Here is a detailed look at our process:
- We will prepare the partnership self assessment tax returns & the annual partnership statements together with any supplementary pages required from the information & explanations that the partnership provides to us. In particular, we will allocate the split of profits & other gains between the partners on the basis provided to us. After obtaining the approval of the nominated partner we will submit these to HMRC online.
- We will prepare the partnership business accounts in accordance with FRS 102 generally accepted accounting standards from the books, accounting records & other information & explanations provided to us by you and/or by others on your behalf.
- We will complete the writing up of your books and records in so far as they are incomplete when presented to us. These will be from the accounting information and records you supply.
- We have a professional duty to compile accounts that conform with generally accepted accounting principles. Where we identify that the accounts do not conform to generally accepted accounting principles or standards, we will inform you & suggest amendments be put through the accounts before being published. We have a professional responsibility not to allow our name to be associated with accounts that may be misleading. In extreme cases, where this matter cannot be resolved, we will withdraw from the engagement and notify you in writing of the reasons.
- Once we have issued our report we have no further responsibility in relation to the accounts for that financial year. However, we expect that you will inform us of any material event occurring between the date of our report & that of the annual general meeting that may affect the accounts.
- Where instructed by you, we will advise you as partners as to possible partnership tax return-related claims & elections arising from information supplied by the partnership in the form & manner required by HMRC.
- If instructed, we will provide each partner or their agent with details of the partner’s allocations from the return to enable partners to fill in their self-assessment tax returns. The split of profits & other gains between the partners will be allocated on the basis provided to us. We will not provide any other information to individual members unless this is authorised & forms part of a separate engagement.
- If any of the individual partners require personal tax advice or require us to prepare a personal tax return and/or wish us to make possible tax return-related claims, please let us know as this will be the subject of a separate engagement letter.
- Ad hoc queries by way of telephone & email enquiries are not routine compliance & may result in additional fees. As indicated below, where appropriate we will aim to discuss & agree additional fees but it may not always be possible to agree these in advance & we reserve the right to charge you an additional fee for these queries.
Where instructed by the nominated partner, we will provide such other taxation ad hoc & advisory services as may be agreed between us from time to time. These services will be subject to the terms in an engagement letter & standard terms & conditions of business unless we decide to issue a separate engagement letter. An additional fee may be charged for these services. Examples of such work include:
- advising on ad hoc transactions & queries (including telephone conversations), preparing & submitting information in the relevant format to HMRC & calculating any related tax liabilities;
- dealing with any enquiry opened into the partnership tax return or tax affairs by HMRC; &
- preparing any amended returns that may be required & corresponding with HMRC as necessary.
If specialist advice is required we may need to seek this from, or refer you to, appropriate specialists. We will only do this when instructed by the nominated partner.
You are required to prepare accounts (financial statements) for each financial year, which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the partnership & of its profit or loss for that period. In preparing those accounts you should:
- select suitable accounting policies & then apply them consistently;
- make judgements & estimates that are reasonable & prudent; &
- prepare the accounts on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the partnership will continue in business.
It is your responsibility to keep proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any particular time the financial position of the partnership. It is also your responsibility to safeguard the assets of the partnership & to take reasonable steps for the prevention of & detection of fraud & other irregularities with an appropriate system of internal controls.
You are also responsible for making available to us, as & when required, all the partnership’s accounting records & all other relevant records & related information, including minutes of meetings.
You will also be responsible for:
- maintaining records of all receipts & payments of cash;
- maintaining records of invoices issued & received;
- reconciling balances monthly/annually with the bank statements;
- preparing a record of business mileage for all partners undertaken in the year;
- preparing a record of hours per month worked at home for all partners if you wish to claim for business use of your home;
- preparing details of any loan interest paid;
- preparing a record of capital introduced by the partners;
- advising us via the nominated partner of any changes to the profit sharing arrangements of the partnership; &
- preparing details of the following at the year-end: stocks & work in progress, fixed assets, amounts owing to creditors, amounts owing by customers & accruals & prepayments.
The partners are legally responsible for:
- ensuring that the partnership self-assessment tax returns are correct and complete;
- filing any returns by the due date; &
- paying tax on time.
Failure to do this may lead to penalties and/or interest.
Taxpayers who approve their returns cannot delegate this legal responsibility to others. The nominated partner agrees to check that returns & partnership statements we have prepared for the partnership are correct & complete before approving them.
To enable us to carry out our work you agree:
- that all returns are to be made on the basis of full disclosure of all sources of income, charges, allowances and capital transactions;
- to provide all information necessary for dealing with the partnership affairs. In particular, you are responsible for advising in writing, via the nominated partner, on the partners’ allocation of profits, losses, other income and allowances. We will rely on the information and documents being true, correct and complete, and will not audit the information or those documents.
- to authorise us to approach such third parties as may be appropriate for information that we consider necessary to deal with the partnership affairs;
- to provide us with information in sufficient time for the partnership tax return to be completed and submitted by 31st January following the end of the tax year. In order that we can do this, we need to receive all relevant information by 31st October following the end of the tax year. Where feasible, we may agree to complete your return within a shorter period but may charge an additional fee of £100.00 per partner for so doing.
You will keep us informed of material changes in circumstances that could affect the tax liabilities of the partners including, by way of example, changes in the partners in the partnership. If you are unsure whether the change is material or not, please let us know so that we can assess its significance.
Where you wish us to deal with HMRC communications you will forward to us all communications received from HMRC. These must be provided in time to enable us to deal with them as may be necessary within the statutory time limits. It is essential that you let us have copies of any correspondence received because HMRC is not obliged to send us copies of all communications issued to you.