According to figures from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), business owners ‘are losing around 12 working days a year keeping on top of their tax administration’, which ‘is costing them half a billion pounds a year’.
Half of the companies surveyed ‘spent between two and eight hours each month understanding, calculating and completing tax forms’. While about 30% of respondents told the FSB that cash flow problems caused them to miss their tax payment deadline, 19% of respondents admitted to paying late because of confusion over tax payment dates or difficulty in understanding what was required. Three-quarters of businesses told the FSB they had ‘spent up to £5,000 for software to keep up-to-date with their latest tax obligations’, despite also forking out for accountants and bookkeepers to deal with their tax affairs, and two-thirds of respondents estimated they spent an annual amount of £3,651 on their tax obligations – and the FSB calculated that ‘accumulatively [i.e. across all UK businesses] this means a minimum of £490m per year is spent in additional [tax-related] costs.’
FSB national chairman John Allan said in a statement: ‘There have been long-running issues with complex tax statuses if you’re a sole trader or running an incorporated business. Creating one new tax system and removing choice will make it simpler. It will free up time for businesses; it will give them the time to grow and contribute further to the prosperity of UK PLC.’
According to figures from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), business owners ‘are losing around 12 working days a year keeping on top of their tax administration’, which ‘is costing them half a billion pounds a year’.
Half of the companies surveyed ‘spent between two and eight hours each month understanding, calculating and completing tax forms’. While about 30% of respondents told the FSB that cash flow problems caused them to miss their tax payment deadline, 19% of respondents admitted to paying late because of confusion over tax payment dates or difficulty in understanding what was required. Three-quarters of businesses told the FSB they had ‘spent up to £5,000 for software to keep up-to-date with their latest tax obligations’, despite also forking out for accountants and bookkeepers to deal with their tax affairs, and two-thirds of respondents estimated they spent an annual amount of £3,651 on their tax obligations – and the FSB calculated that ‘accumulatively [i.e. across all UK businesses] this means a minimum of £490m per year is spent in additional [tax-related] costs.’
FSB national chairman John Allan said in a statement: ‘There have been long-running issues with complex tax statuses if you’re a sole trader or running an incorporated business. Creating one new tax system and removing choice will make it simpler. It will free up time for businesses; it will give them the time to grow and contribute further to the prosperity of UK PLC.’
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