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Tax regime and computers


Laurence

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Setting up a new tax regime in Scotland is going to be something of a jolly for computer programmers.
Each employer will have to have two schemes, one for those who live this side of the border and one for those who live outside Scotland. Tax offices both sides of the " Mason Dixon line" , will have to be careful they apply the right rates. Like myself my tax is controlled by the office in Bootal, and my wife is subject to the office in Portsmouth. I suppose it is simple to apply a post code to see what tax regime to apply.
Will the very wealthy suddenly become domiciled in England to avoid being nailed by higher taxes. Many of the top earners do have homes either side of the border, I know a rich farmer who is " something in the City ", he spends time in London and lives in Scotland. What is to stop him now saying he lives in London and his Scottish address is just a holiday home.
It can end up a nightmare for people in the border regions who live in Gretna but work in Carlisle. Like a lot of aspects in the government of Scotland there is more to life than the simplistic approach.

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I have for much of the last twenty odd years been a higher rate tax payer but always thought, especially with the recent unnecessary and politically driven austerity, thought that I and others like me should be paying a little bit more for a fairer and more equal society.

I, for one, am pleased that the current government have opted for a slightly more progressive income tax system and actually feel they could have should have gone a little bit further.

The Scottish government are making a modest difference with the limited tax varying powers. Just think what they could do to make a positive difference with full fiscal autonomy.

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The SNP could have done a lot more.  They froze Council Tax for 10 years.  That benefited the better off most and hit the most vulnerable in our society most. The creation of the narrow 19% tax band is simply a political gimmick which creates some practical difficulties.  It has a fraction of the impact on the lower paid compared to the steady programme of raising the tax free allowance which the Tories have implemented.  Over 400,000 Scots have been taken out of paying income tax altogether, with many more paying significantly less tax.

Whilst the modest tax rise at the higher end is welcome, it is simply not enough.  It does not look like an SNP Government will have the guts to make any meaningful increase in income tax until we get a different Government in Westminster.

As for full fiscal economy. No thank you!  According to the latest Scottish Government figures, Scotland currently raises £312 per capita less in taxes than the UK as a whole and spends £1437 more.  That's a budget deficit of £1749 for each and every one of us.  We are able to maintain our public services because the mutual sharing arrangements within the UK.  That would disappear with full fiscal autonomy and we would have to find ways of  addressing the shortfall.   That would mean a combination of significant cuts in public services, higher taxes and loans which we would be paying back for years to come.  

 However appealing you may find the general concept of devo-max or an Independent Scotland, now is not the time to go down that route.

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9 hours ago, Laurence said:

Each employer will have to have two schemes, one for those who live this side of the border and one for those who live outside Scotland. ....

.... I suppose it is simple to apply a post code to see what tax regime to apply.

I think you answered your own problem. I can't see that employers will have to do anything.

HMRC will calculate the tax code for each person according to whether they are a Scottish taxpayer or not, and an employer's system will simply use that tax code. No changes required.

My understanding is that HMRC already identify Scottish taxpayers, even though income tax rates have been the same as the rest of the UK so far.  Don't you guys have tax codes prefixed with 'S'?

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2 hours ago, snorbens_caleyman said:

I think you answered your own problem. I can't see that employers will have to do anything.

HMRC will calculate the tax code for each person according to whether they are a Scottish taxpayer or not, and an employer's system will simply use that tax code. No changes required.

My understanding is that HMRC already identify Scottish taxpayers, even though income tax rates have been the same as the rest of the UK so far.  Don't you guys have tax codes prefixed with 'S'?

We do. The difficulty that Laurence forsees does not exist.

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The valid issue that Laurence raises is that the very wealthy can effectively choose whether to be a Scottish or UK taxpayers. Guess which one they’ll opt for!

Through my work I know of a couple who have made some perfectly legit modifications to their arrangements to be English taxpayers. So in rough terms, instead of Scotland’s public finances getting 45% of £1m, we get 46% of nothing. It takes an awful lot of peoples’ extra 1% tax to make up for that loss.

Same happens everywhere, like when France hiked its top rates of tax a few years ago, countries like the UK and Belgium benefitted. I sometimes think the world needs a single government and a single tax regime to prevent this sort of thing and all the abuse by large multinationals. But it won’t happen, as nationalists will always insist that each state must be free to do their own thing.

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  • 1 month later...

What I was trying to say, is all computers in many business' will have to be reset to accommodate the new tax regime.

If you are a company like Scot Rail for instance ,  with employees  domiciled in  both England and Scotland, someone will have to work out PAYE for that company, with different rates.  That multiplied throughout the land both in England and Scotland, will just feather the nest of computer programmers. It's as simple as that.    This will be a burden put on English based companies by a Scottish government .

I leave the argument on the political side to others.  I just see it myself  as a waste of money. I well realise that the party I support would mess even more with the rates.  I do not agree with different rates within the Union.

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On ‎22‎/‎02‎/‎2018 at 2:16 PM, DoofersDad said:

The SNP could have done a lot more.  They froze Council Tax for 10 years.  That benefited the better off most and hit the most vulnerable in our society most. The creation of the narrow 19% tax band is simply a political gimmick which creates some practical difficulties.  It has a fraction of the impact on the lower paid compared to the steady programme of raising the tax free allowance which the Tories have implemented.  Over 400,000 Scots have been taken out of paying income tax altogether, with many more paying significantly less tax.

Whilst the modest tax rise at the higher end is welcome, it is simply not enough.  It does not look like an SNP Government will have the guts to make any meaningful increase in income tax until we get a different Government in Westminster.

As for full fiscal economy. No thank you!  According to the latest Scottish Government figures, Scotland currently raises £312 per capita less in taxes than the UK as a whole and spends £1437 more.  That's a budget deficit of £1749 for each and every one of us.  We are able to maintain our public services because the mutual sharing arrangements within the UK.  That would disappear with full fiscal autonomy and we would have to find ways of  addressing the shortfall.   That would mean a combination of significant cuts in public services, higher taxes and loans which we would be paying back for years to come.  

 However appealing you may find the general concept of devo-max or an Independent Scotland, now is not the time to go down that route.

e

We  could rid ourselves of devolution, and save that money pit drain in Edinburgh. We could send equivalent of the Barnet formula to the local authorities throughout  Scotland , and go back to being a proper Union.

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  • 1 month later...
On 07/04/2018 at 4:31 PM, Laurence said:

e

We  could rid ourselves of devolution, and save that money pit drain in Edinburgh. We could send equivalent of the Barnet formula to the local authorities throughout  Scotland , and go back to being a proper Union.

Aye, perhaps we can reestablish the empire and exploit it's people and natural resources into the bargain. Ah the good old days, can we have polio and rickets too please?

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