Abaqus Limited

26/05/2026

🌡️ Heatwave perk idea: buying the team ice-creams 🍦
A small gesture for morale… but what about the tax? 👇

✅ Usually tax-free for employees (Trivial Benefits)
If the ice-cream costs £50 or less per employee, isn’t cash, isn’t a reward for performance, and isn’t in their contract, it can be a trivial benefit - meaning no tax, no NIC, and nothing to report.

👀 Director watch-out (close companies) Directors of close companies have a £300 per tax year cap on trivial benefits.

🏢 Corporation Tax: generally allowable Staff treats are usually an allowable business cost, as long as they’re genuinely for employees (and not really customer entertaining in disguise).

🧾 VAT (if you’re VAT-registered) Staff-only treats are often fine for VAT recovery. If clients/guests attend, you may need to split the cost and only reclaim the staff portion. Directors-only “treats” can be trickier.

🧠 Admin tip: Keep the receipt + a quick note (“staff ice-creams – heatwave morale/welfare”).

📩 Want to reward staff and stay compliant? Message AskAbaqus — we’ll help you do it tax-efficiently.

21/05/2026

🚗 Business mileage update (UK)

The approved work mileage rate for people using their own car for business travel is set to increase by 10p - from 45p to 55p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles - and it’s backdated to April 2026 (start of the 2026/27 tax year).

What this means:
✅ If you drive as part of your job (e.g., visiting clients or moving between sites), your employer can reimburse you up to 55p/mile without tax or NI.
✅ If your employer pays less, you can claim tax relief on the difference.

Example:
If you’re paid 30p/mile, the shortfall is 25p/mile - and you can claim tax relief on that amount.

Tip: This is for business journeys, not normal commuting - keep a simple mileage log (date, start/end, purpose, miles). There are apps available to track this.

Got questions about what counts as business mileage or how to claim? AskAbaqus 👇

12/05/2026

🚨 Will you get caught out on Benefits in Kind? You’re not alone…

It’s easy to overlook, but HMRC is paying close attention to benefits in kind (BIKs) - and getting it wrong can be costly.

Ask yourself:
�👉 Are you using a company asset personally (e.g. a company car or equipment)?
�👉 Is your company paying for something that’s essentially personal, like private health insurance?

If the answer is yes, you may have a taxable benefit that needs to be declared.

📋 What should you be doing?

👉 These benefits must be reported on a P11D for each relevant employee or director�
👉 Employers also need to submit a P11D(b) to report the total Class 1A National Insurance due�
👉 📅 The filing deadline for the 2025/2026 tax year is 6 July 2026 - don’t get caught out�
💡 Important change coming: �
HMRC is moving towards mandatory payrolling of benefits, meaning these will be reported in real time through payroll rather than at year-end.
�👉 This becomes mandatory from 6 April 2027, so now is the time to prepare.

✅ The takeaway:
�If there’s any personal use or personal benefit involved, review it now to make sure you’re compliant - and avoid an unwelcome surprise later.

If you’re unsure, it’s always better to check than to explain it to HMRC afterwards… 👀

05/05/2026

💷 Could HMRC be holding your money? 🤔

If you’re likely to be due a tax refund, getting your return done nice and early means money back in your pocket sooner - rather than sitting with HMRC.

Many people don’t realise they’ve overpaid tax, especially:

✅ Subbies under CIS - Tax deducted at source often means you’ve paid too much
✅ New sole traders - Particularly if you were previously employed, as PAYE deductions may have exceeded what you actually owed
✅ Higher‑rate taxpayers - Who made qualifying pension contributions not already included in their tax code
✅ Anyone claiming work‑related expenses such as tools, uniforms, mileage, or working‑from‑home costs
✅ Higher‑rate taxpayers who made Gift Aid donations

This list isn’t exhaustive - there are plenty of other scenarios where a refund could be due.

📅 Early returns = early refunds.

If you’re unsure whether HMRC owes you money, AskAbaqus can check and handle it all for you.

💬 Know someone this applies to? Tag them or share below 👇

24/04/2026

☕🍽️ Out and about with AskAbaqus this week! 🍽️☕

Sarah had a great time attending the Sterling Group at The Ivy this week, kindly stepping in as a substitute for Aidan Stevens of Stratton House Hotel.

