TAX

Summary

Typical questions

• Where can I find the contact for my local tax office?

• What is inheritance tax?

• I need some help with my council tax, who do I talk to?

Considerations

Tax information is for the tax specialist. There are a number of general publications which can clarify basic enquiries. If these are not sufficient for the query you are dealing with refer the enquirer to a local tax consultant or one of the contacts below. Some of the most commonly asked questions are about forms of tax, such as income tax, VAT, corporation tax, inheritance tax, capital gains tax and council tax. There is an excellent section on government revenue in UK Yearbook, The Stationery Office. It explains the collection of taxes and taxation policy and defines the main forms of taxes, dividing them into taxes on income, taxes on capital, and taxes on expenditure. It also mentions local government revenue.

Where to look

Directories

Any of the following are good for tax rates and facts. It is essential that you are using the current edition:

Homer, A. and Burrows, R., Tolley's tax guide 2007–8, Butterworth

Vass, J., Daily mail tax guide 2007/2008, Profile Books Ltd

Levene, T., The tax handbook 2008/9: a complete guide to the UK tax system, Which?

For more analysis and developments try:

International Tax Review

Euromoney Institutional Investor

Tel: 020 7779 8999

www.internationaltaxreview.com

Ten issues per year

BDO Stoy Hayward's orange tax guide, Lexis Nexis

This contains up-to-date legislation relating to National Insurance contributions, stamp duty and VAT.

BDO Stoy Hayward's guide yellow tax guide, Lexis Nexis

This contains up-to-date legislation relating to income tax, statutes, corporation tax and capital gains tax.

Walton. K. and Dolton, A. (2007) Tolley's tax cases, Lexis Nexis Butterworths

Council tax

Queries regarding council tax are best dealt with by the council tax department of your local authority. You will find the telephone number in your local telephone book or use www.yell.com or www.upmystreet.com to locate. There is a significant amount of information on the internet which may answer some enquiries. Go to the Local Government Finance Index www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/ stats/ctax.htm.