11 November 2019

Keep details of your director’s loan account, and keep it in credit

Is your director's loan account in credit? You want it to be! 

Read our latest article below to find out why..

Why keeping your director's loan account in credit is important

In a recent Tax Tribunal case the judge agreed with HMRC that a detailed breakdown of directors loan account transactions is required, including dates.

The significance is that where the loan account is overdrawn (debit balance) there may be a possible P11d benefit on the director and also a tax charge on the company. A taxable benefit in kind would arise where the loan exceeds £10,000 and the interest paid is less than the HMRC official rate, currently 2.5%.

In addition, if the director is also a shareholder of a close company, there is a 32.5% tax charge payable by the company making the loan where the loan is still outstanding 9 months after the end of the accounting period.

Thus, you can see why HMRC may require a detailed analysis of transactions between the director and the company.

Note that where the loan is repaid to the company and a similar amount withdrawn within a 30 day period the tax legislation matches the repayment with the new “loan” and consequently the original loan would still be outstanding.

Questions? 

Get in touch with us, let us help you! Our team of tax experts can offer business advice and help you maximise your tax efficiency. Contact us today on 0115 964 8888 or email enquiries@rwbca.co.uk.

The views provided in this article are for general information purposes only. Nothing in this article represents advice of any nature whatsoever. Accordingly, RWB CA Limited does not accept any liability or responsibility for the information contained in this article or any decision or other action that may be taken in reliance upon the information contained within it. RWB CA Limited accepts no responsibility for any errors of fact or opinion and assumes no obligation to provide you with any changes to its assumptions.