Tag: CT61

How do you pay interest to a director or individual lender? CT61

A few basics first:

  1. CT61 does not apply when a company in the UK pays interest to another company in the UK
  2. If you are seeking loans or investment make sure you check the FCA rules as it could be a regulated activity
  3. CT61 payments are quarterly and based on when payment is made
  4. The rules are not optional
  5. Its a deduction of Income Tax paid directly to HMRC
  6. The lender may be able to get the tax back on their self assessment return
  7. The borrower should give the lender a statement showing the Gross, 20% Tax and Net payment – HMRC R185 Certificate of deduction of interest

What does CT61 apply to and what form do you need?

If your company or organisation pays interest, royalties, alternative finance payments, manufactured payments, relevant distributions or any similar recurring payment, you must generally make these payments after deducting Income Tax at the basic rate – currently 20%. You need to tell HMRC about these payments and pay the Income Tax that you’ve collected. Use form CT61 for companies.

If you are an LLP you must send a letter and clearly state that you are a LLP and quote your Unique Taxpayer reference with details of the payment made and the tax deducted to:

Self Assessment
HM Revenue and Customs
BX9 1AS

How do apply for CT61?

To get a CT61 you have to complete the e mail template

HMRC: Structured Email (tax.service.gov.uk)

Nil Returns

Unlike other taxes you don’t need to file Nil Returns (see ‘When must I send a CT61’ section of CT61 notes)

But if you do need submit a return you need to do it within 14 days of the return period

Penalties

The CT makes this a Corporation Tax return so penalties should be inline with Corporation Tax penalties

Time after your deadlinePenalty
1 day£100
3 monthsAnother £100
6 monthsHM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will estimate your Corporation Tax bill and add a penalty of 10% the unpaid tax
12 monthsAnother 10% of any unpaid tax

steve@bicknells.net

If my company pays me interest will it be taxed?

Companies often borrow from their directors, especially property companies as 100% loan to value loans may not be available from lenders.

If the company pays interest on the loan it will have to register with HMRC and prepare CT61 returns

Click to access ct61-notes-2010.pdf

The CT61 requires the company to deduct 20% tax on the interest.

The Director may be entitled to the interest tax free

Personal Savings Allowance

You may also get up to £1,000 of interest tax-free depending on which Income Tax band you’re in. This is your Personal Savings Allowance.

Income Tax band Tax-free savings income
Basic rate £1,000
Higher rate £500
Additional rate £0

Savings covered by your allowance

Your allowance applies to interest from:

  • bank and building society accounts
  • savings and credit union accounts
  • unit trusts, investment trusts and open-ended investment companies
  • peer-to-peer lending

So the Personal Savings Allowance should cover Directors Loans as explained in accountingweb

https://www.accountingweb.co.uk/tax/business-tax/paying-interest-to-the-director

If you are lending to your company you should make sure that its at a market rate and you may want to consider your security for the loan.

You could opt for a charge at Companies House but at the very least you should have a loan agreement.

steve@bicknells.net

Lend money to your company and get Interest

Many directors lend money to their businesses, especially during the start up phase.

But did you know the company can pay you interest net of 20% – the tax deducted at source is reported and paid each quarter using form CT61

Form CT61 cannot be downloaded or ordered online. To order a form, you need to phone the HMRC Accounts Office Shipley on Tel 01274 539 665.

Here is a link to the HMRC notes on Form CT61 http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/ctsa/ct61-notes-2010.pdf

If the loan is from a family member and they are a non taxpayer they won’t be able to use form R85 but they will still be able to claim the tax back either by contacting HMRC 0845 366 7850 or by filing a self assessment return

Interest payments are not subject to National Insurance and can be a tax efficient of recieving part of your income from your business.

The income will need to be reported on your self assessment return.

The interest charges will be tax deductable by the Company.

You may also consider registering your loan with Companies House as a Debenture, here is a link to help you register your charge http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/infoAndGuide/faq/companyCM.shtml

This will make the you ‘the lender’ a secured creditor but you may have to take a secondary position behind your bank or other lenders or if other lenders are already lending you may need their permission to register a charge.

steve@bicknells.net