Latest Tax news

In Irish news this week, the Institute has met with the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment and the Enhanced Reporting Requirements for employers has been identified, in a recent report to Government, as a significant competitive challenge to doing business in Ireland. In UK news, read HM Treasury’s response to the Institute’s April 2025 letter on the Autumn Budget 2024 changes to key inheritance tax reliefs and we are encouraging members to complete the Administrative Burden Advisory Board’s annual survey on HMRC. In International news, the European Commission has launched a Call for Evidence on the General Block Exemption Regulation. Irish The Institute’s Tax and Public Policy team met with the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, to discuss current sentiment among SMEs and the challenges they face in terms of labour, operating and regulatory costs. The National Competitiveness and Productivity Council’s recent report highlights the Enhanced Reporting Requirements for employers compliance costs for SMEs as a competitiveness concern. UK Read HM Treasury response to the Institute’s April 2025 letter on the Autumn Budget 2024 changes to key inheritance tax reliefs, which were subsequently confirmed as proceeding earlier this week on L-day. The 2025 ABAB survey on HMRC is open for completion. International The European Commission has launched a Call for Evidence on the General Block Exemption Regulation as it assesses the potential tofurther simplification. Keep up to date with all the latest Irish, UK, and international tax developments through Chartered Accountants Ireland’s Tax Newsletter. Subscribe to the Tax News by updating your preferences in MyAccount. You can also read this week’s post EU exit corner here.          

As we predicted earlier this week, following HM Treasury’s response to the Institute’s letter on this issue, on L-day earlier this week the Government published draft finance bill clauses which confirm that the changes to APR and BPR will be proceeding as planned from April 2026. In the draft legislation as it currently stands, none of the recommended mitigations proposed by the Institute have been included. Read the Institute’s Press Release reacting to this in which we are seeking a special derogation from these changes for Northern Ireland, given the disproportionate impact of this in the region on the agricultural sector and family owned businesses. The Institute is currently considering what further action is needed on this important issue and is also seeking to discuss this with local government. A full report on the other key announcements from L-day will feature in Chartered Accountants Tax News on Monday 28 July. However, in the meantime, it is noteworthy that buried amongst the L-day publications is welcome confirmation that the Government has shelved Making Tax Digital for corporation tax.

Northern Ireland should be excluded from UK Government proposals to restrict the benefit of two key Inheritance Tax reliefs; agricultural property relief and business property relief, because of the disproportionate impact this is already having on the region’s agricultural sector and family-owned businesses. Chartered Accountants Ireland, the largest professional body on the island of Ireland, which represents over 5,000 members in Northern Ireland reiterated its position after the Government published draft legislation for the next Finance Bill. As announced last October, from April 2026, 100% relief will be limited to the first £1 million of combined agricultural and business property, with any value above this receiving relief at 50%, effectively resulting in an inheritance tax liability of 20%. Director of Members and Advocacy at Chartered Accountants Ireland, Cróna Clohisey said: “Yesterday on ‘L-day’, the Government published the draft Finance Bill clauses for this policy change which confirms, disappointingly, that they will commence from April 2026 as planned. On behalf of members, this Institute has engaged extensively with Government to emphasise the impact this will have in Northern Ireland. Farming is the biggest industry in NI, and farms and family-owned businesses are the heartbeat of our economy. “We recognise that in the current geopolitical and economic environment, difficult decisions are necessary, however, we feel that the impact of these changes has not been fully considered on a regional basis and will hit Northern Ireland harder. It is already causing forced, premature business sales and the loss of jobs, lives and livelihoods. Although we have some of the highest land prices in the UK, what the government has failed to grasp is that land values here do not correlate to the income generated. Any value is tied up in land and assets, not cash.” Data from the NI Assembly already suggests that by 2026 these changes will affect approximately 75 percent of dairy farms in Northern Ireland, which account for 60 percent of owned land and provide the majority of food production in NI. Clohisey continued: “Ultimately the Government is taking a broad-brush approach to address specific concerns that ‘non-farmers’ are investing in land to avoid inheritance tax. As a result, they are missing the opportunity to reframe this policy and include a range of mitigations to protect genuine farming activity and family-owned businesses.” Chartered Accountants Ireland is urging the Government to find a way to introduce a carve out for agricultural and family-owned business sectors in Northern Ireland. If there is not a willingness to do so, the Institute is calling on the Government to amend the draft legislation to include a range of mitigations. This would enable the Government to target this policy more effectively and reduce its negative impact before the legislation begins its journey through Parliament after the summer recess. ENDS

Revenue has amended its guidance on the provision of services in Irish. The updated manual reflects the most up to date position within Revenue regarding the provision of Irish services under the Official Languages Act, 2003 and the Official Languages Act (Amended) 2020.

Revenue has updated its self-assessment guidance on the consideration of standards of proof when making or amending Revenue assessments. The guidance has been updated throughout to include examples to illustrate how the various sections of Part 41A TCA 1997 apply.

Revenue has updated its guidance on the relevant provisions allowing for the efficient management of Stamp Duty. Stamp Duty Manual Part 11 Management Provisions has been amended as follows: Clarification that the Property Registration Authority was dissolved by the Tailte Éireann Act 2022 and its functions are now under the remit of Tailte Éireann. Clarification that the functions of the Commissioner of Valuationwere transferred to Tailte Éireann by the Tailte Éireann Act 2022. Guidance on sections 159A and 159B has been removed as this is now covered in Stamp Duty Manual Part 11: Stamp Duty repayment provisions, and Guidance on section 159D has been updated to include additional detail on how interest is calculated under this section.

