Working Tax Credits

Faily_Dail

Thinking of getting an ice cream van. If I do it to go self-employed would I be able to claim Working Tax Credits? Can they also tell how many hours I've worked? Like would they want a tachograph or something in the van?

Horseunderwater

Are you single or part of a couple or a lone parent and are you over 25 years old?
If single then you have to work a min 30 hours/week
If a lone parent - 16 hours
If a couple - min 24 hours/week
Going self employed - register with HMRC as soon as possible. http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/selfemployed/index.shtml - keep good records of things like stock bought and sold - your expenses like fuel and mileage and receipts for fuel as well as invoices - good record keeping is essential.
WTC will only be paid while you are working so in the winter you will need to find another job or self employment opportunity.

Faily_Dail

Thanks for the advice. The plan in the winter is just to carry on selling ice creams. It won't be my fault if people don't want to by ice creams but I'll continue to claim working tax credit, although I think continuing to sell ice creams in winter would be my unique selling point.

CKhalvashi

Faily_Dail wrote: »

Thanks for the advice. The plan in the winter is just to carry on selling ice creams. It won't be my fault if people don't want to by ice creams but I'll continue to claim working tax credit, although I think continuing to sell ice creams in winter would be my unique selling point.

You may get lucky with it in winter.

It may be worth sitting out some of the runs you're thinking of doing, before setting up a van.

CK

GlasweJen

Ice cream vans up here very rarely sell only ice cream, they usually stock sweets and the sort of groceries people run out of like bread and milk so that could be your business in winter.

Kayalana99

Faily_Dail wrote: »

Thanks for the advice. The plan in the winter is just to carry on selling ice creams. It won't be my fault if people don't want to by ice creams but I'll continue to claim working tax credit, although I think continuing to sell ice creams in winter would be my unique selling point.

Sorry to burst your bubble but once UTC come in you have to earn the min wage per hour to be 'working' 30 hours.

It would work for now though. lol

Faily_Dail

Kayalana99 wrote: »

Sorry to burst your bubble but once UTC come in you have to earn the min wage per hour to be 'working' 30 hours.

It would work for now though. lol

Lol, I imagine it would still be pretty easy for someone to doctor their earnings to make it seem like they're earning minimum wage for 30 hours - just keep sticking roughly the same amount of cash through the books (obviously some differences!). The government paid interest (e.g. working tax credits) would be more than you'd get on 30 hours at min wage saved in a bank account!

Icequeen99

Faily_Dail wrote: »

Lol, I imagine it would still be pretty easy for someone to doctor their earnings to make it seem like they're earning minimum wage for 30 hours - just keep sticking roughly the same amount of cash through the books (obviously some differences!). The government paid interest (e.g. working tax credits) would be more than you'd get on 30 hours at min wage saved in a bank account!

Not really, as a single person currently claiming WTC, the cut-off is not far above 35hrs x NMW so you would get very little under UC if you are treated as 35hrs x NMW and are single with no disabilities, housing costs, children etc....

IQ

oldboy64

Faily_Dail wrote: »

Thinking of getting an ice cream van. If I do it to go self-employed would I be able to claim Working Tax Credits? Can they also tell how many hours I've worked? Like would they want a tachograph or something in the van?

and..... what do you think the prospects are of making a living wage between November and March?

Most owner/operators of these see it only as a late spring/summer/early autumn operation. They generally already have another full time position that pays for the bread and butter. The ice cream van provides the jam for the extras in life.

WantToBeSE

Faily_Dail wrote: »

Thinking of getting an ice cream van. If I do it to go self-employed would I be able to claim Working Tax Credits? Can they also tell how many hours I've worked? Like would they want a tachograph or something in the van?

I have recently gone SE.
Yes, you are able to get WTC as long as you fulfill the criteria.
i am not sure if they can tell how many hours you work, but how i work it is like this: I work 12-14 hours a week as part of an agency. They email me once a week with my hours.
i also have a private client who i work 5-6 hours a week for. They pay me cash.
So, at the end of every week, i write down the hours physically worked and also the hours i spend researching my products, visiting wholesalers to buy products, doing the admin side of things, as well as all sorts of other things related to my SE work.
All in all, i probably work about 29-35 hours a week, but only receive £120 a week paid for that.
But i write it all down in case someone (HMRC) check on it.

oldboy64

WantToBeSE wrote: »

All in all, i probably work about 29-35 hours a week, but only receive £120 a week paid for that.
But i write it all down in case someone (HMRC) check on it.

Well then you are ripe for an investigation by HMRC.

Running a business and working those hours and only earning £120 a week tells me that this isn't a proper business and as such WTC should not be paid.

You will have to prove not just your hours but that the business is viable and why it isn't providing you with a living wage.