Barrister:
Can I pay my spouse for secretarial duties?
You are entitled to take on staff and obtain tax relief for this cost, provided it is incurred wholly and exclusively for practice purposes. The member of staff may or may not be your spouse but in most cases this tends to be the case.
You must be able to demonstrate that the payment you make is justified and it is not uncommon for HM Revenue & Customs to ask you to provide this justification.
It is important that you actually pay the remuneration. Strictly speaking, if you don’t pay it then you can’t claim it. We recommend you pay by setting up a monthly standing order for the avoidance of any doubt.
You must bear in mind there will be an employer/employee relationship. This means, depending on the level of the remuneration, you may have to set up a PAYE scheme. We can do this for you, or alternatively we can discuss the payment of a salary which, provided it can be justified, can be set just under the level above which the class 1 national insurance threshold is payable, thus avoiding the need to set up a PAYE scheme. We can also discuss with you the possibility of making pension scheme contributions on behalf of your spouse, which can be very tax efficient.
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Where next?
Within Established barrister…- How much should I put aside for taxes?
- Can I claim for all of my motor expenses?
- Do I get full tax relief for my car and computer?
- Can I claim tax relief on my court clothing?
- I am buying a house: can you help me?
- Is there any tax relief for working from home?
- How does the catch up charge affect me?
- How much can I pay into my pension scheme?
- Can you help me budget my personal finances?
- What happens if I become ill or am injured? Can I insure against this?
- I’ve received a letter from the taxman – help
Within Barrister…
General…
