Allowances Check

[beerdrinker]

Allowances HMRC Check

BA Cabin Crew have just been advised that 10% of them will be randomly selected to provide HMRC with meal receipts to prove that allowances are spent on meals. This is part of a review of the tax liability of allowances. Apparently not only BA being targetted by HMRC. Other UK airlines as well. And pilots as well as Cabin Crew

[Juan Tugoh]

And your point is?

[Capt Pit Bull]

The only surprise is that its taken this long for the revenue to figure out that (imho) the industry routinely evades taxation with allowances rather than salary.

pb

[M.Mouse]

You mean like the way HMC & R do not have to provide receipts for expenses?

[sevenstrokeroll]

expect more fatter cabin crew

[lamina]

The point is-

Hope the Delsey diners are not the ones selected

[Mr Good Cat]

At least the Cabin Crew are actually out working for a living.

Shouldn't somebody be paying more attention to the billions being wasted by benefit fraud etc?

[Maude Charlee]

Well at least you have a chance to prove that allowances are reasonable or not before they get pulled. It's been over a year since our tax-free allowance was unilaterally ended by the tax office without notice, and it's been an uphill struggle since to get any of it back.

[RED WINGS]

Well I hope everyone will be saving there receipts to give to the selected few

[Mr Angry from Purley]

Affirm this is the case with other airlines. 10% of BA is a lot of Cabin Crew, seems a high figure to me. Its also a lot of CC forking out
10% has been quoted for my airline also, but only 180 pilots so 18. A 1 % figure for BA would seem more appropriate. I suspect the BA allowance structure is also the most complicated ?

[Hand Solo]

Flight crew allowances are dead easy, fixed rate per hour away from base. The cabin crew still have the highly complex system of payments per meal, variable by destination. Given the cabin crews preponderance for eating meals on room service they should be able to spend their allowances in no time at all!

[Witraz]

Mr Good Cat,
You missed the point. The government need more money from those who work and pay their taxes to cover these needy people on benefit. They are desperate for every penny they can lay their hands on.

[Turn and Burn]

HMRC are operating an extortion racket on behalf of McBroon. McBroon decides how much he wants and sends his heavies to get the loot. Most of the time a written threat, in the form of a tax demand is enough to get the victim to part with their hard earned cash. Other times a visit is required with threats of prison. Muggers of old ladies in the street have more integrity.

Check out following site and see if you can spot the criminal activity. Demanding money with menaces is the clue:-

http://web.mac.com/nickmorgan/HMRC/tax-hell.co.uk

[757DRIVER]

Remember that individuals are under no obligation to keep meal receipts etc. If an analysis of 10% is to be carried out then the IR will have to ask them specifically to keep receipts for later analysis!

[XXPLOD]

As a former HM Customs & Excise Officer, I've no idea where you got that from? I got an 'investigators allowance' which was paid regardless which covered things like a coffee/newspaper bought whilst out on surveillance.

But anything else, inc. all mileage claims etc... an expenses claim had to be submitted and authorised by your line manager.

[MarcJF]

I guess what this boils down to is, is any payment:-

A) actually and necessarily incurred for the purpose of performing duties, or

B) an allowance

big difference as far as our friends at HMRC are concerned

[M.Mouse]

XXPLOD

Have a look at this information:

http://www.contractoruk.com/news/003751.html

It hit the national press after a long winded battle to have the information released under the FoI act.

One rule for robber Brown and civil servants and another for those having to actually earn the country's wealth.

[airmail]

Whilst I don't work for HMRC I do have a lot of experience in working with them (and I'm not a beancounter) but maybe you wish to consider the fact that it is not the individuals that they are looking at but the company as a whole. BA have - as we all know - had issues recently which may have raised their risk profile within Government. As there is a framework of paying these allowances so that they do not attract Tax or NI (see http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/eimanual/EIM05250.htm if you really want to) then it could be a double check that what is being claimed is as it should be.

However, I would like to point out that this doesn't mean that BA is under any specific investigation - it could just be that it is their turn to be fully audited

[Basil]

If HMRC have a look at the real cost of sustenance in the major cities of the world, they may get a shock which would, one hopes, result in their withdrawal of a time and cash wasting exercise.
On the other hand, if they keep it going, they will, as my wife said to me on a rare occasion when I accompanied her food shopping "Need to get real about prices!"

[parabellum]

As Red Wings suggests, when a crew member is one of the chosen few by HMRC then the whole crew gives them their receipts, properly organised this could show that the 10% sample 'prove' that crew spend approximately 30% to 50% more on meals than they are given as an allowance.

There is nothing unusual in the government looking after itself and servants at the expense of the rest. In several countries, Australia included, on reaching retirement age the DHSS pension is paid and frozen at that rate on that date for ever! However, if you happen to be a civil servant, MP etc. retiring to Australia yes, your DHSS pension is frozen but your Civil Service pension is grossed up to cover the shortfall brought about by freezing. Nice, isn't it? (Sorry, slight thread drift!).