It is quite common to invoice a customer with terms of “30 days or net monthly account”. Small customers will be expected to pay within 30 days, while large customers will be expected to pay at the end of the month following the month of the invoice, so an invoice sent in November 2017 would be settled by 31 December 2017. Large companies do it this way because they may receive several invoices from a supplier, and will want to settle all of them with a single payment when they do their computerised cheque run. It would therefore be a good idea for the supplier to have sent a statement at the start of December listing all outstanding invoices. Typically the cheque run would be about the 25th of the month, or this year the 22nd, 27th or 28th, the date of this posting. If you give credit and have debts to collect, then you might like to have a discussion with us. Most accountants are also general business advisors as well.
Archives for December 2017
Value Added Tax deadline on 7 January 2018
Value Added Tax returns for the quarter ended 30 November 2017 are due to be submitted by 7 January 2018, and any payment which is due should be made electronically by the same date.
Last Posting Dates in the UK for Christmas 2017
If mail is intended to get there by Christmas, then the Post Office recommends that you post by Wednesday December 20th for second class post, and by Thursday December 21st for first class post.
On average, second class post takes three days, while first class post takes one and a little bit days. Second class post is more reliable over three days than first class post sent at the last minute, which is why these last posting dates are only one day apart. If you are sending a letter somewhere distant like Kent, Cornwall or the Scilly Isles, you might allow a bit longer. Consider posting at the Junction St sorting office in Carlisle for lots of urgent items.
Companies with a 31 March 2017 year end
Get a UTR at once !
If you need to file an income or capital gains tax return by 31 January 2018, then the first thing you may need to do is to get a Unique Taxpayer Reference. This is 10-digit number in a format like 12345 67890. You won’t have one if you have never previously done a tax return and it is not the same thing as your National Insurance number. See an accountant at once !
Employer Payment Summary by 19 December 2017
It can happen sometimes that when you are an employer, you have not actually made any wage or salary payments for a PAYE month such as the month from 6 November to 5 December 2017. In that case you must submit electronically an Employer Payment Summary as a NIL return by 19 December. This is too easy to overlook.
If you engage a local accountant and business advisor or a payroll bureau to do your wages, then this will be taken care of. In our case we keep a diary and do a batch of payrolls at about the same time each month. Our payroll files are bright yellow like the old P30BC booklet so we do not overlook them.
CIS Returns to 5 December 2017
Construction Industry Scheme returns for the month from 6 November to 5 December 2017 should be submitted online by 19 December. This includes NIL returns.
It is only too easy to forget the need to submit a NIL return when no payments to subcontractors have been made. If you engage a local accountant to do your CIS returns, then this will be taken care of. In our case we keep a diary and do a batch of work at about the same time each month. We aim to be the Carlisle accountants that businesses will turn to for a range of advice and services.
Airmail Last Posting Dates for Christmas 2017
If you want cards or correspondence to get there by Christmas Day, then the recommended last posting dates are December 9th for Australia and New Zealand, the 13th for most of Western Europe, and the 14th for the USA and Canada. Post a few days earlier for an unusual location like Eastern Europe, Alaska or Hawaii.
A Company which has missed the 30 November 2017 Deadline
If your company had a deadline of 30 November 2017 for the submission of its accounts to Companies House, and this deadline has been missed, then you still have something to play for, and you should contact Carlisle accountants such as David Porthouse and Co at once. You will incur a penalty of £150, but this penalty rises to £375 after 31 December 2017 if you still haven’t submitted your accounts. These penalties are £300 and £750 if you miss the deadline two years’ running. We can readily prepare and submit your accounts within the month if you contact us now.