Work tuck shop becoming too successful - tax implications?

Yes. You need to tell the Inland Revenue within three months. You need to keep records of your total sales and individual purchases. You need to keep track of your stock at the end of your accounting period.

Tax issues aside, you will need to keep records if only to detect "shrinkage" ;-)

Thanks for that.

People using it seem fairly honest - I set it up under the proviso that it was for everyone so let's not be silly and spoil it by not paying for things. The money is always there for it to be restocked so I've had no problems.

I do not have the time to audit and account for every packet of crisps or chocolate bar and am largely running it on goodwill and trust.

If I tell the tax man does he declare it a business? Are there any benefits to the tuck shop that can be claimed tax wise? Can my employer (who also partakes of the tuck shop goodies) get into any trouble?

many thanks

chas

You are saying it is a business not the tax man.

Benefits claimed tax wise? Not too sure what you mean? You can say that you incurr reasonable expenses from running it from your home office and travel expenses to get the goods.

Are you actually taking any profit out of this, or is the kitty just building up? If you're not taking anything, then there's surely no problem. I would have thought the amounts involved weren't significant, anyway... but maybe I'm wrong.

Putrid poetry, dismal doggerel, extrava-stanzas...

You only have to MAKE a profit not TAKE a profit!

I'm sure, that if he went to the trouble of costing his expenses in getting the stuff, and all the other allowable costs, he'd be running at a loss. If he went to the trouble of keeping books and forwarding his accounts to the tax man he might even get a tax rebate for a year or 2 before they decided it wasn't worth bothering with. (\Been there, done that.) If he doesn't bother, and nothing is being taken out of the kitty, who is making the profit, anyway?

Putrid poetry, dismal doggerel, extrava-stanzas...

You may well be right in the above statements.

The OP who owns the goods and kitty.