what happened to wftc?

Jowo_2

missk_ensington wrote: »

So many of my friends quickly twigged on that they were significantly better off declaring themselves as self employed, working 30 hours a week and earning £0, it meant they still got housing benefit, got to keep their CSA money (instead of just £10 they let you have on benefits), were council tax exempt AND got to palm the baby off on a nursery 9-5 each day for just a 15% contribution! Its like being on benefits, only you ahve mnore money and you dont have to look after your kids!

People on benefits receiving child maintenance have been allowed to keep their entire benefits, with no impact from the additional CM, for quite some time now.

And the HMRC are aware of the abuse of the tax credit system by the self employed and there is a current crackdown on it.

"HMRC said it has sent letters to the 12,000 self-employed individuals who claim tax credits to outline its plans to target anyone suspected of making claims that “may not be genuine or accurate”.

Those suspected of returning fraudulent claims are being asked to supply evidence to support their claims. "


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/yourbusiness/8338319/HMRC-targets-self-employed-tax-credit-cheats.html

missk_ensington

Jowo wrote: »

People on benefits receiving child maintenance have been allowed to keep their entire benefits, with no impact from the additional CM, for quite some time now.

And the HMRC are aware of the abuse of the tax credit system by the self employed and there is a current crackdown on it.

"HMRC said it has sent letters to the 12,000 self-employed individuals who claim tax credits to outline its plans to target anyone suspected of making claims that “may not be genuine or accurate”.

Those suspected of returning fraudulent claims are being asked to supply evidence to support their claims. "


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/yourbusiness/8338319/HMRC-targets-self-employed-tax-credit-cheats.html

What so you can have a kid by a footballer, get a thousand pound a week in CSA and keep your benefits?? Surely the money you get from child support must affect your benefits in some way otherwise it isnt fair if someone has an ex with a good job?

Good luck to the Government proving in a recession that someone's business is making a loss by intent, its impossible to police. So you profess to be a webdesigner, you've not got as much work, actually you've only been getting one paid job a week but you've worked 40 hours networking and going out there trying to get more work - youve done one website a week at £200 a website, you've turned over £10,000 - but youve driven 10,000 miles so thats £4,000 of deductions, youve had to stay in hotels when meeting prospective clients miles away, you've had to buy a laptop, and an ipad.... and by the end of it you've made a net income of £2,000 for the year, pay no tax, get all your chidcare paid and £100 a week in tax credits.

That may very well be true, is the government going to tell this man he is not allowed to self employed because he's a bit naff at it?

On the other hand, this may be a total scam - his hotel receipts are for dirty weekends with his wife, the London train receipts are for him travelling to Arsenal to use his season ticket, the ipad was for a kid at christmas, laptop receipt was what the mother in law bought last year and gave to him and the notebook documenting 10,000 miles of journeys is entirely fictional - prove it isnt.

Sole trader employment will always be impossible to prove without tagging people 24/7 and people know it, nobody can tell you you didnt spend 40 hours this week researching a new market, or writing a business plan, or sorting out your receipts, and if you're business isnt making much money hats your human right to make that choice - nobody can insist you give it up and get a PAYE job.

It'll always be a cash cow

DX2

missk_ensington wrote: »

What so you can have a kid by a footballer, get a thousand pound a week in CSA and keep your benefits?? Surely the money you get from child support must affect your benefits in some way otherwise it isnt fair if someone has an ex with a good job?

Since April 2010 child support payments do not affect any benefit payments.

missk_ensington

DX2 wrote: »

Since April 2010 child support payments do not affect any benefit payments.

Wow so my fella pays £450 a month in Child support, to his ex who is on benefits and does nothing all day and she can just keep that, but someone working 50 hours a week and making a loss to start a new business will have their tax credits stopped. That's an irony if ever there was one!

DX2

missk_ensington wrote: »

Wow so my fella pays £450 a month in Child support, to his ex who is on benefits and does nothing all day and she can just keep that, but someone working 50 hours a week and making a loss to start a new business will have their tax credits stopped. That's an irony if ever there was one!

You could always contact your MP if you feel so strongly about it

missk_ensington

DX2 wrote: »

You could always contact your MP if you feel so strongly about it

Probably not much point.... her father is the Mayor!

zagfles

missk_ensington wrote: »

What so you can have a kid by a footballer, get a thousand pound a week in CSA and keep your benefits??

Yes.

Surely the money you get from child support must affect your benefits in some way otherwise it isnt fair if someone has an ex with a good job?

Blame the previous govt. They were playing politics (just like now with all this "black Wednesday" bulls**t). This only came into effect a month before the election. They wanted to be able to accuse the "nasty Tories" of having a pop at single mothers if they reversed this change.

