Public Finance and Taxation

The aim of this course is to provide students with a knowledge of the administration of the taxation system generic to most jurisdictions. It introduces students to the application of taxation legislation to individuals and companies in a compliant and ethical manner. Students are introduced to the rationale behind-- and the functions of --- the tax system. The course then considers the separate taxes that an accountant would need to have a detailed knowledge of, such as income tax from self-employment, employment and investments, the corporation tax liability of individual companies and groups of companies, the national insurance contribution liabilities of both employed and self-employed persons, and the value added tax liability of businesses.

Having covered the core areas of the basic taxes, candidates should be able to compute tax liabilities, explain the basis of their calculations, apply tax planning techniques for individuals and companies and identify the compliance issues for each major tax through a variety of business and personal scenarios and situations.