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The current economic climate means that even if you have a very secure job, you are bound to be looking at ways to save money and make extra money. Follow our 8 money-making tips for making money in your spare time and you will not regret it.

• Clearing out your clutter

Most people have a loft, garage or house that is full of things they no longer have use for. There is bound to be someone out there who can make use of your unwanted clutter and would even be willing to pay you for it. Internet auction sites are a great way of selling high price items, but car boot sales can be a good way of selling lots of smaller items in one go.

• Using the internet

Uploading videos onto sites such as You Tube may result in the website owners paying you a share of the advertising revenue they receive on the page where your video is viewed. If you have a small business, advertising on Facebook and other social networking sites is a cheap and easy way to generate extra revenue. In addition, if you are a good photographer, some websites will pay you to use your images and if you have a successful blog, advertisers may pay to place adverts on it.

• Generate your own energy

Everyone is aware that using price comparison sites can help you save money on your energy bills, but few people are aware that if you generate your own energy using solar panels or wind turbines, you can sell any excess energy back to the National Grid.

• Extra work

Doing extra work at evenings and weekends is not something most of us would relish, but if your salary from your regular job only really covers your essentials, a few shifts a week working in a restaurant or bar could provide you with that little bit extra.

• Make money from hobbies

If you are a keen crafter or baker, it is possible to make money from these hobbies. Making and baking for friends and family could lead to paying customers as word spreads. Attending craft fairs, bake sales and advertising your business on social networking sites such as Facebook will also help to generate income.

• Competitions and Market Research

Entering competitions may be worth doing. Depending on what you win, it may be possible to sell the prize and keep the proceeds. Market research is also a good way of making extra money and you can now do paid online surveys from home. Additionally, you could apply to be a product tester or a mystery shopper, which means you can eat for free in restaurants and stay for free in hotels or even have your shopping paid for.

• Writing

If you enjoy writing, why not try making money from it. Set up an online blog and make money from advertising or write for the local paper or newsletter.

• Using your home

Rent out your spare room to a lodger or if you don’t feel comfortable with that, rent out your garage as storage space. In areas where parking is at a premium, people with driveways can even rent these out as parking spaces.

There are many ways to make some extra money, some of which are easier than others and none of which are guaranteed to make you a millionaire. It is worth choosing the right one for you and then you will already be halfway to making that little bit extra you need.

The raising expenses and increased prices of all the commodities have made most of the average earning households financially unstable. For people who live on pay cheques it is very difficult to manage the monthly expenses and live a stress free life. By the end of the month if any emergency arises and you do not have funds to cope with the crisis and are stuck in a financial turmoil. In such critical situations Payday loans is always the preferable option available.

A payday loan also known as a cash advance is a short-term loan that is accessible by any working individual. You can use this loan for any reason such as:

•  To pay pending bills that might be troubling you

•   To afford a sudden car break down

•   Pay for any medical emergency that has arrived

• Go for an unexpected tripetc.

You can avail the loan for any reason and you need not specify your reason. As this loan is a short-term loan you need not stay in debt for a longer time and can easily repay the amount with your next pay cheque.

Benefits of payday loans:

There are various advantages that you get when applying for cash advances such as:

• Hassle free process: the process for applying for the loan is simple and user-friendly. All you need to do is to fill out an online application specifying all your details and submit it to the lender. The entire process is carried out online only which means that you need not roam around the lenders to get your loan approved.

• Free from collateral: the loan approval process does not depend on any collateral submission; as it is an unsecured loan you are approved for the loan without providing any property documents or valuable assets.

• Accessible for people with bad credit: there is no credit check performed in order to approve the loan which means that even a person with a poor credit rating is eligible to get the loan approved.

• Instant approval: once you meet the basic eligibility criteria specified by the lender then your loan application is approved instantly without any further delay.

• Cash credited directly in account: after your loan is approved the amount is deposited directly in your account. You can withdraw the amount and use it to meet your emergency needs.

There’s always at least one time in someone’s life when, with payday more than a week away, they find themselves a little short of cash. Not knowing what to do when it becomes hard to pay your next electricity bill or even for emergencies such as fixing a broken fridge, it can be hard to know who to turn to for help. To some people, it might seem like little more than a last resort, but taking out a fast little loan could make up any shortfall in income.

If you find yourself unable to get a loan or overdraft from your bank, and are worried about waiting for any money to come through, taking a payday loan out might represent your best chance of plugging that momentary gap in your finances. However, if you’ve never taken one out before and want to know what to do if you decide to go with it, what are the do’s and don’ts of payday loans?

One thing you should do is know how much you need. With payday loans, all you need to do is borrow the exact amount needed for whatever expense you have to meet. By doing this, you’re not taking too much and you won’t have to pay as much in interest when the time comes to paying it back in full. Once you’re sure of how much you need, try to borrow that amount: no more, no less.

Next, you should do a little research into how payday loans work. There are many providers such as Wonga.com where you can find out how you can take them out, how long the waiting period is before the money enters your bank account and how to repay them. It’s also worth looking into the level of interest you have to pay on such loans, as finding that out will help you budget for interest payments on top of the money you need to pay back to the lender.

Finally, it pays to shop around when looking for a payday loan. When searching for a payday loans alternative, you’ll want the best deal when it comes to waiting periods, interest rates, repayment windows and, most importantly of all, the amount you can actually borrow. If you find the right deal, then feel free to try and take a loan out with them, and pay it back at a time that suits you.

