Last week at a conference marking the 20th anniversary of HMRC, the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury (XST) announced that from 31 March 2025, HMRC will be launching a new email enquiry service for agents to help escalate and resolve individual (and not employer) PAYE and Self-Assessment queries which are over four weeks old. HMRC subsequently provided more details of how the new service will work in an email to agents. For several years, the Institute has been advocating for HMRC to establish an email enquiry service for agents including in last year’s Pre-Budget submission and in a letter at the end of 2024 to HMRC on services. The Institute participates in the new HMRC Stakeholder Forum, the Customer Services for Tax Agents and Representative Bodies Working Group which aims to assess current agent services and to develop improved services for agents contacting HMRC with client queries. This new email enquiry service is an output from that forum which will continue its work including reviewing the workings of the new service. During the XST’s speech at the same event, he reflected on the Government’s vision for the future of HMRC and announced that the Government intends to raise the income tax Self-Assessment reporting threshold for trading income from £1,000 to £3,000 within this Parliament. You can read more about the XST’s speech in an email from HMRC.

The Institute will be responding to the following consultations over the coming weeks and wants to hear your views: Electronic invoicing: promoting e-invoicing across UK businesses and the public sector and Reforms to Inheritance Tax agricultural property relief and business property relief: application in relation to trusts. Email tax@charteredaccountants.ie to participate. Electronic invoicing The purpose of this consultation is to gather views on standardising electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) and how to increase adoption of e-invoicing across UK businesses and the public sector. The consultation explores how different e-invoicing approaches may align with businesses and aims to support the development of a UK approach. The consultation will run to 7 May 2025. Please share your views with us by Friday 18 April 2025. Should you wish to respond individually, responses are being accepted by submitting a form or by email to einvoicingconsultation@hmrc.gov.uk. April 2026 changes to Inheritance Tax (IHT) reliefs - agricultural property relief (APR) and business property relief (BPR) As many readers will be aware, at Autumn Budget 2024 the Government announced controversial reforms to two key IHT reliefs, APR and BPR, which will commence from April 2026. Among the changes include the following amendments: a new £1 million allowance will apply to the combined value of property that qualifies for 100 percent BPR or APR or both - after the £1 million allowance has been exhausted, relief will apply at a lower rate of 50 percent to the combined value of qualifying agricultural and business property, and the rate of BPR will be reduced from 100 percent to 50 percent in all circumstances for shares admitted to trading on a recognised stock exchange which are not ‘listed’. HMRC has now launched a limited technical consultation on this issue. Note that the purpose of this consultation is not for stakeholders to provide feedback on the overall policy change but is instead limited to examining aspects of the application of the £1 million allowance for property settled into trust qualifying for 100 percent APR or BPR. As this is a technical consultation, it is running for a shorter period of time to Wednesday 23 April 2025. The Institute is aware of the damaging impact that these reforms will have on businesses and farms in Northern Ireland and in November 2024 flagged these concerns to the Government. We would encourage members to take the opportunity to respond to this limited technical consultation and express their wider views on this damaging policy change. You can respond by using the online form or by email to aprbpr.consult@hmrc.gov.uk. The Institute again encourages you to share your views on these policy changes as we will again be writing to the Government to highlight the particular damage these changes will cause in Northern Ireland. Please email tax@charteredaccountants.ie by Friday 11 April 2025 with your views.

Last week we highlighted that HMRC is conducting a review of the Agent Online Forum (Agent Forum) as there is concern that the forum is not working as intended. The Agent Forum is for tax agents who are members of a professional body and its aim is to enable agents to report issues about HMRC systems that are affecting taxpayers and their clients with responses received to forum posts from HMRC. If you use the Agent Forum, please email tax@charteredaccountants.ie with your feedback. If you are not already a member of the forum, a profile must first be set up on HMRC’s Customer Forum after which access to the Agent Forum should be requested. HMRC will require your contact details, the name of your professional body and your membership number in order to register you on the Agent Forum. The aim of the forum is to be a place for agents to report issues that are potentially widespread and affect a number of taxpayers or agents therefore it should not be used to raise client specific queries.

