Taxman's clause to spoil Santa's season.

As this group of Santas take the bus to the supermarket to bring some Christmas cheer, KPMG has warned that companies will face huge tax charges in the New Year, writes Lucinda Kemeny. The firm has calculated that many companies will see an effective tax charge of 115% next month as they will have to pay last year’s corporate tax Bill along with the second instalment of the new corporate tax self-assessment regime. The news comes only weeks after an Inland Revenue promise to increase the number of self-assessment investigations to more than 750,000 for the first time. Many of its investigations are only launched in January, coinciding with the next self-assessment deadline, so many accountants could find themselves under severe pressure to meet both obligations. In the meantime, Pannell Kerr Forster has urged individuals and businesses to dig deep for charity this Christmas if they want to be eligible for tax relief on their donations.