Category: Tax

Term and insurance and tax deductions -What you should know

insurance and taxWe all know that saving money is an art, but saving money on tax is a bigger art. Well, we all are aware of different tax rules associated with our daily life. And who doesn’t want to save money on tax? We basically evaluate all our expenses and savings and try further to save money on tax. One of the most common and highly effective tools associated with tax saving is the investment in life insurance policy. Yes, in India, life insurance is eligible for tax deductions under Section 80C. But do you really think it is simple, there are many terms and conditions associated with the same.

Tax rules you must know

1. When it comes to the tax deduction, there is a certain limit associated with the same. For all those policies which were issued on or before March 31, 2012, the maximum premium amount that will be eligible for tax deductions will be around 20% of the total sum assured. Anything in excess to this will not be liable for any deduction under Section 80C.

2. The maximum premium that is eligible for deduction for the plans that are issued on or after April 1, 2012, will get 10% of the total sum assured as the tax deduction. For example, if you invest in an insurance plan and that too which carries the sum assured of Rs 10 lakhs. Keep in mind that the annual premium which will be eligible for tax deductions would be around 1 lakh cannot be claimed for tax benefits. However, if the person is suffering from an illness that is listed under Section 80DDB or has a disability listed under Section 80U, an additional deduction in premium of around 5% is permitted. Therefore, in such cases, the maximum premium which will be eligible for deduction under Section 80C will be 15%

3. Premium amount that is paid someone else like other than children, spouse and self will not be liable for deductions.

4. In case of maturity, if an individual is fine with all the above-stated criteria, the maturity benefits stand exempted from tax. But if in the case where the annual premium exceeds the percentage limit which is mentioned above, the tax will be levied in accordance with the income tax slab

5. In case of demise of the insured person, the death benefits are not taxable.

Moreover, the good thing is that the term insurance plan which is a strong form of life insurance is not much affected with the same. And, in today’s market, there is the multiple and wide range of such plans is available in the market. Such effective plans carry a sum assured which is much higher than the annual premium. So investing in the same is not a big deal and it always comes out with a wider range of benefits.

However, it is important for you to understand that the concept can be different with single premium policies. As a part of these policies the sum assured is not high just to improve the returns. Therefore the premium amount associated with the same fall low, creating not enough percentage difference between the sum assured and the premium.

Under such policies, the sum assured will not be more than 1.5 times the premium amount. As a result single premium plans will not be liable for the tax deduction.

It is true that a life insurance plan demands a long-term commitment that may last for a couple of years. It is obvious that between the tenure policy you don’t want to discover that you made a huge mistake as your premium will not be liable for tax deductions. Then it will become quite late. Even if you want to cancel the policy then you have to pay unexpected charges.

So it is important for you to pay attention to the tax laws, study the same properly before investing in any insurance plan. Term insurance plan comparison is a great choice if you are planning to invest in the term plan. It will provide the needful financial cover to your family in your absence and will be liable for tax deductions. For making an investment in a term insurance plan, you can take help of PolicyX.com which is a great platform and assisting customers in choosing the right plan for them.

How should you plan for a proper trading method?

money tradingTrading is simple and hard at the same time. It could be either one for you. Or you might experience both while you are in this business. But, if you manage to make a good and simple plan for the growth of your business, it will be very easy for you to maintain your trading performance. With time you can improve your performance and quality of your trading. For that, you must have a basic method of trading. It will be the skeleton for your trading process. And all of the fleshes can be modified according to your preferences. Today we are going to talk about a simple method of trading. Hope you will use this technique for designing your trading approach.

Long lasting trades is first

You might be thinking like a normal business while trading in a marketplace. But here, it is actually the opposite. To make profits, you don’t have to trade too much. If you can trade with efficiency for a long time, it will help you to make a good amount of profit. And the amount would be far better than winning multiple trades. This is the secret of the trading business, to be simple and relaxed. Because with that environment, your head remains sharper than being busy with trades. So, it can think properly and use the strategies in your trade’s plan correctly. And when you can execute a trade correctly and you keep it open for a long time, it will make you a lot of money in the end. So, always try the long trades.