We previously notified you about industrial action affecting HMRC’s Employer Helpline and Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) helplines. This has now been extended to 16 May 2025. Read the full message from HMRC below about this further extension. “We have robust plans in place to ensure we continue delivering critical services. HMRC Employer Services phonelines and webchat will be open 8am-6pm as usual but customers may experience longer wait times. We recognise that this is inconvenient for customers and agents who need direct support.  The lines affected are:  Employer Helpline (EHL)   Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) Helpline   There are no expected impacts on other services. We will keep the opening hours and service levels under review, and we will update you in advance of any changes.   We are updating GOV.UK and the recorded message that customers hear when calling the helpline. This tells them about the industrial action, the increased wait times and encourages customers to use our digital services.  We strongly encourage customers to use our digital services rather than waiting to speak to us on the phone. Some of the main topics customers call these helplines about, which they can do online are: get a quick answer to queries using the digital assistant  Check the status of your CIS refund in the ‘Where’s My Reply’ tool – only call us if the date has passed   Check your balance in the Business Tax Account. For technical support with online services use the Online Services Helpdesk.”

In this week’s miscellaneous updates, HMRC is holding a webinar tomorrow on the National Minimum Wage increase from 1 April 2025 and the minutes from two HMRC Stakeholder Forum’s which the Institute is represented on have been published. Amd finally, new GOV.UK content has now been launched on setting up a business as a result of the work of another HMRC forum that the Institute participates in. National Minimum Wage from 1 April 2025 HMRC is holding a webinar on this tomorrow. Read the full email from HMRC below which includes a link to register for the webinar. “The National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates increase from 1‌‌‌ April‌‌‌ 2025. HMRC is offering a live webinar to help employers get ready for the change, as well as talking over some common mistakes employers make. The NMW team are offering a number of live webinars as mistakes are very easy to make. If your clients are a business that makes deductions through payroll, operate salary sacrifice schemes or don’t necessarily pay for all time worked, this webinar is for you. The NMW team are offering a number of live webinars as mistakes are very easy to make. If your clients are a business that makes deductions through payroll, operate salary sacrifice schemes or don’t necessarily pay for all time worked, this webinar is for you. Getting ready for the National Minimum Wage increase Register for this webinar on how we can help you get your clients ready for the new rates and avoid accidentally underpaying your workers. You’ll have the opportunity to ask questions throughout using the on-screen text box. Some other useful steps employers/your clients can take, include: check the new rates identify which staff are due the new rate update payroll systems as soon as possible contact the ACAS helpline to get impartial and confidential advice on paying workers correctly ·visit the 'Calculating the minimum wage' guidance page on GOV.UK for advice on how to perform the right calculations, because NMW is more than just a pay rate.” Stakeholder Forum minutes HMRC has published the minutes of the November 2024 Wealthy External Forum sub-group examining the changes to the taxation of non-doms on GOV. UK. The following guidance has also been published by HMRC’S Wealthy Team: IFM37800 - Carried interest: information provided in a tax return - HMRC internal manual, and IFM37850 - Carried interest: tax packs - HMRC internal manual. The minutes from the 128th Joint VAT Consultative Committee meeting from January 2025 have also been published and are now live on GOV.UK. New content on starting up a business HMRC has published the following new content on GOV.UK as a result of the work of the Guidance Strategy Forum which the Institute participates in: Set up a business, Step 1 of Become a sole trader: What a sole trader is, and Step 1 of Set up a private limited company: Limited companies. The guidance contains a new comparison table format which is not previously done on GOV.UK before. Since the launch there has been a lot of great feedback about how users are finding it useful. This is not the end of this group’s work but is considered to be a major milestone. HMRC is conducting another round of user research with limited companies (and another with sole traders is planned) and is also now conducting impact tracking to see if the changes help users in the way that the new guidance aims to.

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 latest Brexit and Beyond newsletter from the Northern Ireland Assembly EU Affairs team. Miscellaneous guidance updates and publications Apply to operate a customs warehouse, Notices made under the Customs (Special Procedures and Outward Processing) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018, Communications resources to help you move goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, Using a special procedure without a prior authorisation, Making an entry summary declaration, External temporary storage facilities codes for Data Element 5/23 of the Customs Declaration Service, Authorised Consignee Temporary Storage (ACTS) location codes for Data Element 5/23 of the Customs Declaration Service, and Reference Documents for The Customs (Tariff Quotas) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020.

