How our Sage partnership can help with your tax planning

Joining accounting software company Sage has great benefits for our customers

Businesses that have strong control over incoming and outgoing money have an advantage in terms of their ability to manage their cash flow.

That’s why Swoop merged with accounting software giant Sage: when business owners work closely with accountants and funding sources, they find they have more leverage to use when their circumstances change.

James Kennedy, Head of Tax at Swoop, says taxes are a fact of business life – but with the right tools, business owners can understand how to plan their taxes to minimize exposure and avoid overpayments.

Swoop sat down with James to get some ideas on how to make tax sense.

Swoop: Why don’t many businesses plan their taxes efficiently?

James: Tax is complex and many companies don’t have the internal resources to proactively manage their tax positions.

Swoop: How do Swoop and Sage work together to solve this problem?

James: We have in-house experts who can proactively manage opportunities like research and development tax credits. Sage software makes it easy for you to access the data you need to make the changes necessary to manage your business more efficiently in many ways – and tax is no exception.

Swoop: Do you have any examples of how businesses are leaving money on the table?

James: While most established businesses undertaking research and development have a long history of successful research and development of tax claims, many companies are now being hampered in carrying out investigations due to increased HMRC compliance activity. This can delay expected cash flows or even jeopardize future claims if mismanaged. At Swoop, we spend a lot of time helping businesses successfully resolve their R&D tax questions. Other tax savings that are often overlooked include reviewing Capital Allowances and Business Rates which can often result in significant savings if fully taken into account.

Swoop: Is it worth making big changes to get tax incentives?

James: Commercial factors should always determine major changes in a business. Just working with a trusted tax advisor can be enough to see the opportunities inherent in these changes.

Swoop: What about growth? Can you become more profitable without getting penalized for making more money?

James: We recognize there is a strong connection between research and development, grant funding, and increasing equity. It’s true, research and development success often means that the business is more likely to receive grants and equity funding. This is a direct way to support growth and we expect our clients to continue to have tax liabilities as a result of the large profits generated from that growth.

Swoop: There’s a budget coming up – what would you like to see from the government?

James: We were promised no tax increases on ‘workers’. With a fiscal plan based on increasing tax revenues by more than £8.5 billion per year by the end of parliament, we can expect a tax on wealth. Although this means the business world shares the burden, we can only hope that the government will provide certainty regarding the position and any regulatory changes.

Swoop: Any final tips on what business owners should or shouldn’t do if they haven’t thought about tax efficiency in a while?

James: Talk to your accountant and other partners like Sage. At least they can always point you in the right direction, namely a specialist who may be able to provide further advice on potential opportunities.

The next step…

Swoop can help you run your business with better cash flow and greater tax efficiency. You can check if your business takes advantage of it all opportunities and incentives open to it by filling out this short form.