General Chat

Annx, you’re right. 35 years for the new State Pension. I must have got the 39 years from an old pension forecast.

Sylvia, the ordinary PAYE Joe or Joanna Blogs can can submit a tax form to deduct certain ‘expenses’ but they don’t make a great deal of difference.

Pulling it back to High earning TV personnel or so called entertainers can afford top notch accountants to reduce their tax liabilities. Mind you, some of the tax avoidance schemes have come unstuck!

Sylvia, I've been retired for many years but when I worked, the self-employed who had a reasonable income often budgeted for an accountant and accountants usually knew which type of employment the taxman was going to concentrate on in any one year. It saved the worker trying to claim for every little thing and getting knocked back.

So, for instance, one year the taxman would focus on, say plumbers and hairdressers. He would hone up on the necessities of those particular jobs. Reasonable depreciation of, say, vans (plumbers - unless you were a mobile hairdresser, in which case you'd need a vehicle), fittings etc and purchases of items such as overalls and protective boots, scissors and towels, could be claimed for tax relief but woe betide if you tried to claim for a raft of sumptuous lunches and client schmoozing. You get the drift .....

The accountant would also advise on partnerships, limited companies etc - all legal ways of reducing the tax bill.

I'd be surprised if the Canadian taxman didn't follow the same tactics. None of them is daft!

Having said all that, recent cases in the UK reveal that some accountants have become chancers to the detriment of their clients, many of whom have been 'dragged through the mud' by the taxman because of accountants' bad advice. If it were me, I'd never use those accountants again but greed often overrules good advice.

Big brother is watching you - taxman and tv detector vans!!!

It is impossible to detect a modern tv with a van.
Instead the BBC assumes that all households have a TV capable device Inc smartphones and tablets.
Not paying and getting a criminal record and - ve credit rating plus fine is a daft way of saving £3 per week.

Of course you can declare that you never watch any kind of live program. Good luck.