The Trials and Tribulations of attending Craft Fairs

I have been doing Craft Fairs for a few years now and am invited to do lots. I generally do them around Christmas as sales are good but recently I have been trying them at other times of the year with mixed results. The last one I attended had no visitors to it and the only sales I made were too other stall holders, thankfully there was no charge for the table you just had to give a percentage of your takings. I don’t think the organizer was very happy as she vanished before the end of the event and we all left without paying her!

It has made me think though about checking events before attending to make sure they are worth doing. So I have compiled a list of questions to ask organizer before saying I will attend and I thought I would share it with you:

Have you run an event like this before?
If yes how many people attended?
Where do you plan to advertise the event?
How much is the table hire?
Do you expect to get a percentage of my takings?
How big are the tables?
How many other stall holders will be attending?
Do you ensure there is no duplication of goods for sale?
Do you expect a raffle prize?
Is there parking nearby?
Is there anyone available to help with unpacking the car?

I’m sure there are more but I think that covers it for now! I hope all the events you attend are profitable for you – Mrs Bath xx

Still confused about doing your tax return?

The dread of the Tax return

About a year ago I did a blog on “Do I need to be self-employed”.  That blog was on the accounts side of things and I am hoping this blog will be more about filling in a tax return for self-employed businesses.

I will set this out as question & answers.   If I do not cover something you wish to know please comment and I will try to help.

Q1. Tax return paper or computer?

At this present time you can still file a paper tax return but they are phasing this out.  I personally would recommend using the Revenue & Customs own software on their website to complete your tax return.  The software works out the tax due for you and you can even pay online.  You will need to register in good time to use this service however.

Q2. How do I register on-line?

To register online is easy.  Just go to the following link and answer the questions.  HMRC will send you a code through the post in about 7 days.  Once you have this you can log onto the online services and pick the services you wish to use.

https://online.hmrc.gov.uk/registration/

Q3. What sections of the tax return should I fill in?

On the first page of the tax return it will ask you to cross the sections that apply to you.  The most common sections are employment and self-employment.  There are two sections for Self-employment.  SA103S is a short version to be filled if your turnover is below £77,000 or SA103F which is a full length version to be filled in if your turnover is £77,000 or more.   If you have more than one business you will need to fill in a separate self-employment page for each business.

The employment section is easily filled in.  All the information you need will be on your P60.  You will only need to fill in your gross wages and the tax deducted, these should be clearly indicated on your P60.  If you have more than one employment you will need to fill in a separate employment page for each one.

There are other sections you may need to fill in.  Like interest received.  You will get this information from your bank accounts.  If it is a joint account remember to split the interest evenly between all account holders.   If you have a number of bank accounts add all the interest together.   If you have received any dividends in the year you will need to put this information on the return.  You will normally receive dividend vouchers showing the information you need.   Pensions, if you receive or pay into a pension you will need to fill this section too.

Make sure you read the form well and that nothing else applies to you.   If you have a refund then remember to fill in your bank details or indicate if you would like to receive a cheque otherwise your refund will be kept on account and go against any future tax payments due.

Q4. How can I pay my tax?

There are a few ways to pay for your tax.  If you fill in your tax return early enough then you will receive a tax calculation through the post with a payment slip attached which will tell you how to pay.  If you do your return online then you can pay online.   You can also pay via standing order or direct debit but unless these are payments made in advanced then interest may be incurred.  The last way is through your coding notice, if you are employed then you can pay the extra tax through your wages or if you have a taxed pension it can be taken from this.   You can pay lump sums off your tax bill at any time you do not have to wait till the deadline to pay your tax bill.

Q5 What are the deadlines?

The deadline for filling a paper return is the 31^st October, to file online is the 31^st January.   If you do not fill the return in by the deadline then you will incur a £100 fine, after 3 months this will increase see line below for details

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/sa/deadlines-penalties.htm

Deadline for tax payments are 31^st January for the first year tax due plus the first payment on account.  After the first year you will have to pay the first payment on account and any balancing payment due by the 31^st January.   The second payment on account is due by the 31^st July.  Payments on account are worked out on the following year’s tax.  So if your tax in 2011/12 being your first year of tax was £100 then in January you would have to pay £100 plus the 1^st payment on account of £50 totalling £150.  In July, the 2^nd payment on account is due and that would be £50.  January 2012/13 your tax due ends up being £200 the Revenue would deduct your payments on account of £100 and ask you for the balance to be paid by 31^st January.  So in January you would pay the balance £100 plus the 1^st payment on account £100, in July the 2^nd payment on account would be due of £100.

