Caribbean cruise, but very few of us can afford to spend that kind of money on a present. Here are a few ideas to get you thinking of all possible gifts that can be easily put together without need to spend much money. Know of anyone entering college? Put together a "care package". Fill it with all basic necessities a college student might need (or want). Cookies, snacks, toiletries, wool socks, a new college student "manual", etc... Anything you think a young 18-21 year old student could use while away at school. Do one of your relatives work in an office? Put together an "office pack". The key is in presentation. Find a suitable container and pack it with office supplies, personalized pens or coffee mugs, magazines, far side calendar, crossword puzzle book, etc. CREATE A BASKET ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Have you seen decorative basket assortments that are sold around holidays? You'll generally find them in malls from such chains as Hickory Farms or Sees Candies. Why pay $30-$50 for a basket of "goodies" that probably only costs about $5 to put together? Put basket together yourself, save a fortune, and even add a bit more creativity. You can find baskets (straw usually works best) at any discount store or yard/garage sales. Then, simply line bottom with a decorative cloth (ie: colored bandana, checked napkins, etc...), organize appropriate items and trim/wrap with holiday decorations. You can find all types of holiday arts & crafts ideas in books at your local library or on Internet. The possibilities are endless. Here are a few basket ideas to get you started: Coffee Lovers Basket Assortment of coffees, mugs, stirrers, creme assortments, Sunday comics Cookie Basket Homemade cookie variety, chocolate/fudge toppings, funny napkins, cocoa mixes Traditional Jelly Basket Small jars of homemade jelly, muffin/cornbread mix, spatula, butter & knife Sweet Tooth Basket Brownies, cookies, small jars of candy, cocoa mix, peanut brittle, chocolates Pasta Lovers Basket Jars of various pastas and sauces, Parmesan cheese, pasta ladle, strainer Fire Starter Basket Pinecones, long stick matches, starter blocks, candle scents/oils, ash shovel GREAT LINK - http://www.stretcher.com/stories/981207i.cfm Here's a link to great recipes on how to make peanut brittle, bath oils & salts, brownies, potpourri and more for your baskets Brownie/Candy Jars ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ An attractive gift, perfect for friends, co-workers, and neighbors. A nice large sized jar filled with either brownies or candies. Attach ribbons or bows to lid and decorate with puffy paint or simply glue colored pasta shells around jar. Again, be creative. Homemade Decorative Cookies ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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