AC217: Tax Compliance

Module code: AC217

Module provider: Business Informatics, Systems and Accounting; Henley Business School

Credits: 20

Level: Level 2 (Intermediate)

When you'll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Mrs Clare Bentata, email: clare.bentata@henley.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s): BEFORE TAKING THIS MODULE YOU MUST TAKE AC108 (Compulsory)

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded: IN TAKING THIS MODULE YOU CANNOT TAKE AC221 OR TAKE AC319 (Compulsory)

Placement information: na

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: No

Talis reading list: No

Last updated: 28 May 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

This module builds on the knowledge acquired in AC108 Principles of Taxation, developing knowledge and understanding of the main UK taxes, including income tax, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, corporation tax, national insurance, stamp taxes, and the ethical issues related to tax advisory work.

This module aims to enable students to prepare tax computations and provide tax advice to individuals and companies in a wide range of scenarios, in addition to explaining the ethical issues surrounding the tax advice.

Students undertaking this module will learn some further aspects of the UK tax system, as required by professional accountants, and gain relevant, practical knowledge in providing tax advice.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Recognise the ethical issues arising in the course of performing tax work and identify the obligations the UK system of tax imposes on taxpayers and the implications for taxpayers of non-compliance
2. Calculate the capital gains tax payable by individuals and the amounts of income tax owed by or owed to individuals.
3. Calculate the amounts of inheritance tax due on lifetime transfers and transfers on death by individuals, personal representatives and trustees
4. Calculate the amounts of national insurance payable by individuals, businesses and companies
5. Calculate the corporation tax liabilities of companies and the amount of VAT owed by or owed to businesses.
6. Calculate the amount of stamp taxes owed by individuals, businesses or companies.

Module content

• Application of the principles of tax to individuals
• Taxation of income
• Taxation of gains
• Inheritance tax 
• Application of the principles of tax to businesses including taxation of gains
• Trading profits
• Corporation tax
• Groups of companies
• VAT
• Legal and ethical implications of tax planning and advice

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

Lectures will be used for the exposition of the main concepts, principles and techniques associated with the discipline and will focus on numerical practice and discussion of examination style questions.

Lectures will be recorded using learning capture technology, where possible, and Blackboard will be used to support and structure the module.

Study hours

At least 40 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

This module contributes to the Tax Compliance module of the ACA Professional Stage. In order to apply for ICAEW credit for prior learning, students must be registered on the BA Accounting and Business programme and must obtain a minimum mark of 55% in this module.

The examination for this module will take place during a narrowly defined time window and will be held in a dedicated exam venue which may be a short distance away from the campus. There may be specific rules regarding entry to, and conduct in, the exam room. You will be advised of these rules in advance. The examination will be sat using ICAEW software. Marking and moderation will be carried out by the university in line with all other university assessments. Practice versions of the software will be made available in advance of the examination.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Formative assessments are available in the textbook for all weeks of the module to enable students to gain the necessary practice. This work is primarily designed as a learning vehicle, and students will be provided with marking guides and feedback where appropriate so that they can assess their own performance.

Reassessment

Additional costs