Q6. What is overlap relief?

A tax year is from 6^th April to the 5^th April, to make life easier I would try to have a yearend of 31^st March either by starting your business on the 1^st April or by doing a short period on your first tax return, I.e. October 2012 to 31^st March 2013.   The following year would then be 1^st April 2013 to 31^st March 2014.   If you do your accounts as 1^st Oct 2012 to 30^th September 2013 it will be overlapping two tax years then you will need to work out overlap relief.   This means taking out the portion of income and expenses that goes over the year from 6^th April 2013 to 30^th September 2013, this portion will need to be added to the following year’s tax return.   On your first years accounts you will pay tax on the whole period i.e. October to September.  The April to September portion of tax will affectively be paid twice but the overpayment will be carried over year upon year till you cease trading then the tax paid in the first year will come off your tax bill.   There are boxes on the self-employment part of the tax return that you will need to fill in

Well I hope this has been helpful and if you have any questions please comment below.

Mrs Jewels

Can you juggle?

I never thought I’d be able to juggle, catching one ball is hard enough let alone two or three but somehow I have managed to perfect the art even though there isn’t a ball in sight!

I’ve realised that my whole life is spent juggling.

I am a single mum with two teenage boys and I’ve been juggling for years – juggling my three jobs which can sometimes lead to a diary nightmare. I have yet to work out why everyone wants/needs you on the same day and at the same time, take last week for example had three things to do all on the same day at almost the same time! End of May have been invited to three events on the same day, why am I never asked to do something when my diary page is blank? Why do I always have to juggle?

I juggle the children and my boyfriend now that is tricky how do you manage to keep them all happy? Same problem - they all seem to need/want me at the same time.

I juggle shopping, house work, homework and gardening! That can get messy, especially while bath bomb making!

Then there’s my sisters and my friends oh and must not forget my lovely Dad they all need juggling too sometimes I think I should be an octopus! I do wonder if they realise they are often up in the air so as to speak or do they juggle too?

Mrs Bath

Do I need to register as self-employed?

I have noticed reading some of the network pages on Facebook that a lot of questions come up about what to do when you want to start selling your craft. Well I am hoping to answer some of those questions in this blog.

I am a Certified accounts technician and associate member of the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers. I have worked in chartered accountants for almost 10 years and for the last 5 have been a self-employed bookkeeper. However I must say any advice given to you by your accountant or the tax office should be listened to.

I will set this out as question & answers. If I do not cover something you wish to know please comment and I will try to help.

Q1. Do I need to set-up as a business if I wish to sell my craft?

Yes. As soon as you are actively trying to sell your craft you should set-up as self-employed within 3 months or you could end up with £100 fine. This applies even if you do not sell anything you just need to be looking for sales.

Q2. How do I set-up a business?

Firstly you need to decide what type of business you want or need to set-up.

If you are unsure as to what type of business i.e. self-employed, partnership or Limited company then you should see an accountant to advise you.

If you wish to set-up as a Limited company, I would again employ an accountant to help you complete this process.

Setting up as a sole trader or partnership will mean registering with the Inland Revenue. You can do this by filling in an online form.

https://online.hmrc.gov.uk/shortforms/form/CWF1ST?dept-name=CWF1&sub-dept-name=&location=40&origin=http://www.hmrc.gov.uk
Once you have registered, the Inland revenue will send you a UTR (Unique Tax Reference) this is a 10 digit number that you will need to have for any correspondence with the revenue. I would also urge you to register for the online services so you can fill in your return online. This link gives you all the information on doing this:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/sa/understand-online.htm
Q3. Do I need to register with Companies House?

There is no need to register with Companies House as a sole-trader or partnership. However it is a good exercise to check the name of your business with Companies House. This is free and easy to do. No registration is required. Just pop your business name in the box and click search:

http://wck2.companieshouse.gov.uk//wcframe?name=accessCompanyInfo
Q4. Do I have to register for VAT?

No. You will only need to register once your income reaches £77,000 in a 12 month period. There is more information on this on the Inland Revenue website:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vat/start/register/when-to-register.htm
Q5. Do I need to pay NI?