Learning from your mistakes

Learning from your mistake is very hard. But the professional Aussie traders always rely on their past trade to make a decent profit from this market. You might be thinking about the digital journal in the CFD trading industry. Being new to this industry it’s very obvious you will get confused with the long-term outcome of this market. But this is just like your traditional business. You can’t make any real progress unless you trade the market with discipline. To be a disciplined trader you must work really hard. But this is not enough to ensure your profit factors. You must develop the unique skills to learn from your mistakes. Fix your existing issues with the extreme level of care and trade the market with logic. Forget about the big winners even though you have access to high leverage accounts.

Using the daily charts

Before executing any trades, you must observe the condition of the market first. For that, you will have to look at those price charts that are changing in real time. It defines the condition of a market in any current situation. Looking at the charts also have some effects on your trading performance. When you use the smaller time frame charts, it will bother you more than using a longer time frame chart. Because the prices will be frequently changing, you will have to look at them more often. You have to keep up with the market to trade. But, being too busy with chart watching, you might get distracted at the right moment you have to trade. So, you must use longer time frame charts for example at least with 1-hour time span.

Focusing on the position

Timing is necessary for your trades. Otherwise, they might not make good profits. Because the market is not obsolete and it is constantly changing. One minute it could be by your side and the other it can be the opposite side of your trades. So, you must trade with accuracy on time. It is not possible for every trader or every time. But, you must try to improve yourself with time. If you have the focus on timing, one day or another it will get right. Just stay relaxed and look for the right moment to pull the trigger.

What’s a Limited Company and How Do I Start One?

building businessWhen you are starting up a new business there are a number of different ways you can set it up – one of these options is to create a Limited Company – this creates a business which is entirely separate from you and your personal finances.

1. What is a Limited Company?

The company has its own business name and its own separate identify. You need a business bank account and the business can make profits or loss. It can pay taxes and have debt, of its own, all separate from you as the business owner.

You have to have a company bank account – it can’t be in your name – and all money earned by the company have to go into the company bank account but this is relatively simple to set up.

It is important to understand that the company is separate from you as a person – if you want to have more control and be more involved then it might be better to set up as a sole trader – when you and the business are one and the same.

2. How to set up a Limited Company

The first thing you need to do is choose your company name, and then decide where it will be based. You also need to decide who will be within your company as well. Once you have all that decided you need to think about shares – if you have more than one of you owning the company you will need to decide what percentage you each own. Find out exactly how to set up a limited company in this step by step guide from Crunch.

3. Shareholders

You are able to add shareholders to the company but you should seek professional advice on this side of things as there can be tax implications.

4. Register with Companies House

Once you have decided on everything, you need to go to Companies House website and register your company for a low fee. You can do the whole process online. They will check if any other businesses have the same name as you and will ask who your company director and company secretary are.

It is often possible to do this through an accountancy firm. You need to be aware that being a company director comes with legal responsibilities.

5. A Memorandum of Association

Companies House also require you to file a Memorandum of Association which outlines why the company was set up and how it will be run. It can be used in tax issues or legal proceedings so make sure it is drafted correctly. You can write it but keep it as simple as possible in that case.

6. Consider professional advice

While the process is simple, if you get it wrong it could cause problems further down the line so you might want to consider getting expert help from your accountant or from a company set up specialist. There will likely be a fee involved but it will be worth it to get everything right from the start.

7. Working with your accountant

An accountant will often provide the support to set up your company for free as long as they then continue to work with you to deliver your payroll and taxes and support your business on an ongoing basis. It is definitely worth looking into for all of the help and support which you will get for your business from day one.

8. The business bank account

You don’t necessarily need a High Street bank for your business bank account but there are plenty of other options out there which can be set up quickly to help your business get off the ground without delay.

9. HMRC help and guidance

As a new business owner you need to understand your expenses and tax obligations as well as VAT potentially so it’s worth checking the HMRC website as they have a lot of information and advice for business owners.

They also run regular webinars and advice sessions on all kinds of tax-related business issues so check out everything on there to make sure you register with them for tax and if you need to register for VAT etc..

Again, it’s better to make sure you get everything set up from day one, correctly, so that your business starts from a positive footing. If you have any questions or doubts about business taxes you can also seek help from your accountant.

Setting up a Limited Company is a fairly straightforward process but it’s important to work out if this is the best route for you by looking at all the options first. If you do decide it’s what you want to do, then seek professional advice, from you accountant, before starting out so that you make sure everything is done correctly right from the start for your new business, giving it a good foundation.

