AISMA Doctor Newsline - Winter 2012

The winter 2012 issue of AISMA Doctor Newsline is now available, featuring the articles below.

	Take time to beat QOF
	With practice managers getting to grips with changes to the QOF, Kathie Applebee’s lead article on what’s new for 2012 will be welcomed by many. Whilst we acknowledge that this article may discuss some areas not so relevant to Scottish practices, the run-down of indicator changes and tips on how to maintain high scores for your practice will likely still be of interest.
	Your easy A-Z of GP tax planning
	Chris Howe gives an A-Z of tax planning to guide you in the lead up to the tax year end.
	Why fixing a partner’s retirement age is risky
	Solicitor Andrew Lockhart-Mirams discusses fixed retirement ages in partnerships and warns how they can lead to legal disputes on the grounds of age discrimination.
	Act now to protect your pension
	David Walker brings some timely advice on pensions and the action GPs need to take now to manage the changes about to take place.

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Please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss any of the issues highlighted in the newsletter.

AISMA Doctor Newsline - Autumn 2011

The autumn 2011 issue of AISMA Doctor Newsline is now available, featuring the articles below.

	Get IT right or pay the price
	Regular Newsline columnist Kathie Applebee has some words of advice for practices considering a change in their computer systems.
	Top 10 employment law problems answered
	Employment law adviser Janice Sibbald gives her ten top tips on how to avoid contractual disputes with your employees.

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Please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss any of the issues highlighted in the newsletter.

Pension changes on the horizon for Scottish GPs

Scottish doctors now expect to face the same pension pain as those elsewhere in the UK following an admission by Scottish health and wellbeing secretary Nicola Sturgeon that her hands were effectively tied by Westminster.

In a letter to the BMA in Scotland, revealed in BMA News on Saturday, she says the Scottish government is opposed to the changes. But she adds: ‘There is no scope for Scottish ministers to adopt different solutions from those being advanced by the UK government in respect of overall pensions policy, and often little scope to adopt different solutions in respect of specific public sector schemes’.

Under current Department of Health plans, doctors who now contribute 8.5% of pay would contribute 10.9% by 2012, and possibly as much as 14.5% by 2014, the BMA said - and get a worse deal on retirement.

An interactive pensions modeller, allowing doctors to work out how pensions reform will affect their own pensions, is to be made available to all doctors, the BMA says. www.bma.org.uk/nhspensionreform

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any queries regarding the above.

Class 2 National Insurance

As from April 2011, payments of the partners’ Class 2 National Insurance contributions become due on 31 January and 31 July, the same as Self Assessment tax.

If the partners receive quarterly bills from HMRC this change means that they will receive their final quarterly bill in April 2011. This will cover the period 9 January 2011 to 9 April 2011. After this HMRC will issue two payment requests (instead of four quarterly bills) in October and April showing payments due by 31 January and 31 July respectively.

There will also be changes if your partners pay by Direct Debit. To meet the new due dates, collection of Class 2 National Insurance contributions by monthly Direct Debit will be delayed by HMRC to bring the payment dates into line with the dates income tax is payable under Self Assessment. This means that:

	for the first year only, monthly Direct Debits will stop for a short period and then start again;
	Class 2 contributions due for April 2011 will be requested from your bank in August 2011; and
	payments thereafter will be monthly unless you choose to pay six monthly from April 2011.

A new option to pay by six monthly Direct Debits, collected in January and July each year, is now available for those who do not wish to spread their payments.

Following the changes above, if the partners pay their Class 2 National Insurance through the practice by monthly direct debit please check the practice bank statement for August to ensure the payments have commenced after the break.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any queries regarding the above.

AISMA Doctor Newsline - Summer 2011

The summer 2011 issue of AISMA Doctor Newsline is now available, featuring the articles below.

	25 tips to help you boost your earnings
	With practice income under serious threat in the months ahead, this issue opens with some indispensable advice from AISMA members on how to help you cut practice expenses and boost your earnings. These 25 useful tips really could make a difference to your practice.
	Look outside the practice to save money inside
	Practice management guru Kathie Applebee offers her thoughts on how outsourcing can help practices cut back on expenses.
	Screws set to tighten on PMS GPs
	Specialist solicitor Andrew Lockhart-Mirams analyses recent English legal proceedings that could herald yet more cost-cutting for PMS practices.
	Taxman will show no patience with GPs
	Finally, there is a warning for GPs to keep their tax affairs in first class working order as HM Revenue and Customs tightens its grip on the medical profession.

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Please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss any of the issues highlighted in the newsletter.