Re: The tax situation of traders, WAS:- Re: Smart Live Markets - Spread Bet on MT4
Let's put this to bed once and for all, please. This is my final answer on this subject.
My tax status is my business. If you want to know how your own tax status might be affected by your trading activities, I suggest you contact your local HMRC office or visit their website.
I thought I made it clear I wasn't interested in
your tax status. I wanted an ilustration of the general case. You could have used (in very general terms) you own experience to back up some of the statements you have made, or you could have taken an anonymous third party that you knew of, or just quoted the tax law, as you understood it.
As usual, people who say that SB is rubbish and then go on to say that the tax advantages are overstated never actually back it up with fact.
I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, and assume that you may actually know what you are talking about, but can't be bothered to explain, and not take the less charitable explanation that you are a "barrack room" or barstool tax-expert who doesn't know much.
Anyway, goodbye Alan. Go off in a huff at my "intrusive" questions if that's what you want. No one forced you to say anything, but you made some claims which you never backed up. Meanwhile, if anyone who
actually knows the true situation, and can explain with a few examples (based on something like reality, but it doesn't have to give away any secrets).
If someone asked me the same question, I could quite easily frame a generalised answer without compromising any private information. Hypothetical income; hypothetical allowable expenses; notional allowances; then do the arithmetic.
I think what you have actually proved by your <drum roll>"
final answer"<drum>, is that the tax situation of traders is far from clear cut, and in truth, is a bit of a minefield, and the innocent spread-better who in previous life only ever paid tax on a wage or salary via bog-standard PAYE will be letting himself in for a deal of headaches once he starts dealing with HMIT/HMRC on a regular basis, assuming he takes the advice given regularly and routinely on T2W to "stop that spread betting lark - it's a con - and try some
real trading ™!".
