2 out of 3 aint bad
Tax not taxing - aye right!
Well, I sat my tax QBR yesterday, and even with the help of my pocket notes (which a lot of us found to be lacking in many essential areas), got 52%. I knew it wasn't right to be feeling so little nerves beforehand. Even the tutor agreed the main 35 mark question that had been set was a horrible q. And I suppose the two optional questions that were marked (the third we did at the end and were given the answers to mark & review ourselves), were not the two I would have chosen in the exam.I felt so disheartened after doing a 25 mark Q2, an option q at 20 marks and a 35 mark q1, I felt like going home. Tutor said they set harder q's for the qbr than they expect to see in the exam to give you a wake up call if it's needed, and to make you feel better when you see the actual paper on the day. Well all it did for me was make me think 'if that's how it goes after tuition, revision and a week and a half of question practice, is another 6 days going to make a difference?'
But I'll struggle on and give it my best shot next Monday. And if my best isn't good enough, then there's always December. It's not fatal, I now have until 2017 to pass these last two exams (P2 & P6), LoL.
One thing I have learned is look for the easy marks that may be lurking towards the end of a question, which you may not get to if you run out of time. In one question for a total of 25 marks, there were 7 parts to the requirement, a to g. There was 4 marks in part (f) for stating the key characteristics of a defined contribution pension scheme and working out the maximum employee and employer contributions in the tax years. And a further 3 marks in part (g) for the tax implications and advantages of transferring some shares from husband to wife. Those two parts could easily be done on their own in isolation, and total more than a quarter of the marks for the question - in other words over half way to passing the question!
In another question, this time on capital taxes for a total of 20 marks. The last requirement for 3 marks was to state the IHT tax planning measurements if the main character survived just over another 4 years, and quantify the savings. It wouldn't take long to jot down:
gifts made now qualify for 4 years taper relief at 40%,
use of annual exemptions = 6 * 3,000 * 40%,
small gifts of £250 per recipient per tax year tax free saving 250*40%,
Annual £100 to kids bank accounts ... ,
marriage gifts allowance if her kids marry in that period ... ,
payments out of normal income - set up a pattern ...
And between just those three requirements, 10 whole marks !!! Only another 40 to go !
Fingers crossed I can find some of those easier marks next week - Please!
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