It was a lovely meeting with plenty of engaging conversation and lots of great new business connections — thank you to everyone who made it such a welcoming and worthwhile session.

And then… a moment of absolute surprise 😲
We somehow discovered that Dom Sheahan is running the London Marathon. Shocking, we know — mainly because he definitely hasn’t mentioned it at all… ever… 😄

All jokes aside, we wish Dom the very best of luck as he takes on an incredible challenge for two fantastic charities: 🏃‍♂️ Pied Piper Appeal and 🏃‍♂️ Gloucestershire Deaf Association

If you’d like to support Dom and these brilliant causes, you can donate here 👇
👉 https://donate.giveasyoulive.com/campaign/pied-piper-gda-london-marathon2026

Good luck, Dom — we’ll be cheering you on (and bracing ourselves for more marathon updates)! 👏👏

22/04/2026

📩 Got a “HMRC report” email from Vinted or eBay? Don’t panic… but don’t ignore it either.

Online selling has quietly stepped into the tax spotlight 🔦 - and many people are now receiving summaries of what they’ve earned through platforms like Vinted and eBay.

Here’s the simple truth:

👕 You usually DON’T need to report anything if:
• You’re just selling your own unwanted items
• You’re not making a profit (selling for less than you paid)
• It’s occasional clear-outs, not a regular hustle

💼 You DO need to report to HMRC if:
• You’re buying items to resell for profit
• You’re regularly selling (think side hustle or small business)
• Your total trading income exceeds £1,000 in a tax year
• You’re clearly operating with an intention to make money

⚠️ That £1,000 “trading allowance” is the key threshold - go over it and HMRC expects to hear from you.

The tricky part? The line between “decluttering” and “trading” can get blurry fast.

If you’ve received one of these emails and you’re unsure where you stand, it’s far better to check now than untangle it later 🧵

👉 Drop us a message or get in touch — we’ll help you figure out exactly what (if anything) you need to do.

06/04/2026

Ever wondered why the UK tax year ends on 5 April? 🤔

It all goes back to history… and a calendar shake-up.

Originally, the tax year followed the old Julian calendar and ended on 25 March (Lady Day). But in 1752, Britain switched to the Gregorian calendar and “lost” 11 days to realign dates with the rest of Europe.

To avoid losing tax revenue, the government simply shifted the year end forward by those 11 days… from 25 March to 5 April.

And just like that, a centuries-old workaround became today’s tax deadline.

History, tradition, and a little bit of accounting logic all rolled into one date 📅

05/04/2026

31/03/2026

💸 Good news: inflation isn’t spiralling.
Less good news: it’s not exactly behaving either.

If your expenses feel like they’ve quietly crept up again, you’re not mistaken.

Ongoing tensions in the Middle East are pushing up energy prices, which has a habit of working its way into… well, everything.

Fuel costs rise → transport costs rise → business costs rise → your weekly shop follows along for the ride.

Efficient, really. Just not in a helpful way.

👉 For businesses:
Margins get tighter
Costs become less predictable
Pricing decisions become… character building

👉 For individuals:
Bills edge up
Disposable income edges down
Budgeting becomes slightly less optional

Nothing dramatic overnight. Just a steady nudge in the wrong direction.

So, the sensible steps:
• Keep an eye on costs (they won’t do it themselves)
• Plan ahead where possible
• Make full use of tax allowances before year-end

At AskAbaqus, we help clients stay organised, prepared, and mildly less surprised by all of the above.

📩 If things are starting to feel tighter, it’s a good time to talk.

23/03/2026

🐾 Happy National Puppy Day from AskAbaqus! 🐾

Before they were office legends, they were tiny bundles of chaos and cuteness… meet Archie, Stewie, and Joey in their puppy era 🐶💙

From sneaking under chairs, to mastering the art of the cozy curl, to rocking questionable fashion choices… they’ve always been top-tier team members (productivity levels may vary depending on treat availability).

Now it’s your turn! 👇
Drop a photo of your puppy (or your dog’s throwback puppy pics) in the comments and let’s flood the feed with maximum cuteness.

Warning: side effects may include smiling, “aww”-ing, and an uncontrollable urge to adopt another dog 🐾