Policy News Journal - 2015-16

and wish to take part in testing the AOSS private beta service can register via GOV.UK up until 11 December 2015.

Work is also continuing to improve the digital forms functionality that is available to agents, including digital submissions, improved guidance, and saving partially completed forms. Updates on AOSS and digital support for agents will be provided through regular briefings to stakeholders and posts on the HMRC Tax Agent Blog.

HMRC are currently emailing agents registered on the HMRC database with an update on the Personal Tax Account.

HMRC severe weather helpline 9 December 2015

HMRC is providing dedicated support for those affected by the recent severe weather. Those who need help can call 0800 904 7900 to speak to advisors on payment options.

Further details are available on GOV.UK .

Small firms petition against HMRC on quarterly reporting 6 January 2016

More than 100,000 small firms have signed a petition demanding HMRC to rethink their proposal requiring most businesses to file tax returns quarterly instead of annually via digital tax accounts.

The petition was started on 16 December 2015 on the Government’s own portal and has now received over 100,000 signatures, the point at which Parliament is expected to debate the subject.

The Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015 announced the commitment to invest £1.3 million to transform HMRC into one of the most digitally advanced tax administrations in the world which will see most businesses, self-employed people and landlords being required to keep track of their tax affairs digitally and update HMRC, at least quarterly, via their digital tax account.

This is hoped to reduce errors currently encountered through record keeping and give individuals and businesses a more convenient real-time view of their tax affairs, providing them with greater certainty about the tax they owe.

The proposal is not to apply to individuals in employment, or pensioners, unless they have secondary incomes of more than £10,000 per year.

Further information on the transformation plans of the tax system are to be published in 2016 with consultation on the full details.

Connecting to HM Revenue and Customs 4 January 2016

Following on from an update published earlier in 2015, HMRC has confirmed that from 6 January 2016 corresponding protocol changes will also be applied to Government Gateway.

“The SSLv3 protocol is considered insecure and is no longer supported by many browsers. You should ensure your browser (or other software) is capable of using and configured to use ‘Transport Layer Security’ (TLS) 1.0 or above, (TLS 1.1 and 1.2).

If you are uncertain about the type of secure connection your browser or other software can support, you can check it at https://www.howsmyssl.com/ and other similar services.

From 6 January 2016 corresponding changes will also be applied to Government Gateway. This means you will no longer be able to connect to online services via the Government Gateway using the SSLv3 protocol.”

The above changes will impact on a range of services, which include:

CIPP Policy News Journal

25/04/2016, Page 212 of 453

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