christmas – London Office Buzz

Company Christmas Parties: How To Make Sure Your Office Christmas Party is Tax Deductible

Posted on November 1, 2014

Like most employers, you should have by now reached the time of year where you start thinking about your Christmas party. Whether you’re hosting at your premises, looking at swanky hotels, or pouring through novel ideas, there are ways to keep your workforce entertained while ensuring it’s tax deductible.

There is, however, a catch. Your tax deductible Christmas expenses have a limit of £150 per person in attendance. A simple understanding of how to keep your Christmas party tax deductible can avoid nasty VAT surprises, while allowing you to throw the perfect bash.

Understanding the Rules Surrounding Tax Deductible Christmas Parties

First, that £150 per head doesn’t just apply to your employees. It’s applicable to whoever is in attendance, which means it’s tax deductible for your spouse, their spouses, and whoever else they bring along. Now here’s the tricky part; if you go even one penny over that £150, the whole event is subject to the usual VAT rules.

To meet these terms, bookings must be made in the business’ name. So when you call a hotel or restaurant to make a booking, book it under the name of your business and not the director or events planner. It’s also worth noting that this £150 per head expense is per-annum. So if you hold more than one event in a year, the aggregate cost must not exceed £150. In order for it to be classed as a party that’s tax deductible, it must be open to all of your employees. If your employees are at different locations – because you have a lot of branches – you’re allowed to hold parties at all of these locations. Continue reading “Company Christmas Parties: How To Make Sure Your Office Christmas Party is Tax Deductible” →

Christmas Charity Gift Ideas

Posted on November 21, 2012

As Christmas approaches, finding the most appropriate Christmas gift for friends and family can turn into a complicated task. Finding the perfect Christmas present becomes even more complex when it comes to corporate gifts for your business partners and customers. Increasingly more, charity gifts are becoming the preferred option for many companies. In addition to helping make a difference for those in need, Christmas charity gifts can help enhance the corporate image and reputation of your company.

Since there are dozens of options available, in this article we aim to provide you with some useful suggestions so that you can choose the most appropriate Christmas charity gift.

Christmas charity gifts for environmentalists

– Buy an Acre of threatened wilderness

By purchasing a gift from The World Land Trust, you can help fund conservation projects and protect endangered wildlife habitats. Each gift pack includes a “land purchase certificate”, which details the amount of land your gift is helping protect, as well as a unique greeting card. Gifts start at £25.

– Plant a Tree

For only £15, your gift will be helping the Woodland Trust regenerate forested areas of the United Kingdom. The charity’s website has an online shop where you can choose from a wide range of Christmas gifts, including calendars, jigsaws, books, stationery, and more. Continue reading “Christmas Charity Gift Ideas” →

Company Christmas Cards

Posted on October 29, 2008

It’s about time to check your address book and get sending out Christmas Cards to employees, clients, suppliers and local companies. You can quickly and easily have a personalised Christmas Card produced with your company name, logo and address (good for advertising or just as a reminder of who you are) and/or with a picture of your company.

Having received a company Christmas card where all the employees were dressed up as Xmas puddings, which is something I would be very reluctant to do myself, there are other ways of producing a card with a difference. How about a collage of employee baby pictures? Probably far more endearing than the grown up versions, unless you work at a modelling agency that is. Or employee pets, perhaps with Santa hats or similar Christmassy adornment.

If you can take the time to handwrite your cards, it does give them a more personal feel. Ensure you get your cards out in the beginning of December, the longer your cards are on display the better, plus it gives the receiver time to return the favour.

Further advice on all things Christmassy in the office including office Xmas parties, planning an office Christmas party in London and Christmas on a Budget.

Office Christmas Party on a Shoe String

Posted on October 21, 2008

A lot of companies will have had to cut back on those Xmas extras this year, but you can still have a Credit Crunch Christmas Celebration. The swanky champagne reception from last year may indeed be a thing of the past, but it doesn’t have to be a Scrooge like lump of coal either. It’s important for both team building and office morale to have little celebration, to relax and enjoy a bit of the Christmas spirit together.

So you can’t book the ballroom at a big hotel this year, but you can find out about pubs or bars with event rooms, some don’t charge a hire fee, just a minimum spend at the bar. A restaurant meal is also a nice idea; many do a set Xmas menu that is quite reasonable. Secret Santa can be fun, where everyone chooses a name from a hat and buys that person a present, cap the spend limit at 5 or 10 pounds.

And look on the bright side, with less money behind the bar, perhaps you won’t have as many bad memories as in previous years, or be suffering from a hangover that lasts till the New Year.

Further advice on all things Christmassy in the office including office Xmas parties, planning an office Christmas party in London and company Christmas cards.

Office Christmas Party Checklist

Posted on October 20, 2008

If you’ve been put in charge of planning the office Xmas do, here is a checklist to get you started on your way:
Venue – Choose your Christmas party venue carefully, can people get to it easily? What about drivers? Public transport options?

Date and Time – You don’t want to overlap with other parties if you can help it, for example individual team Xmas parties.
Budget – How much has been allocated per head?
How many people are attending – Are you allowing spouses/dates?
Caterer – Is it a sit down meal or buffet? Don’t forget to cater for vegetarians, allergies etc.
Drink allowance – is there a bar?
Entertainment – Themed, music or band?

Remember that places get booked up very quickly during December, so don’t leave it too late to get organising.

Further advice on all things Christmassy in the office including planning an office Christmas party in London and company Christmas cards and Christmas on a budget.