The Importance of Having a Dynamic Lockdown Strategy

Now the UK’s threat level has been raised to critical, businesses really should be listening to the Government’s advice to develop a ‘dynamic lockdown’ strategy. Here we look at what a dynamic lockdown strategy involves and how you can go about preparing one.

What is Dynamic Lockdown?

Dynamic lockdown is a system of procedures focused on dynamically locking down premises in response to a fast moving attack happening either on the premises or in the immediate surrounding area.

Lots of businesses and public buildings are employing these procedures with the aim of protecting their premises and the people in or near them should an emergency situation arise.

What is the Aim of Dynamic Lockdown?

The objective of dynamic lockdown is to impede access by unwanted intruders and to prevent anyone who happens to be inside, such as workers or visitors, moving way from the zone of safety. Businesses that are located in areas of high public footfall are also making provision for offering their premises as a safe haven for people passing by who may be seeking shelter during an incident. This actually happened amongst various pubs and restaurants during the recent attack in London who took people in and locked down the premises until the danger had passed.

What Does a Dynamic Lockdown Strategy Involve?

In developing a dynamic lockdown strategy you will need to consider how to swiftly lock down all access and egress points. This includes doors, gates and windows plus loft hatches, skylights, basements and ducts. It is important to combine safety with flexibility so that there is a contingency should a need for evacuation arise. Both physical and electronic security measures should be included together with a strategy for zoning off areas of the property so that separate areas can be locked down independently.

The strategy should also allow for staff education so that everyone is aware of how dynamic lockdown works in practice. Teaching staff to be vigilant is also a wise move so that they know the reporting procedure for suspicious behaviour. The entire strategy should be planned in conjunction with security professionals.

We join the nation in expressing our sadness and concern over the recent events. From a practical perspective we should be looking at doing whatever we can to help secure ourselves, those we work with and everyone in the vicinity of our premises.

Employers of Non EEA Workers Now Facing Increased Costs

From 6 April 2017, the Immigration Skills Charge Regulations 2017 are in operation. These Regulations call for sponsoring employers of migrant workers employed under Tier 2 of the points-based immigration system to pay a new charge known as the ‘Immigration Skills Charge’. Here we answer the most commonly asked questions on the subject.

What is the Immigration Skills Charge?

The Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) is now levied upon all voluntary and private sector employers of more than 250 staff. The charge will be £1,000 per certificate of sponsorship per year and there are concessions for charities and smaller businesses which will pay a reduced rate of £364.

The ISC is payable on top of the cost of the certificate of sponsorship. Other fees, including the Immigration Health Surcharge plus visa application fees, some of which have also increased as of 6 April, are also payable in addition.

Are There any Exemptions?

Exemptions apply to Tier 2 migrants sponsored before 6 April 2017 applying from inside the UK to extend their visa; Tier 2 migrants employed in a specified PhD level job; Tier 2 graduate trainees taking the Intra-Company Transfer route; Tier 2 migrants remaining with the same or a different sponsor; international students switching from Tier 4 student visas to Tier 2 working visas, and dependents of Tier 2 workers.

Why has the Charge Been Introduced?

The ISC is intended to decrease the number of businesses employing migrant workers, hoping that they will instead recruit and train British staff so that the UK continues to attract talented students and the most highly qualified migrants. There is also the goal of protecting the country’s leading reputation for education and research.

Is Anything Else Changing?

As well as the introduction of the ISC, the minimum salary threshold for workers sponsored under Tier 2 (general) has increased from £25,000 to £30,000 per annum. The threshold for UK-based graduates will not change from £20,800.

On the contrary, the minimum salary for non-European Economic Area (EEA) graduate trainees coming to the UK via the Intra-Company Transfer has dropped from £24,800 to £23,000 per year. This would suggest that the Government has given due consideration to businesses transferring overseas branch workers to their UK offices.

The Government may in future also decide to levy a similar charge to the ISC on employers of EU nationals, if UK immigration minister Robert Goodwill’s proposal is accepted. However, business leaders are up in arms about the suggestion, so it may well be side lined.

With Brexit looming and the Government not stepping forward to reassure employers as to the situation with their existing EU workers, uncertainty is rife.

Should anything concrete arise we will of course let you know. In the meantime, should you have any queries concerning how to deal with employing migrant workers, why not seek advice from your local bookkeepers?

What You Need to Know About Making Tax Digital

Chancellor Philip Hammond’s March Budget was pretty much all doom and gloom although the backtracking on the self-employed National Insurance Contributions hike was a welcome relief.

One other glimmer of hope came in the shape of a delay to the introduction of the Making Tax Digital (MTD) regime which means that the self-employed, buy-to-let landlords, sole traders and small businesses that fall below the VAT threshold of £85,000 (as of 1 April 2017) will have an extra year to get ready for MTD. There is also a promise on the part of the government to consult on the design elements of tax administration in an attempt to streamline the system for taxpayers.

What is Making Tax Digital?

Making Tax Digital was brought in with the March 2015 Budget. It has a goal of transferring all tax records to a digital system. HMRC feels that putting the tax filing process into an automated system will lead to better quality record keeping which in turn should lessen the occurrence of mistakes and therefore boost revenue.

Under MTD, every person – including employed workers as well as the self-employed - will be given their own Digital Tax Account which they will be able to access online to view how much tax has been paid and how much is due. It is hoped that third parties like banks and building societies will link in with the digital account so that income can be automatically fed into it.

Also under MTD, unincorporated businesses earning more than £10,000 per year will have to submit tax information including a summary of income and expenditure on a quarterly basis. Businesses will also have to maintain digital accounting records using a system that is able to communicate with HMRC’s systems.

What MTD does not mean, and what has been widely misunderstood, is quarterly tax return filing. It is simply a summary needed four times per year. The aim for the system is that it will assist businesses in keeping on top of their tax positions throughout the year, which will help planning around finances and taxes.

What is the Timescale for Making Tax Digital?

The quarterly filing required under MTD was originally due to start from April 2018 with businesses under the VAT threshold first to start with the regime. However, this deadline has been put back to April 2019 meaning the smallest businesses have an additional year to get ready for the changes. For businesses above the VAT threshold, the deadline remains unchanged at April 2018. Furthermore, from April 2019, all VAT payments will have to be processed through MTD.

If you are concerned about MTD or digital filing, why not discuss the matter with your local bookkeepers? They’ll be able to guide you through all the necessary steps and will ensure you stay on course to meet the deadlines.