7 Online Buying Tricks Revealed: Your One-Stop Guide to Selecting a Reputable Precious Metals Dealer

precious investmentsIn uncertain economic times, having gold on hand is a surefire way to liquidize and protect your assets. Even in a stable economic environment, gold is a safe haven asset that will never fail you. This is because gold’s value increases instead of decreases in direct relation to the decline of value in paper investments, such as stocks and bonds.

To minimize or even eliminate a fall in portfolio value during economic collapse it’s best to invest in uncorrelated investments. What this means is that you want to own assets that will move the opposite way of other investments when economic times become uncertain. Gold is one of the few guaranteed investments that are uncorrelated to many other investments. This makes it a very safe investment that has proven to remain positive when stocks fall.

This means that allocating some of your investment to gold is a sensible and solid choice. However, the buying of gold bullion is not always as straightforward as one would hope. There are plenty of precious metal dealers who will gladly take your money without having your best interests as a customer at heart. To avoid falling for an unscrupulous dealer, you’ll have to do a little research into finding the best dealer so you can purchase gold with confidence.

Online vs. Local

In general, there are two main ways to buy gold: online or locally (in person).

Local precious metal dealers can be found in cities around the world. However, brick and mortar stores will often come with a lot of overhead. This is due to rent, paying employees, security, and more. This added overhead and the fact that local gold dealers often have lower sales volume means that they will often have to charge more for gold bullion to make up for their costs.

On the beneficial side, a local gold dealer will mean that you will be able to physically inspect the bullion and take immediate possession of it when you purchase it.

Local dealers also have more of a reason to care about their reputation in the immediate community they serve, which may translate into higher quality of service when dealing with them.

Also, if you’re only buying small quantities of gold and you’re paying for it with cash, your purchases at a local dealer might not be reported to the tax authority and can stay confidential. If this is something you are considering, make sure you discuss it with your dealer to make sure you stay below the threshold for reporting.

The other option for purchasing gold bullion is through an online dealer. Online dealers typically do more business and will have higher volumes of sale and much lower fixed costs. This means that you can often find good gold bullion at a solid discount online.

Online dealers will have a much more varied range of products in stock and many even offer convenient buy-and-store programs that permit you to purchase the gold bullion and then keep it in an insured and protected location made available by the dealer. This can be very beneficial since storing your own precious metals can be risky.

Some people are nervous buying bullion online, since it is such an expensive product. However, if you are able to find a dealer with a long, solid history and positive reviews, you will most likely be in good hands.

Unfortunately, buying gold online means that you will have to pay for shipping and handling costs (which are not cheap when it comes to materials of this value), and you will have to wait to physically take possession of your gold. Some online gold dealers like Lucius Precious Metals offer free local delivery for orders over a certain price point, which can be something to consider if you’re in the area.

What to consider when buying gold for delivery

If you are purchasing gold online and looking to have it delivered to you, you’ll want to consider a few things.

First, you want a dealer that has a strong and solid reputation and years of reliability. Read customer reviews and check out investment forums to make sure your chosen dealer doesn’t have any shady reports out on them.

You also want to make sure that the dealer sells only gold coins and cold bars from LBMA-approved wholesalers. This is your best guarantee that you will be purchasing authentic coins and bars.

You’ll also want to check out the dealer’s premiums on bullion. This can vary widely throughout the industry and is not a set-in-stone number. Lastly, check out the difference between buying and selling prices on the dealer’s site, which can be as high as 10% or more.

To maximize your long-term profits, you need to work to find a dealer who is reputable and trustworthy and offers low premiums.

What to consider when buying gold for storage

If you’re buying gold for storage, you still want to check out a dealer’s reputation, bid-ask spread, and other factors mentioned above, however there are other factors that come into play when buying gold for storage.

For one, you’ll want to examine the storage facilities where your precious metals will be kept.

Gold bullion should be stored with a reputable, separate entity so as to reduce counterparty risks. Ideally, you’re looking for an LBMA-approved vault provider like Brinks. These types of companies store gold reserves for massive financial institutions and government bodies. This assures that your gold is being stored in a secure environment.

When storing gold, make sure that your dealer offers insurance that will cover the full replacement value of your coins or bars in the event that something were to happen to them. Full replacement means that you will get back the physical equivalent of the gold lost, and not just the cash value—which is based on the spot price of the metal.

