Tax Matters Digest

The consultation, which has just closed, primarily focused on financial account information and its proposals intend to improve the quality of data already gathered from organisations so that it can be automatically factored into an individual’s personal tax account. Whilst the aims are worthy, in that it should ultimately reduce administrative burdens for the taxpayer and lessen the scope for non-compliance, the proposals will increase costs for financial institutions (in particular). Our article, however, asks whether this is anything new or just another iteration of things seen previously.

Our third article highlights recently published initial high-level HMRC guidanceopens in a new tab on Crypto-Asset reporting which sets out reporting obligations for UK based providers of crypto-asset services which will need to be met from 1 January 2026.

Next, our environmental taxes team focus on a consultation on reform of Landfill Taxopens in a new tab in England and Northern Ireland. Many thought that the debate to modernise this tax had fizzled out and so this consultation was a bit of a surprise. The consultation reignites earlier debates and its proposals could have far reaching effects beyond the waste management industry.

Other News in Briefopens in a new tab highlights the following developments:

• The publication of two on-line calculators to help taxpayers calculate creative industry tax relief;
• An update on CFC FinCo State Aid;
• Proposals to legislate to let subsisting Enterprise Management Incentive and Company Share Option Plan options be amended to allow exercise on PISCES trading events;
• The publication of three pieces of HMRC research on key workforce issues including salary sacrifice for pensions, Benefits in Kind and employment status for employment rights purposes;
• The publication of further HMRC research on Employee Ownership Trusts to determine the relationship between the availability of tax reliefs and the decision to transition to employee ownership; and
• A report published by the National Audit office on collecting the right amount of tax from wealthy individuals.

Finally we include links to our Week In Tax publications which give a round-up from our member firms around the globe. We don’t have any Indirect Tax Talking Points this time but these will return in the next edition.