On Monday evening 10 March, Institute President and Deputy President Barry Doyle and Pamela McCreedy started a series of US engagements on behalf of Chartered Accountants Ireland.  Approximately 150 Chartered members based in New York and the surrounding region assembled in the Consulate General of Ireland, New York, to attend the Institute’s panel discussion and member networking event on the current economic climate for FDI from the US into Ireland. The Institute’s newest overseas members chapter, for members in New York, was also launched by the President, accompanied by Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill. The weeks leading up to the event were characterised by geopolitical uncertainty, and given this context, the Institute was privileged to have such a well-placed panel of speakers at the event. Feargal O’Rourke FCA – Chair of IDA Ireland; Liz Munnelly FCA – CFO of Kerry North America; and John Feeney, Head of Corporate and Commercial Banking joined MC Caitríona Perry, chief presenter for BBC News in Washington, for an engaging and informative conversation at a time of increased focus on the long-established bilateral trade relationship between Ireland and the Unted States.   The event was opened by Gareth Hargadon, Deputy Consul General of Ireland in New York, and we want to thank Gareth and the team for their warm welcome again this year. Minister Carroll MacNeill spoke of the Institute’s status as an all-island body allowing Chartered Accountants Ireland members to access key business and economic positions as “trusted, ethical leaders” who occupy an important position in the island’s US-EU and US-UK relationships – allowing potential to influence and shape policy which cannot be underestimated. She noted the breadth of Irish businesses paving the way in the US across a variety of sectors, from Therapie Beauty Clinic to Kerry Group. President Barry Doyle spoke to members about the importance of Irish Chartered Accountants’ role in American organisations, steering businesses and strengthening relationships across the Atlantic. Barry’s key message was the vast potential offered by the global nature of the accounting qualification. New York resident and Chartered Accountants Ireland Council member Conall McGonagle – CFO and CAO of The Ireland Funds referenced the fact that New York is home to a complete cross section of members, and he and Barry Doyle launched the New York member chapter, providing members in the region key touchstones with the Institute and each other. The chapter – like the other 14 overseas member chapters around the world – will offer a central point of contact for members arriving in the city as well as those who already call it home. The panelists set the scene of the reality on the ground for businesses operating between the Irish and American markets, at a time of increased turbulence and uncertainty. The message was however positive, with Feargal O’Rourke noting Ireland’s all-time-high employment rate, something that is very appealing to US FDI investors. Echoing his sentiments at last November’s launch of a Chartered Accountants Ireland Guide to FDI in Ireland paper, he noted that Ireland maintains its position as a good place to invest for a wide variety of economic and social reasons. Continuing in this positive vein, Elizabeth Munnelly encouraged all businesses – regardless of their size – to explore the Irish market, citing Kerry as an example of a company that started out small and now employs 6,000 staff. John Feeney focused on domestic investment, reassuring potential investors to Ireland that there is funding available for infrastructure projects, emphasizing that Ireland must continue to create the right environment to attract investment. Members in the room were highly engaged and there were plenty of questions from the floor on everything from FDI to defense spending to tariffs.  During the week, the President and Deputy President also met with Mark Koziel – President and CEO of AICPA (Association of International Certified Professional Accountants) to congratulate him on his new role. The President also met with AICPA’s Susan Coffey as well as Lee White, CEO of IFAC, to ensure we strengthen the Mutual Recognition Agreement. During the meeting, they discussed IFAC’s key priorities, and ways in which IFAC plans to collaborate with other accountancy bodies to support the growth of the profession. Barry and Pamela, along with Global Member Manager Gillian Duffy, continue their outreach in Washington DC forging and strengthening relationships with stakeholders and members there. With over 750 members in the USA, the United States continues to be a draw to Irish Chartered Accountants at all stages of their career. The role members play in supporting both US and Irish businesses is critical to their success with senior business leaders such as Donald Gaynor, Elizabeth Munnelly and Alan Ennis making an impact on the US and Irish economies. Initiatives like the Morrison Visa – now in its 30th year – are just one avenue to help Irish people to access America and continue this tradition of success. Likewise, the ACA qualification is dubbed a “global passport” for good reason. Ireland remains uniquely placed to support growth, and with Irish Chartered Accountants held in such high esteem within business communities, they can provide trusted leadership in changing times. Members who wish to become involved with the New York member chapter – or any other member chapter – should contact Gillian Duffy. Photos from the event can be viewed here.