Good luck to the Government proving in a recession that someone's business is making a loss by intent, its impossible to police. So you profess to be a webdesigner, you've not got as much work, actually you've only been getting one paid job a week but you've worked 40 hours networking and going out there trying to get more work - youve done one website a week at £200 a website, you've turned over £10,000 - but youve driven 10,000 miles so thats £4,000 of deductions, youve had to stay in hotels when meeting prospective clients miles away, you've had to buy a laptop, and an ipad.... and by the end of it you've made a net income of £2,000 for the year, pay no tax, get all your chidcare paid and £100 a week in tax credits.

That may very well be true, is the government going to tell this man he is not allowed to self employed because he's a bit naff at it?

On the other hand, this may be a total scam - his hotel receipts are for dirty weekends with his wife, the London train receipts are for him travelling to Arsenal to use his season ticket, the ipad was for a kid at christmas, laptop receipt was what the mother in law bought last year and gave to him and the notebook documenting 10,000 miles of journeys is entirely fictional - prove it isnt.

Sole trader employment will always be impossible to prove without tagging people 24/7 and people know it, nobody can tell you you didnt spend 40 hours this week researching a new market, or writing a business plan, or sorting out your receipts, and if you're business isnt making much money hats your human right to make that choice - nobody can insist you give it up and get a PAYE job.

It'll always be a cash cow

Yes but the new universal credit will treat the self employed as if they earn minimum wage for the hours they work, whether they do or not.

missk_ensington

Yeah I saw about that, but it doesnt come in for another 2 years.

Of course the system is open to abuse, but there are also a lot of people who genuinely don't earn the equivalent of minimum wage either because of the nature of their work, or because they're just starting up.

This is me - http://www.everywoman.com/resources/article/nikki-hesford-award-winning-entrepreneur My business is now quite successful, but when I started back in 2008 I was just a sole trader - the bank wouldnt lend me a penny, I borrowed everything I could on credit cards and loans but I was extremely grateful for the help I got with childcare so that I could work on my business and the money that enabled me to live. Without it my business would never have gotten off the ground as I'd have had no money to live off whlist I was setting it up, and no one to look after my child whilst I went to London to pitch my product to retailers.

Although I know first hand from friends the abuse it's open to, I also know many successful businesses wouldn't exist - myself included, if there wasn't something to give you a helping hand in those early days. Perhaps it should be subject to a business plan test, a meeting with a business professional or something like that to prove it's a serious and viable plan I don't know - but to remove help would probably further hinder the single mums I now help get into business from getting off the starting blocks

DX2

Nikki talking about fraud :rotfl: Your post history certainly shows you up Still got the heart problems chick Still claiming DLA

missk_ensington wrote: »

Yeah I saw about that, but it doesnt come in for another 2 years.

Of course the system is open to abuse, but there are also a lot of people who genuinely don't earn the equivalent of minimum wage either because of the nature of their work, or because they're just starting up.

This is me - http://www.everywoman.com/resources/article/nikki-hesford-award-winning-entrepreneur My business is now quite successful, but when I started back in 2008 I was just a sole trader - the bank wouldnt lend me a penny, I borrowed everything I could on credit cards and loans but I was extremely grateful for the help I got with childcare so that I could work on my business and the money that enabled me to live. Without it my business would never have gotten off the ground as I'd have had no money to live off whlist I was setting it up, and no one to look after my child whilst I went to London to pitch my product to retailers.

Although I know first hand from friends the abuse it's open to, I also know many successful businesses wouldn't exist - myself included, if there wasn't something to give you a helping hand in those early days. Perhaps it should be subject to a business plan test, a meeting with a business professional or something like that to prove it's a serious and viable plan I don't know - but to remove help would probably further hinder the single mums I now help get into business from getting off the starting blocks

missk_ensington

DX2 wrote: »

Nikki talking about fraud :rotfl: Your post history certainly shows you up Still got the heart problems chick Still claiming DLA

My heart problems are very well documented in media stories, I had a pacemaker fitted when I was 17 and had to have live-in help for 2 years whilst Oliver was a baby - nothing fraudulent about that. It may have come with convenient benefits like not having to cook my own tea, but it was never fraudulent. My DLA has long since expired and never been renewed because my son is now 7 and my blackouts dont cause him any potential harm like they did when he was a baby, some 4-5 years ago when I last posted!

And lying through my teeth to get a self-cert mortgage when I was 19, yes I'll openly hold my hand up to that one - I even tell it as a joke when I'm speaking at conferences about my entrepreneurial bneginnings, so sue me - its all paid off now so I dont think anyone is really going to care!