TAX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Any advice welcome

[Kiddi]

OMG I have really cocked messed up! as usual i go thru months of not doing my accounts on time then catching up a few months at a time. So this weekend did the usual plod, plod, then realised not filled in income blah blah! most years declare about 5-7 grand net. Last year was a bit close but gross was genuinely about £150 off basic tax return counted lucky stars that I did not have to do full accounts etc.
WELL totted up income now im ful again and DD at school OH POOP. inorder not to clear the £15k gross threshold I need not to earn after december, As never had to pay much tax dont ever save anything each month so yes you guessed it Im stuffed. What do I do now. Have never done full accounts so prob have not been doing the right thing inoder to do these for 07-08 and also I think If i earn £18 and have a net of about £11 i will owe about £3k tax and NI, but cant find a self assessment calculator anywhere.
Can anyone let me know what they pay in tax for their gross and net, I know its personal but any pretend but accurate fugures will help. Also anyone who does their own full accounts and where do I get info on them AAAAGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH! I only have myself to blame but never thought I would have to worry about earning too much!!!

yes those fugures should say gross £18000 net £11000 is tax and Ni £3000? Or more?

I assume (maybe falsly?)} that you outgoings are low.

To caculate it as follows

First deduct £5600 from your profit. This is your personal allowance and you don't pay tax on this.

For the next £2150 you pay 10% (ie max £215)
For the next £33300 you pay 22%

I think you pay 8% of you total profit as class 4 national insurance.

I think there are some special rules about CMs to take into account (I am not CM so don't know the details)

Outgoings Low? HO HO HO I wish. oh you mean work ones, Well its always been about half, but this year was worried about losing all my kids during the reshuffle of school system so kept outgoings down, then earnt loads spend it on unplanned but necessary new kitchen, now about at zero with daunting prospect of tax bill! Guess it about £7k still outgoing as been tight this year and its usually about that on less earnings and much spending.
Am I doing something wrong then thought 50% was good ratio, anyone wanna suggest what average ratios are?

(or maybe it is up to £33K for 22% - but you don't sound as thought you are anywhere near that).

So nett of £11K

£5600 allowable - so only taxed on £5400

£2150 @ 10% = £215
£3250 @ 22% = £759
Class 4 £5400 @ 8% = £432

TOTAL = £1416

But if you owe that much you will also have to bay an additional 50% off next years bill giving you a total of £2150ish to pay.

I am not a CM so don't know what good ratio is and obviously naively thought outgoings would be lowish.

On reflection I can see you have food and outings and fuel to pay for on a daily basis and probably loads of other important stuff.

Right make that £1810 tax and NI great, less than I thought but still £2k I have not saved, so that means almost half my gross jan - mar is def not mine even before legtimate costs.
Any other suggestions? a mate suggested i 'bin' a kid!!!!! better than paying the tax man!
VERY PROFFESIONAL i said!!!! Try explaining that to a parent, sorry i have not done my accounting very well this year so im having Jan - mar off, could you go away and come back in the new tax year.

My maths is usually good, obviously got brain freeze now i am panicking so will go with your figures!
No it costs a fortune to look after my kids as I spend on them same as I would my own, eg if we are off to soft play including snack with 6 kids instead of just mine trip costs £26!!! for two hours play, I still go but obviously technically do not earn for some of the after schoolers as that day it all goes on outgoings etc.
We eat really good quality fresh fruit, fish/meat, snacks etc I realised that was going over the top when my two year olds small peice of fresh tuna cost £2 on its own and there were 4 minded kids for dinner. food cst £16 for that meal, charged parets £4 in total, , since then have cut back a little!

No - I think you have done Class 4 for the whole profit - which I did first time. and got approx £1800. Class 4 is only on Taxable profit (i.e £5400) - which should give you the same as me

Would be happy forsomeone else to confirm though, as I have just plugged the figures in DPs spreadhseet - which has been a good estimate in the past.