In Irish news this week, the Fiscal Monitor for February 2025 has been published and the Angel Investor Relief scheme has commenced. In UK news, HMRC wants your feedback on the Agent Online Forum and read about the Northern Ireland Tax Committee’s meeting with HMRC’s Making Tax Digital team. In International news, the Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union has released updated guidance on the preferential rules of origin. Ireland 1. The Department of Finance and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform have published the Fiscal Monitor for February 2025 which confirms an Exchequer surplus of €3.2 billion to the end of February. 2. Revenue has issued three new Tax and Duty Manuals outlining the Angel Investor Relief Scheme. UK 3. Do you use the Agent Online Forum? HMRC want your feedback. 4. Read about the NI Tax Committee’s meeting with HMRC’s Director of the Making Tax Digital Programme. International 5. Read about the recently updated guidance on the preferential rules of origin. 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.

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HMRC is conducting a review of the Agent Online Forum (Agent Forum) as there is concern that the forum is not working as intended. The Agent Forum is for tax agents who are members of a professional body and its aim is to enable agents to report issues about HMRC systems that are affecting taxpayers and their clients with responses received to forum posts from HMRC. If you use the Agent Forum, please email tax@charteredaccountants.ie with your feedback. If you are not already a member of the forum, a profile must first be set up on HMRC’s Customer Forum  after which access to the Agent Forum should be requested. HMRC will require your contact details, the name of your professional body and your membership number in order to register you on the Agent Forum. The aim of the forum is to be a place for agents to report issues that are potentially widespread and affect a number of taxpayers or agents therefore it should not be used to raise client specific queries.

The Northern Ireland Tax Committee chaired by Janette Burns met recently for the first time in 2025. A range of issues was on the agenda including Making Tax Digital (MTD) for income tax which commences in just over a year from April 2026 for unincorporated businesses and landlords with turnover from self-employment and property income exceeding £50,000 in 2024/25. The meeting was attended by several HMRC MTD Programme representatives, including the Programme Director Craig Ogilvie, who gave an update on the current status of this project whilst also reflecting on its challenges. Craig also set out what HMRC’s ambitions are for the next phase of testing in 2025/26, including the supports which will be available to taxpayers and agents. HMRC will be writing to agents who are likely to have clients in the first phase of mandation in the coming months; just one element of a wider comms plan. HMRC is keen to hear about the plans of our member firms to get ready for this major change and, in particular, specifically the reasons why firms are not planning to take part in testing in 2025/26 and what the challenges/blockers are preventing participation. Email tax@charteredaccountants.ie to provide your feedback. The Institute continues to work with HMRC on MTD readiness and is developing a cross-department MTD readiness strategy to assist members in their preparations. Last week HMRC held an MTD event in Belfast on Tuesday 4 March which the Institute was represented at. Another event is to be held in Belfast later in 2025 which we will share details of once available. HMRC’s MTD team, including the Programme Director also presented at the Institute’s Practice Consulting team’s Practice News webinar at the start of February. On the guidance front, HMRC has published an updated version of work out your qualifying income for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. The changes made to this guidance are as follows: Clarified the definition of ‘qualifying income’. This is because HMRC is seeing that various taxpayer types think that other income sources are included under ‘income from self-employment’ e.g. income from a partnership or dividends from their personals service company when they are not, Explanation of ‘latency’, Added a new sub-section on what’s not included, Added new sections on if you use the cash basis and are VAT registered, if the transactions in UK land rules apply, and if you are impacted by basis period reform, and Redesigned the section on residency and removed the concept of domicile which will no longer be relevant from April 2025. These changes align to internal HMRC feedback and policy review but are also based on user feedback from ongoing user research in support of this interactive guidance tool, linked from Find out if and when you can use MTD. The list of available MTD for income tax software has also been updated.

Report stage and third reading of Finance Bill 2024-25 took place last week. In advance, a number of government amendments were tabled and updated explanatory notes published. The Bill’s passage through the House of Commons has now been completed and all Government amendments (and no others) were passed. As the Bill has now moved to the House of Lords, it is considered to be ‘substantively enacted’ for accounting purposes (specifically UK GAAP and IFRS) as Finance Bills cannot be amended by the House of Lords and will only be debated. As this is a formality, the Bill is also now considered to be in its final form. The Government amendments were as follows: Minor changes to the scope of the new residence based inheritance tax regime and to the new temporary repatriation facility including that this will be available on offshore income gains in trusts, Additional relief for visual effects expenditure, and Clarifications to the conditions to be satisfied for payments into decommissioning funds to be treated as decommissioning expenditure for ring fence tax purposes. In other legislative news, the House of Lords agreed amendments to the National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill at report stage on 25 February 2025. This Bill will implement the changes to employer national insurance contributions announced in the 2024 Autumn Budget. The Bill has now had third reading in the House of Lords and will return to the House of Commons.