if someone pays occasional cheque into bank will HMRC know?

DJR1971

If only a couple of hundred £'s during the year, HMRC would view this as a hobby and not another source of income so not considered fraud or evasion. Maybe worth a quick call to the local office or an accountants/citizens advice to gain some reassurance but if it's DEFINITELY at this level and occasional then viewed as a hobby.

HappyMJ

DJR1971 wrote: »

If only a couple of hundred £'s during the year, HMRC would view this as a hobby and not another source of income so not considered fraud or evasion. Maybe worth a quick call to the local office or an accountants/citizens advice to gain some reassurance but if it's DEFINITELY at this level and occasional then viewed as a hobby.

Gardening for money is a hobby? That's a new one to me.

I might try that with some of my work (I occasionally fix IT issues for people) and see what they say.

DJR1971

It's not necessarily down to the purpose, its CLASSED as a hobby purely on the amount. Being realistic about it, if earns £200 per year, lower rate tax payer amounts to £40.....for that they have to raise a return, deal with the admin, process paperwork, etc, etc, etc as well as potentially recover it.....commercially, it's not viable.

I've come across this several times before and they're not concerned about this level of small income otherwise they'd have to police everyones Ebay accounts, etc. :rotfl:

Wayne_O_Mac

DJR1971 wrote: »

If only a couple of hundred £'s during the year, HMRC would view this as a hobby and not another source of income so not considered fraud or evasion.

Wrong.

It'd be a hobby in so far as they wouldn't be considered to be acting on a commercial basis with a view to making a profit (which has implications for losses etc), but it absolutely would be viewed as a source of income and taxed.

booksurr

DJR1971 wrote: »

If only a couple of hundred £'s during the year, HMRC would view this as a hobby and not another source of income so not considered fraud or evasion. Maybe worth a quick call to the local office or an accountants/citizens advice to gain some reassurance but if it's DEFINITELY at this level and occasional then viewed as a hobby.

utter rubbish
OP is deliberately engaged in trading activity with a view to being PAID for his work. It is not and never will be a hobby.

Very bad "advice"

booksurr

DJR1971 wrote: »

It's not necessarily down to the purpose, its CLASSED as a hobby purely on the amount. Being realistic about it, if earns £200 per year, lower rate tax payer amounts to £40.....for that they have to raise a return, deal with the admin, process paperwork, etc, etc, etc as well as potentially recover it.....commercially, it's not viable.

I've come across this several times before and they're not concerned about this level of small income otherwise they'd have to police everyones Ebay accounts, etc. :rotfl:

again utter rubbish

the OP is engaged is trading activity - he does work and charges for his time. It is not a hobby, nor is it e bay

i suggest you consult an accountant if you believe what you write

I also suggest you read up on how ebay trading (and other activities) will be dealt with from April 2017 for exactly the cost effectiveness reasons you state

MoneyMission2015

DJR1971 wrote: »

It's not necessarily down to the purpose, its CLASSED as a hobby purely on the amount. Being realistic about it, if earns £200 per year, lower rate tax payer amounts to £40.....for that they have to raise a return, deal with the admin, process paperwork, etc, etc, etc as well as potentially recover it.....commercially, it's not viable.

I've come across this several times before and they're not concerned about this level of small income otherwise they'd have to police everyones Ebay accounts, etc. :rotfl:

I agree with the previous posters. The OP's 'friend' isn't doing gardening as a favour because he enjoys it and just happened to be given a token gift of money to say thank you, he is using this as a source of income, has customers that he has worked for on a commercial basis and is potentially considering making this a full time job if it works out. So this isn't a hobby, it's a job.

Tammykitty

purpleroad wrote: »

Got a friend who is PAYEE and they pay his taxes. On side he does gardening and wot not and usually they pay cash, the other week they paid by cheque. As he isn't registered for tax he didn't know whether to pay the cheque or not. Would HMRC spot the occasional cheque or bank transfer once every 6 months- a year that he has into his bank accounts? he has three accounts and different banks. I heard they rarely look into someone who is already paying tax PAYEE. If in the future he decided that this job would be his main job and registered would HMRC go back and check all his accounts for the months/years before analysize all the money going in and out previous to him registering?


How much hassle is it to register for second job for £100-£150 a year? I mean to fill in forms etc Also, if you lost main PAYEE job and needed to sign on but were registered as self-employed even for that piddly amount would that affect being eligible to claim JSA?

If the income is £100 to £150 a year. Just phone HMCR and say to them.


I believe for JSA there is an earnings disregard for £5 a week, so in theory he could still do this work (Would need to check this though)


However - if the income is really only £150 a year, don't forget to deduct expenses including 45p a mile for travel to clients (assuming own car), any insurance costs?, Petrol for lawnmower, strimmer wire, small gardening tools and capital allowances for larger machinery.


The tax in due on the profit from self employment and not from the income from self employment

agrinnall

Tammykitty wrote: »

If the income is £100 to £150 a year. Just phone HMCR and say to them.

But although the OP has pointedly declined to clarify there is a very strong suspicion that the £100 is simply what is paid in cheques, and that there is significantly more paid in cash.

Jeems

Leaving ethics aside, in answer to your question, no they wouldn't notice.