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Home / The Shelf / Glossary
The Shelf

Tax, Translated.

Three nations' jargon, one honest dictionary. No term left mysterious.

A

Accrual accounting

Income and costs recorded when earned or incurred — not when cash moves. The grown-up default for companies.

Amortisation

Spreading an intangible cost over its useful life, a slice at a time.

B

Basis

What the tax system thinks you paid for an asset. Sell above it, that's gain; get it wrong, that's an argument.

Books

The complete record of everything your business did with money. Ours balance daily.

C

Cost segregation

Splitting a property into faster-depreciating parts to accelerate deductions.

CT600

Britain's company tax return.

D

Depreciation

Deducting an asset's cost over its working life — sometimes all at once, when the rules allow.

Double taxation

Two countries taxing the same income. Treaties and credits exist to stop it; planning makes sure they do.

E

Economic nexus

Owing a US state sales tax because you sold enough there, no office required.

Estimated taxes

Quarterly prepayments the US expects when no employer withholds for you.

F

FEIE

The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion — Americans abroad shielding earned income from US tax, conditions attached.

Free zone

A UAE jurisdiction with its own rules; 0% only when income actually qualifies.

M

Making Tax Digital

HMRC's requirement that VAT records live in software with digital links.

Management accounts

Monthly accounts made for decisions, not just compliance.

N

Nexus

A connection to a tax jurisdiction strong enough that it may tax you.

P

Pro-rata rule

The IRS maths that taxes backdoor Roth conversions when pre-tax IRA money exists alongside.

Pulse report

Our one-page weekly: cash, runway, receivables, anything unusual.

R

Reconciliation

Proving the books match the bank, line by line. We do it daily.

Residency (tax)

Where a tax system decides you live — which may not be where you think.

S

S-corp election

A US tax status that can trim self-employment tax once profits justify it.

Substantial presence

The US day-count formula that can make a visitor a tax resident.

V

VAT

Value-added tax — 20% standard in Britain, 5% in the Emirates, charged on top and remitted.

WPS

The UAE's Wage Protection System — payroll proven, electronically.

Definitions explain concepts, not current-year figures. Rates and thresholds move; meanings mostly don't.