In August I posted a blog about the new agreement between the UK and Switzerland designed to prevent UK taxpayers illegally evading UK tax by hiding money in Swiss bank accounts. (Click here to see earlier blog.) I reported that if you had a Swiss bank account on 31 December 2010 (and still have it on 31 May 2013) you will suffer a one-off tax charge in the range 19% to 34% of all your Swiss funds. At that time the Revenue had not explained how the charge would be calculated. They have now done so. Frankly, the calculation is difficult to understand – even for a professional. The Revenue give two examples, in which the actual rates would be 23.3% or 26.7%. Pretty scary!

In my earlier blog, I also suggested that it might be better to move the funds to Liechtenstein so as to qualify for the Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility, with the possibility of a lower tax rate. Since then the Revenue have tightened the rules, so that it is now harder to qualify for the Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility. But it is still possible.

Significant changes, as introduced by the recent Pensions Act, will take effect on workplace pension schemes  from October 2012.  In this webcast, John Davenport, Cassons Pensions Manager explains the obligations of the employer and how to start planning now.  Information correct November 2011.  Some dates have changed and have been updated in John's blog December 2011 - Click here to see it.

George Osborne announced in the autumn statement that two key elements of Workplace Pension Reform will be delayed.

Staging dates

Employers with fewer than 3,000 employees will see their staging put back, whilst employers with fewer than 50 employees will have staging dates delayed until “the next parliamentary session” (i.e. until after May 2015).

Employers with more than 3,000 employees will not see any changes to their staging dates. The pensions minister, Steve Webb, said the final timetable would be issued in January 2012.

Phasing

Phasing is the gradual increase in both the minimum employer contributions and the minimum total contributions required to satisfy the duties under Workplace Pension Reform.

The original plan required 1% employer contributions and 2% total contributions from an employers’ staging date until October 2016. From October 2016 until October 2017 minimum contributions of 2% employer and 5% total were required. From October 2017 the minimum contributions would have been 3% employer and 8% in total.

The rise in employers’ minimum contributions from 1% to 2% from 1 October 2016 will not now take place. There has been no confirmation of a new date and no clarity as to whether increases to total contributions will also be delayed.

Our comprehensive guide to Workplace Pension Reform is now available as a webinar - click and follow link.   Other new dates will be communicated as soon as the timetable is released. In the meantime, if you have any further questions please contact me!

John Davenport, Cassons Pensions Manager