If you are self-employed you need to pay class 2 national insurance this is £2.65 a week (2012/13). You register for National insurance when you register for tax. However if you earn less than £5,595 per year (2012-13) you might not need to pay. You can apply for a Certificate of Small Earnings Exception and not pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions: http://search2.hmrc.gov.uk/kb5/hmrc/forms/view.page?record=yKpjabZqCc8&formid=433
You will pay class 4 National insurance on your tax return and you will still pay your class 1 National Insurance via your PAYE.

Q6. How do I keep Accounts?

You should keep a record of all your sales and all your expenses. The sales less your expenses gives you the profit. The Inland Revenue works out the amount of tax you owe them from this profit figure.

Expenses can be anything that has been incurred in the process of selling your product.

List of expenses:-

Materials used

Postage

Packaging

Stationery

Parking

Electricity used (usually a reasonable portion of your household bill)

Internet costs (usually a reasonable portion of your household bill)

Phone (usually a reasonable portion of your household bill)

Storage used for business

Stall

Protective clothing

Equipment / Tools

There are many more depending on your business but these are just an example.

The best way of keeping track of your expenses is to keep all your receipts. List them in date order on a spreadsheet. A computer program is best, as you can then set the software up to calculate the totals, but if you prefer to use a book. You can get cash books from a stationers that are set out to help you keep track of your accounts. You do not need to have a business bank account as a sole trader but I personally think it is a good idea, that way everything is separate and if the Inland Revenue ever want to look through your accounts they can see from the bank statement what has been happening. If you misplace a receipt do not worry or miss it out of your accounts. As long as you have put it in your spreadsheet the Inland Revenue will accept this. Also if you have paid on card it will appear on the statement.

Well I hope this has been helpful and if you have any questions please comment below.



Mrs Jewels

Wrapped In Colour

Wrapped In Colour

OK so now you can start thinking about Christmas!

I’m no Grinch but my local supermarket was selling Mince Pies just after the children went back to school, seriously the sun was still shining and Christmas was the furthest thing from my mind. If I’d started buying Mince Pies then I’d be the size of a house by now, there is no way they would last until 25th September let alone 25th December.

I personally don’t think about Christmas until after Bonfire Night, there are so many things to enjoy in the autumn before the mad panic when the realisations that lack of planning means the bank balance will barely survive the coming onslaught.

What is there to enjoy pre Christmas? Well first the joy of the end of the summer break and if like me you have to work during the school holidays that brings the relief of no longer having to juggle childcare and work, then we can look forward to all those autumnal treats, the beautiful colours of the trees, the crisp mornings, Halloween and Trick and Treating – very American I know but the children love it so why not indulge them? Then my favourite thing Fireworks it seems such a shame that this activity isn’t done throughout the month of November rather than just one day! I know not everyone will agree especially those with nervous animals but a clear sky filled with colour is a wonder to behold.

But now that is over we can think about Christmas, deciding which relatives to visit, gifts to buy, menus to plan and presents to wrap! Not forgetting to send cards to remind those friends you have been too busy to see all year that you do still exist and remember it’s a time to celebrate and enjoy your family, sit back and take a few days to relax before you start working on that New Year’s resolution list!

Why do I always have so many lists?

Ok so I am getting older – aren’t we all? But my poor brain is getting so full that things often slip out of it, how do I solve this problem? I make a list! The only problem is these are getting slightly out of hand I now have so many lists I need a list to keep track of them.

I have a list in my kitchen for shopping, things I’ve run out of, things the children have asked for to have for dinner, things I’ve seen on TV and think I fancy trying that.

Then there’s my to do list - phones calls, housework (how can I forget to do that?), letters to answer, emails to reply to, birthdays and bills to pay.

I also have a Caroline’s Creations list – orders to make, ideas to try and things to buy (you all know about my ice cube tray obsession!)

Then there’s the list I have at work well actually I usually have two lists, things I really must do today and things I really must do soon.

Oh and I nearly forgot, sometimes I have one by my bed for things that keep me awake, I lie there worrying I’ll have forgotten them by the morning so I write them down.

Some of them are written on the back of an old bill or letter but some of them have their own little note pads, some plain but one is really pretty!

I googled list making obsession and the results were varied including it’s an ok thing to do to I have OCD – lol! Anyone who knows me will not believe that!

But I think I should try and calm my list making but how? Maybe I should make a list of suggestions?

Help me please!

Mrs Bath