Quarterly reporting for tax

 Treasury committee urges delay to tax changes

The Treasury select committee has called for a delay to plans for a quarterly tax-filing system for the self-employed. The proposals for a new digital tax system had been unveiled by George Osborne during his time as chancellor. Mr Osborne had said the move would both assist in the collection of revenue and be easier for users. However, concerns had already been raised about the impact on small business and the self-employed - three out of five of whom keep records on paper or without sophisticated software. And the Administrative Burdens Advisory Board has predicted that the new system will create significant extra demands in accounting records and costs. Now the Treasury committee"s chairman, Andrew Tyrie, has written to Philip Hammond urging him to abandon plans to bring forward the legislation needed for a change in 2017. He said: "These proposals have already been in the making for nearly two years. The earliest that they could be implemented is 2018. This timetable, with draft finance bill clauses published around the time of the autumn statement, may make it difficult to respond adequately to the points made in the consultation.”

Source: The Observer (18/09/2016)