Daily Mail Tax Guide 2009/2010 by Jane Vass
| Daily Mail Tax Guide 2009/2010 by Jane Vass | |
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| Category: Business and Finance | |
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Reviewer: Sue Magee
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| Summary: An excellent, jargon-free guide to completing your tax return and minimising your liabilities. Highly recommended. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 384 | Date: May 2009 |
| Publisher: Profile Business | |
| ISBN: 978-1846682278 | |
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It's well over a decade since I worked for what was then the Inland Revenue and is now Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, but there's one thing for certain – I am no fonder of filling in a Tax Return now than I was then. It's a tedious job and it's very easy to make a mistake (either in your favour or the Government's) which can cause problems. If you opt to take professional advice it can be expensive and doesn't come with any guarantees. At the other end of the scale, the Revenue will do their best to help for free – but they're not there to plan for you, and this can mean that valuable opportunities are missed. All is not lost though – Jane Vass has a reliable history of producing Tax Return Guides and this year's is no disappointment.
It's user-friendly. At the beginning of each chapter there's a paragraph of Top Tips, allowing you to establish whether or not it's relevant to you. You don't have to plough through a lot of text to find out that you needn't have bothered. It's written in language that real people can understand and given the complex nature of the subject it's as jargon-free as is possible.
It is bang up-to-date – including all the changes in the 2009 budget – not only is there a very helpful budget summary at the end of the book but all the changes have been incorporated into the main body of the text. The book includes essentials such as The Taxes You Might Pay and then moves on to the planning stage covering a variety of taxes and ways in which you can legally save money. Remember that it's OK to take advantage of the chances to avoid paying tax which the law provides but it's illegal to evade tax.
A wide range of taxes are covered, from the obvious Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax through to Inheritance Tax. Jane also shows you how to ensure that you make the most of your entitlement to tax credits. There are some useful hints about Child Tax Credits which can make a real difference to a family.
Finally, Jane gets to grips with the job of filling in the return. Interestingly she recommends filing online as this gives you more time. The instructions are clear, concise and as close to foolproof as seems possible.
So, who is going to benefit from this book? It's probably easier to say that the only people who won't find it essential reading are those who have no liability to tax. Most people will find that there are hints which will save them more than the cover price of the book and even tax professionals speak of it as a valuable reference book.
I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to The Bookbag.
If you are still to complete your Tax Return for 2008/9 copies of that year's guide are still available. If you're looking for proactive ways to conserve and increase your wealth then we can recommend The Long and the Short of it: A Guide to Finance and Investment for Normally Intelligent People Who Aren't in the Industry by John Kay.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Daily Mail Tax Guide 2009/2010 by Jane Vass at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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