Thanks will wait til morning and hope other poor minders have nothing better to do than help me.
Ps will be able to check as I am off sick thanks to a parent who said, 'Oh yes she has had a sickness and runs bug actually,'
when i said as ahe arrived 'Oh your DD has just pooed her pants' only have child 2 hours a week and guess what 48 hour later I have runs and 24 after that my DH has runs. other kids all ok no one else ill so guess it must have been from cleaning her up!!!!!!!!
sorry gone off track on my own thread but ~It winds me up SOOOOOOOO much

OK are you claiming all you can claim - remeber

10% off the top - wear & tear
33% gas/elec
10% council tax
10% water rates

I claim 50% of
Phone
Mobile
TV lic
Sky subs
Cleaning stuff
Lightbulbs

I claim 100% of
Baby wipes
Toys
Books
CD/DVD
Days out

Plus 40p mileage
Plus a set amount for each child for each day for food (as it is easier than keeping food receipts)

I'm sure I have missed some stuff & someone will come along & correct me

Have you got all that

Yeah pretty much only tv licence which i thought was a no no.
Have you ever done the more indepth tax return or know anyone who always does it? do you need an accountant?
I find it really funny that I know masses about my job, im a support childminder and give advice to many who ask for it but when it comes to actually making a good living, then I only know about making peanuts!!! Awful really when we strive to prove how proffessional we are in our caring for and developing children into the best they can be, funny how money comes last, not many proffessions can say that.

I turned over £52 last year but only made £4,700 profit so I have quite a lot of expenses. I have done the full Tax return for the last 4 years

If your turnover is over £15 you need to do the big one - but it is really easy - honest - I do it on-line & I just plug the numbers in and it calculates it all for me

thank you for that, is there anything I need to record during the year differently before I actually get round to declaring it all. I want to claim for my car this year instead of petrol so guess I have to do full account anyway then. It was 12k so guess I can claim £3k as i bought it in april so its a full years claim.

i always did a full tax return when i was childminding BUT when i had an advisor out she told me it was common practice to declare 1/3 of your earnings as profit, apparently that is what tax people expect!! I do know lots of childminder who do this and have always been fine!

katymac, you claim 50% of Phone
Mobile
TV lic
Sky subs
Cleaning stuff
Lightbulbs

How is the TV licence and Sky a business expense?! You have to have a TV licence so no part of it is attributable to business, and I'd have thought a similar thing applies to Sky.

I'm sure you and I have had a similar argument in the past over water rates (unless metered again can't be attributed to business) and council tax.

10* of each Water rates & council tax are an allowable from the IR as childminders - it is a standard

TV License & Sky I was told to claim from the IR small business adviser who came round when I started & gave me a list - I only repeat what the IR tell me

I've actually found this really interesting because this will be my first tax year as a childminder. I've recorded everything by the book, but it still looks like I will have to pay £1.5k tax??!! When I mentioned this to a childminder friend she told me she never heard of anyone paying this much as a childminder and that I declare 1/3 of earnings as profit. Is it really that simple if earnings are under £15k? As it stands this year I would have probably earnt about £10k gross.

Chel - have you claimed everything you can?

That sounds very high

10,000 gross less Tax free allowance (£5225)
Balance £4775
10% tax Rate £2150 = Tax paid £215
Balance £2625
22% tax rate = £577.50

Total tax paid = £792.50

NI would be £2.10 a week = £109.20
Plus 8% of everything over £5035 (£4965*8% = £397.20)

Total NI & Tax = (792.50+109.20+397.20) = £1298.90

But that is based on your gross profit (ie before any expenses)

Or did you mean net profits (ie £10,000 after all expenses)

Even hope its def 10% for water rates and tax, its in print in the front pages of the NCMA accounts book if you cant find it anywhere else and im sure they should know, so get claiming

Ok, so I've worked out my average monthly expenses and what I expect my income to be for the rest of the tax year and after deducting everything I'm left with a net balance of £5797.28.

So after deducting the tax free allowance (£5225) I'm left with £572.28. So do I just pay the 10% tax rate on this? £57.23?

NI I pay by DD monthly.

If this is right then it's a lot more attractive!

Yes that definately loks more promising. Still not sure what i am going to do about mine. Usualy do my tax return about Aug then pay in Jan so guess that whatever I earn next year will be half in reality as loads will have to go in the bank to pay this years tax. wish I did not have to work!!!!

I wish I didn't have to work too! Either that or wish I could afford to work and pay childcare myself sometimes!! Love my job, but just lost 3 sisters so now stuck to even pay bills!

I cant complain really. I thought I would lose most my children( which i did) inSeptember due to genuine reason, not me( maternity leave, school changes) and as my daughter was starting school I could have got a job, wihtout upsetting many parents, BUt ii chose not to and am now very full and earn loads for me but things still get on my nerves