With effect from 6 April 2015, the following come into force:
The Income Tax (Construction Industry Scheme) (Amendment) Regulations, SI 2015/429, which remove the statutory obligation on contractors to make nil construction industry scheme (CIS) returns for tax months where no payments are made to subcontractors, and allow amounts deducted under the CIS to be repaid before the end of the tax year where a subcontractor is insolvent, with these regulations forming part of a package of measures aimed at simplifying the operation of the scheme;
The Social Security (Contributions) (Limits and Thresholds) (Amendment) Regulations, SI 2015/577, which specify the class 1 NIC lower and upper earnings limits and primary and secondary thresholds for the 2015/16 tax year, and include the new upper secondary threshold, above which employers must cease to use the 0% age-related secondary percentage for employees under the age of 21;
The Social Security (Contributions) (Re-rating and National Insurance Funds Payments) Order, SI 2015/588, which specifies the rates and relevant earnings limits for class 3 and class 4 NICs for the 2015/16 tax year (these rates were announced in Autumn Statement 2014; the class 2 NIC rate and small profits threshold for tax years 2015/16 onwards are set out in the NIC Act 2015, which provides for the collection of class 2 NICs through self-assessment);
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Power to Amend Schemes to Reflect Abolition of Contracting-out) Regulations, SI 2015/118, which set out checks on employers’ powers to amend their salary-related pension scheme rules in order to offset the loss of the employer’s NIC rebate once contracting-out ends in April 2016, provide for certification of any rule changes by an actuary, and impose restrictions to ensure that amendments involving reductions in scheme benefits or increases in members’ pension contributions do not go beyond specified limits;
The Automatic Enrolment (Earnings Trigger and Qualifying Earnings Band) Order, SI 2015/468, which maintains alignment of the automatic enrolment earnings trigger for 2015/16 with the PAYE income tax personal allowance threshold (the level of earnings at which employers are obliged to enrol eligible jobholders into a qualifying workplace pension scheme), and the order also continues to align the qualifying earnings band for contributions in 2015/16 with the NICs lower and upper earnings limits;
The Social Security (Miscellaneous Amendments No. 2) Regulations, SI 2015/478, which take account of a number of changes introduced in FA 2014 and NIC Act 2015 concerning: inclusion of class 2 NIC in self-assessment; replacement of the term ‘general earnings’ with ‘earnings’ for class 1 NIC purposes; NIC disregard for payments made under the armed forces early departure payment scheme (with effect from 1 April 2015); alignment of NIC rules with the tax rules on the apportionment of employment-related securities income received by internationally-mobile employees; and simplified reporting of NIC agreements and elections in relation to employer’s NIC on employment-related securities.
The Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment) Regulations, SI 2015/543, which provide a class 1 NIC disregard for the cost of pensions advice in connection with the new pension flexibility options which employers are required to provide under the Pension Schemes Act 2015, and this NIC disregard mirrors the income tax exemption provided for in the Act.
With effect from 6 April 2015, the following come into force:
The Income Tax (Construction Industry Scheme) (Amendment) Regulations, SI 2015/429, which remove the statutory obligation on contractors to make nil construction industry scheme (CIS) returns for tax months where no payments are made to subcontractors, and allow amounts deducted under the CIS to be repaid before the end of the tax year where a subcontractor is insolvent, with these regulations forming part of a package of measures aimed at simplifying the operation of the scheme;
The Social Security (Contributions) (Limits and Thresholds) (Amendment) Regulations, SI 2015/577, which specify the class 1 NIC lower and upper earnings limits and primary and secondary thresholds for the 2015/16 tax year, and include the new upper secondary threshold, above which employers must cease to use the 0% age-related secondary percentage for employees under the age of 21;
The Social Security (Contributions) (Re-rating and National Insurance Funds Payments) Order, SI 2015/588, which specifies the rates and relevant earnings limits for class 3 and class 4 NICs for the 2015/16 tax year (these rates were announced in Autumn Statement 2014; the class 2 NIC rate and small profits threshold for tax years 2015/16 onwards are set out in the NIC Act 2015, which provides for the collection of class 2 NICs through self-assessment);
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Power to Amend Schemes to Reflect Abolition of Contracting-out) Regulations, SI 2015/118, which set out checks on employers’ powers to amend their salary-related pension scheme rules in order to offset the loss of the employer’s NIC rebate once contracting-out ends in April 2016, provide for certification of any rule changes by an actuary, and impose restrictions to ensure that amendments involving reductions in scheme benefits or increases in members’ pension contributions do not go beyond specified limits;
The Automatic Enrolment (Earnings Trigger and Qualifying Earnings Band) Order, SI 2015/468, which maintains alignment of the automatic enrolment earnings trigger for 2015/16 with the PAYE income tax personal allowance threshold (the level of earnings at which employers are obliged to enrol eligible jobholders into a qualifying workplace pension scheme), and the order also continues to align the qualifying earnings band for contributions in 2015/16 with the NICs lower and upper earnings limits;
The Social Security (Miscellaneous Amendments No. 2) Regulations, SI 2015/478, which take account of a number of changes introduced in FA 2014 and NIC Act 2015 concerning: inclusion of class 2 NIC in self-assessment; replacement of the term ‘general earnings’ with ‘earnings’ for class 1 NIC purposes; NIC disregard for payments made under the armed forces early departure payment scheme (with effect from 1 April 2015); alignment of NIC rules with the tax rules on the apportionment of employment-related securities income received by internationally-mobile employees; and simplified reporting of NIC agreements and elections in relation to employer’s NIC on employment-related securities.
The Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment) Regulations, SI 2015/543, which provide a class 1 NIC disregard for the cost of pensions advice in connection with the new pension flexibility options which employers are required to provide under the Pension Schemes Act 2015, and this NIC disregard mirrors the income tax exemption provided for in the Act.