You’ll also want to make sure that your gold is fully allocated to you. This means that it is held in your name, you are the outright owner, and the gold can be made available for delivery or sale at any moment. Unallocated gold bullionis shared by investors who own an interest in the bars, which raises all kinds of liquidity issues that we recommend avoiding.

The Inspiring Solutions That Can Turn Your Business Around

to run businessIt’s safe to say that no business is going to get a smooth ride. Because the business world just isn’t like that. You don’t just get started, see instant success, and keep on riding on your success cloud until you decide to get out of the game. Although that would be nice, it’s just not realistic. Instead, what is realistic, is that you’re going to struggle. You may not struggle all day, every day, but you will struggle at some point. Business having a business is like being on a rollercoaster. It’s natural for you to experience ups and downs. Of course, when you’re enjoying the ups, you’re more than welcome to take it all in and feel proud of yourself. But this isn’t about how you take the ups, it’s how you handle the downs.

In short, tough times will make or break your business. So as much as you might like the enjoy the good times, you also have to know how to bounce back during the bad times. At the same time, you need to be able to take action and actually work hard to be able to turn things around. Because that’s what matters. You have to be able to actually turn things around and see a difference in business. And yes, that means that you’re able to go from down to up and continue to do that whenever you’re faced with a challenging situation. So let’s take a look at some really inspiring ways you can do that.

Hone In On Your Targeting

First of all, you have to be thinking about your customers at all times. Because if you want to make sure that you can make money and improve your financial situation, you need to attract the right customers. Maybe the reason for your struggles is that you’re not targeting the right customers? When this is the case, you’ll find that if you can change that, are hone in on your targeting a bit more, you’ll have a better chance of turning things around.

Rebrand

Another really strong idea is going to be to look into rebranding. Again, to be able to attract your customers, you should be thinking of ways that you can stand out from your competition, and branding can really help with that. So think about the kind of rebranding process that you may need to take. When you do, you should find that you get a strong return on your investment.

Try A New Marketing Technique

How’s your marketing looking lately? If you tend to use the same techniques over and over again, you can’t expect to get different results. Instead, you’re going to want to think about using a new tactic. But the tactic in question will need to be something that’s entirely personal to your business, and what will work for you – and testing things out is the only way to do that.

Refine Your Product Or Service

Sometimes, the reason why you’re struggling and not bringing in money, is because your product or service just isn’t as strong as it could be. And that can be hard to admit. But if you do want to improve going forwards, you have to be objective. You need to be able to identify your weaknesses in order to become stronger. So really work on your product or service line to improve the areas that are letting you down.

Improve Your Website

Another big improvement that could really increase your sales, revenue, and general custom, is your website. Because if your web design is letting you down, you could be losing customers, and subsequently sales, because of it. By improving your web design, testing new features, and seeing what generally keeps your customers on site is going to help you to not only hold on to those customers, but encourage them to buy from you too.

Reduce Your Costs

And then there are your costs. Because if you’re not making an awful lot right now, but your overheads are huge, you have a problem. When you’re struggling, you have to react. You can’t just leave everything as it is and expect things to just pick up. You have to take action. Reducing your costs or cutting things out completely will help you to stay above board during times when you need to the most.

Hire Better Staff

You should also be sure to get the right staff in place. Because people make a business. So use the right services, like payroll recruitment agency, Portfolio Payroll, to help you do that. When you bring in the right people, your business will be able to head in the right direction. It can take time, but the when you find the best staff, your situation can improve.

Bring In Experts

As a step on from that, you should also look to hire experts. Why? Because you can’t do it all – and you can’t be an expert in everything from marketing to customer service. But when you hire a marketing agency or outsource your customer service, you will be able to get experts working on each area for you, and you’ll have more chance at getting the results you want.

Host An Exciting Event

Sometimes, you just need a bit of excitement to shake up your business. Events can help with that. A successful event not only brings the customers to you and gets them excited about your business, but it’s also a great PR opportunity and will generate sales too. So get planning and see what this can do for your business.

Launch A New Product

Finally, you may also want to think about launching a new product. You may think that this is a risky move when you’re struggling, but sometimes you have to take risks to make a difference. When what you’re currently doing isn’t working, you need to change things. Sometimes, you’ll find that a new product, even if it’s aimed at a new market, is exactly what your business needs to change, grow, and generate the revenue you want.