Let’s face it, nobody likes paying tax but, if you have an income, it’s an inevitable part of life. Fortunately, here at RfM, we have a highly-experienced tax team who are determined to make tax less troublesome for clients.
Tax masters with a wealth of experience
Headed up by RfM Group Tax Manager, Tom Carter, the RfM tax team has a wealth of experience in personal and business tax, with several of our ‘tax masters’ also having worked at ‘the Revenue’ (now HMRC).
“Between us, we can deal with all aspects of personal and business tax, from compliance to tax planning and troubleshooting more complex tax issues,” explains Tom. “On the rare occasion where a matter can’t be resolved within the RfM team, we’re connected to a number of specialist advisors who can provide advice in the niche areas of tax.
“The key thing is that clients know that we are here to help them be compliant and tax-efficient, and to take away their tax headaches.”
Meet the individual members of the tax team here.
Tom Carter – RfM Group Tax Manager
Tom joined RfM Accountants in early 2022 to take up the newly-formed role of Group Tax Manager. Working across RfM’s offices in Lancashire and Cumbria, Tom is the go-to person in the group for specialist business and personal tax advice.
“As you can imagine, the range of tax matters that affect RfM’s clients are really diverse,” says Tom. “I’m here to help them find a way forward, whether they are thinking ahead or have an issue that needs resolving more urgently. So on one day I could be helping a client to structure their affairs more tax-efficiently to protect their families in the future, the next I could be troubleshooting a more urgent problem to mitigate their tax liability.”
Here are just some of the areas Tom has assisted clients with recently:
- Assisting new clients who have undeclared income, often from property.
- The best way to structure property purchases – company vs personal ownership.
- Shareholder exits.
- Company structure/re-structure – review of current arrangements and advise on the most tax-efficient structure.
- Director remuneration – how to extract money from a business tax-efficiently.
- Inheritance Tax planning.
- Setting up a holding company – to protect assets from a downturn in a trading company.
- Pension contributions – considering whether the Annual Allowance has been breached and reporting the tax charge if required.
- Business succession planning.
- Company sales – dealing with the tax aspects.
- Assessing the tax implications of purchasing vehicles through a business.
Jane Wilson – Tax Senior
Based at our office in Ulverston, Jane has clocked up 37 years’ experience in tax, including 24 years at HMRC. Jane, along with her colleagues Richard Carter and Diane Salmon, has an invaluable understanding of how things work on the other side of the tax system. Specialising in personal tax and compliance, the majority of Jane’s time is spent on Self Assessment and Capital Gains Tax returns on property sales.
“Clients who have sold a second property or a rental property have often not been made aware that they need to pay any Capital Gains Tax within 60 days of the sale,” says Jane. “If the 60-day deadline has passed, there will be a penalty to pay so we always flag this up to clients as soon as we can.”
Jane is not just committed to helping clients be compliant, she’s also keen to dispel potential negative perceptions of tax. “We know that tax can be daunting, and are determined as a team to be the friendly face of tax: client-focused, approachable and here to help – all year round,” adds Jane.
Find out more about the CG 60-day reporting window here.
Richard Carter – Tax Senior
Richard spent the first 10 years of his 35-year career in tax at HMRC before moving into private practice. He recently marked 15 years at RfM Accountants and is responsible for business and personal tax compliance for clients at the Preston office. Much of his time is spent dealing with Corporation Tax returns, Self Assessments, Partnerships and P11Ds.
As you might expect, Richard and the rest of the tax team find they are always busiest in December and January as the Self Assessment deadline looms. Richard advises getting your information in to the tax team as early in the new tax year as you can: “If we have your information early, we have much more time to deal with any issues, saving you potential worry and stress.”
Diane Salmon – Tax Senior
Diane has also earned her credentials as a tax compliance specialist, having spent 19 years at HMRC and 13 years at RfM. She shares responsibility for RfM Ulverston’s personal tax clients with Jane.
“We aim to offer a client-friendly service and take away the stress of managing your tax affairs,” says Diane. “This includes sending out a helpful reminder and tax return checklist at the start of the new tax year. The earlier a client can get their information to us, the earlier we can understand their tax position. Which could mean paying less on account or – even better – no payment on account.”
Diane and Jane are also providing their tax expertise to our Morecambe office while the fifth member of the tax team, Kirsty, is on maternity leave.
Kirsty Lloyd – Tax Senior
Kirsty has specialised in personal tax since 2018, following a change in career. She joined RfM Morecambe & Lancaster in 2021 where she looks after the affairs of our personal tax clients.
Her time is mainly spent preparing and filing Self Assessment tax returns and she enjoys how varied her work in tax can be. “Every client is different so every day is different,” says Kirsty.
We look forward to welcoming Kirsty back from her maternity leave in September.
Tax team tips
Get in early
The best time to do your tax return is as soon as possible in the new tax year, ideally before the second payment on account is due at the end of July. You will know well in advance how much you need to pay at the end of January the following year – giving you plenty of time to get the money together and potentially earn some interest. Depending on your figures for the year, you may not have to pay anything on account in July.
Talk to us
If anything changes with your situation, let your advisor know as soon as possible so that they can advise on how it will affect your tax liability.
If you would like advice on a tax matter, please call one of our offices or enquire online.