In this week’s post EU exit corner, we bring you the latest guidance updates and publications relevant in the post EU exit environment. The most recent Trader Support Service bulletin is also available as is the most recently published Brexit and Beyond newsletter from the Northern Ireland Assembly EU Affairs team. Miscellaneous guidance updates and publications This week’s miscellaneous guidance updates and publications are as follows: External temporary storage facilities codes for Data Element 5/23 of the Customs Declaration Service, Short shipments at temporary storage locations, Additional Information (AI) Statement Codes for Data Element 2/2 of the Customs Declaration Service (CDS), Submitting an electronic administrative document or an electronic simplified administrative document for excise goods, The Customs (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2025, Report a problem using the Customs Declaration Service, Make an entry summary declaration using the Import Control System 2, Apply for authorisation for the UK Internal Market Scheme if you bring goods into Northern Ireland, Categorising goods for Internal Market Movements from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, and Declare your goods to authorised use and completing authorised use.

In this week’s detailed miscellaneous updates which you can read more about below, the UK has laid further regulations on the Pillar Two rules which take effect from 24 July 2025 and HMRC is working on a new online form which will allow employers to report disputes on their pay as you earn (PAYE) liabilities. In other news this week: The latest Agent Update: Issue 133 is available; this sets out more information on a range of areas, including the ongoing Class 2 National Insurance Contributions issue which we reported on a few weeks back in miscellaneous updates. HMRC has also asked to share a separate update on this which contains supplementary information, HMRC is holding a webinar later this week on reporting via PAYE real time and how to provide accurate information - book onto the webinar now, The Public Accounts Committee has published a report on collecting tax from wealthy individuals that calls for further action and clarity from HMRC, The National Audit Office has published HMRC’s 2024/25 accounts, and The latest tax publications from the Institute for Fiscal Studies have been published: https://ifs.org.uk/articles/wealth-tax-would-be-poor-substitute-properly-taxing-sources-and-uses-wealth and https://ifs.org.uk/publications/taxing-capital-income-and-wealth-low-and-middle-income-countries-practice-principles. New Pillar Two regulations The Multinational Top-up Tax (Pillar Two Territories, Qualifying Domestic Top-up Taxes and Accredited Qualifying Domestic Top-up Taxes) (Amendment) Regulations 2025 have now been laid, and come into force later this week on 24 July 2025. The regulations enable HMRC to specify additions to the list of Pillar Two territories, qualifying domestic top-up taxes, and accredited qualifying domestic top-up taxes to take effect from a date before the notice is published. According to HMRC, this is a procedural change to ensure the effective date of changes in the UK aligns with the date in the central record of internationally agreed qualifying territories and taxes published by the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework. It also means that there will be no requirement for individual Statutory Instruments which would otherwise be required due to the retrospective nature of such changes. Employer PAYE liability disputes HMRC is currently developing an online form which will enable employers to report disputes on their pay as you earn (PAYE) liabilities. Currently, employers can either call the Employer Helpline on 0300 200 3200, or write to HMRC at the following address: PT Operations North East England, HM Revenue and Customs, BX9 1BX, United Kingdom. Further information will be provided in due course.

Revenue has published new guidance on PAYE settlement agreements. The manual clarifies the methodology for calculating the grossed-up minor and irregular benefits which may be included in PAYE Settlement Agreements in accordance with section 985B TCA 1997.

The 2025 Administrative Burdens Advisory Board (ABAB) ‘Tell ABAB’ survey is open for completion. The ABAB survey is your opportunity to provide ABAB with insights on the tax system. The ABAB challenges HMRC on its performance, and aims to provide robust scrutiny of key initiatives, such as Making Tax Digital, and HMRC service standards. The ABAB also aims to provide crucial insight on the big issues faced by small businesses, including tax agents, in the tax system. Members are encouraged to complete the survey. The survey will take roughly 15 minutes to complete, and will remain open until 31‌‌‌ July 2025. Results will be published on GOV‌‌‌.UK in September 2025 in the ‘Tell ABAB report’. The survey is commissioned annually by HMRC, although the ABAB is an independent body. The ABAB says it is passionate about listening to and understanding the needs of the small business community. Board members come from a range of businesses and professions, and their goal is to support HMRC to make the tax system quicker and simpler for small businesses. If you have any questions about the 2025 survey, please email advisoryboard.adminburden@hmrc.gov.uk.

The Institute’s Director of Members and Advocacy, Cróna Clohisey will represent the Institute at a day of meetings due to take place tomorrow when the FISC Subcommittee on tax matters travels to Dublin  to  discuss tax policies, the fight against tax avoidance and tax simplification. The objectives of the visit are to gain a better understanding of Irish tax policies and for the subcommittee to have direct engagement with key policymakers, tax authorities and stakeholders on critical issues.

Last week we reported that ‘L-day’ will take place today, Monday 21 July 2025. The timing of this is expected to be late afternoon when we expect to see draft Finance Bill clauses on a range of pre-announced tax policy changes. Full coverage of L-day, also referred to as legislation day, will feature in Chartered Accountants Tax News next Monday 28 July.