An electronic download is comes under the definition of an Information Society Service whose definition is “Any service normally provided for remuneration, at a distance, by means of electronic equipment for the processing (including digital compression) and storage of data, and at the individual request of a recipient of a service.”There are certain rules and regulations, some of which are different to the regulations governing typical goods and services transactions. In order to comply with these rules, and not avoid fines and/or penalties, here is what you should know:

Electronic Commerce Regulations

Electronic Downloads are regulated in Europe by the Electronic Commerce regulations (ECRs) that came into effect in in August 2002 with the purpose of ensuring free movement of ‘information society services’ across the European Community. These regulations cover not only all EU Member States but all countries within the European Economic Area (including Iceland and Norway). The ECRs cover any marketing or selling of goods/services via the internet, email, interactive TV or texting and cover both B2C and B2B transactions. The ECRs stipulate the information that your company is required to provide your customers in all circumstances, including when you supply an information society service, when your contracts are concluded by electronic means and when you send out any commercial communications. The information that you are required to provide is mostly quite simple, such as the full name of your company and your VAT registration number, but for other information your company may be required to have processes in place to deal with them (you need to decide the technical steps that your customer must follow to conclude a contract and make them perfectly clear to all parties involved in the transaction.)

VAT on Electronic Commerce Transactions

The legislation surrounding VAT and electronically supplied services are some of the most complicated around and many will need to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Generally an electronically supplied service supplied in an EU Member State is taxable at the standard rate established by a Member State, unless an exempting provision in a Member State applies.

1. Supply to UK customer

Where a supply is made to a UK customer, the place of supply will be the UK. As a result, UK VAT will be chargeable at the current standard rate of 20% on these sales. This applies whether the customer is a business or private individual.

2. Supply to overseas customer

Where a supply is made to a company that is based outside of the UK, the treatment will depend on whether the customer is within or outside the EU and also whether the customer is receiving the supply in a business or private capacity.

Supplies to businesses

Under the General Rule for B2B transactions which was introduced in January 2010, the supply to a business in another EU Member State will be outside the scope of UK VAT. The business customer then accounts for the VAT due in their Member State under the reverse charge. Therefore, Incisive Media will not be required to charge VAT where the supply is to a business in another EU Member State. Incisive Media will need to complete an EC Sales List in respect of this transaction and meet the invoicing requirements.

Where the supply is made to a business customer based outside of the EU, this is deemed to be outside of the scope of UK VAT, and as a result, no UK VAT is charged. It is important to note that Incisive Media must be satisfied that the supply is genuinely used outside of the EU (rather than to a non-EU business who will effectively use the supplies within the EU). It is also necessary to recognise that if the customer is in a non-EU country, there may be VAT issues in their country, for example if the download is provided to them from a server in their own country. This would require consideration of the matter on a country by country basis.

Supplies to private individuals

If the supply is to a private individual in the EU, the supply will be liable to UK VAT at 20%. This is changing on 1 January 2015 when VAT will be due in the Member State of the customer – this will require local VAT to be charged by Incisive Media but there will be a one stop shop available.

If the customer is a private individual outside the EU, the supply will be outside the scope of UK VAT. However, as with the supplies to business customers, there may be VAT issues in the country of the customer. For example, in both Norway and Switzerland, there may be a requirement to register and charge local VAT because of legislation that has been introduced. We can advise on a country by country basis if required.

The 2008 recession might have been a few years ago, but the British population are still coping with the initial shockwave as well as dealing with the financial aftershocks. The economic downturn has made many businesses go bankrupt, and if you’re a small company looking to expand, it’s proving to be extremely tough to get a loan or financing.

Seeing as the banks started the problem in the first place, you’d expect a little help somewhere along the line in order to get your finances on track. However with the list of ‘high risk’ businesses on the rise, banks are closing up shop and refusing to lend to new starters who can’t produce a big enough return. If you’re a small business or you’re looking to start one up, here are a few tips on how to raise some much needed cash to get things going.

First things first…

Check out Social & Peer-to-Peer Lending

This type of borrowing has become increasingly popular over the last few years, with young entrepreneurs choosing to find finance online instead of camping outside the banks. Simply put, social lending puts your needs in touch with people online that are willing to help you out. A broker will determine the amount of money you need, and then put you in contact with people online that are willing to lend the same amount. Basically, you decide the type of the loan, the length and how much interest you want to pay, and then the broker matches your credentials with lenders. This way of lending has many benefits, most notably not involving any banks or institutions. Both borrower and lender get better rates than if they were to go through a bank too. Just sit back and let the site compile all the necessary paperwork and transactions!

Crowd-Sourced Funding

Similar to social lending, crowd-sourced funding also involves a network of people lending money. However instead of a set amount, the individuals involved in crowd-sourced funding lend as much or as little as they want, backing a project instead of loaning cash that could be for a number of things. For example, crowd-sources funders may lend money to a project they believe in, whether it’s a film, an album, or a product. In return for the cash loan, the investee will offer rewards related to the project, maybe a credit in the film, or a song title on an album. They may even name their product after an investor. The size of the loan will depend on the size of the project, and terms/rewards will have to be ironed out and put on paper before any cash is exchanged.

Angel investors

Relatively new in the lending business, put simply, these investors will front large amounts of money in exchange for equity in your business when the banks aren’t interested. If they believe in your business, they’ll back it, however they will need to see detailed and convincing business plans which show a return on their investment – if your pitch isn’t right, you’ll lose the cash!