Employment and Support Allowance? Forget Appeals and Collect Tax Benefits for Working When YOU Want

What is Employment and Support Allowance?This is intended to be a benefit to assist people who have difficulty in holding down a regular job, are long term sick or have other issues.A good friend of mine was having a terrible time with the DWP’s Employment and Support Allowance, as the allowance rates have been cut while on appeal and he was receiving contribution based employment and support allowance however this ran out and was then placed on to income based ESA less than £100 for two weeks benefit, to top it all off the appeals process is currently taking over 6 months so having realised he could not survive much longer especially not 6 months or more, he looked into getting working tax credit.As the pain in his lower back restricts him from sitting or standing for too long, he has found that going self employed is the only reasonable way to make a comfortable living and to support his family.The AppealA rather informal meeting in a room with 3 adjudicators 1 will probably be a medical practitioner and the other 2 will know the ins and outs of the law relating to ESA, they will review the appeal papers, any medical evidence you supply to support your claim and ask you some questions relating to your illness or disability and you may have to undergo a medical examination on the day. They will then decide whether the decision makers’ decision should stand or be overturned.The general consensus is that even going to a tribunal will not make much difference as the government are now taking a hard stand on reducing the benefits bill at any cost.Taking action now will be a better option.Work in a job that causes constant pain or take the sensible option?The consideration of self employment should be considered as you can work from the comfort of your own home. As long as you work for over 16 hours and can find a suitable application for your time you qualify for Working Tax Credit.What is the HMRC Working Tax Credit?Working Tax Credit from the HMRC in my opinion is a benefit that aims to make it worthwhile for people to go to work and in turn reduce the unemployment benefit figures. However Tax Credits are a very useful support benefit and should be viewed that way.How is he going to work at home?Having recently been disallowed ESA my good friend has decided to take the plunge into working from home. Having decided that setting up his own business is his best option as he can work when he is able and has the comforts of home, where he finds he can relieve the pain by changing what he does and for how long he does it.The idea of making and selling something online is rather daunting but if done correctly can be very lucrative and with the added “bonus” of getting working tax credits this can boost your initial weekly income by up to £100 if not more.Check out the disabled link on the Tax Credit calculator as claiming ESA previously qualifies you for the disablement premium.What sort of business is he going to do?Here lies the problem, when I first spoke to him about this he had no idea where to start and didn’t think he had any skills or expertise in any area, however after I showed him a couple of websites of qualified mentors and teachers he chose one, stuck with it and followed the instructions he is off to a flying start and has just had his first $500 week.

Digital Photography – Digital Cameras and Its Benefits

Although photography has been in the market for quite some time, some people still ask “how much it’s going to cost me?”, “what a digital camera can do?” and “why do I need photography?”Let’s look at each of them in detail:As digital photography is getting more popular, things are going to get cheaper. One of the reasons is that manufacturers are competing for market share and they are more likely to launch cheaper cameras with more functions. Just look at the compact digital camera in the market now, you can get a camera with at least 9 megapixels and 10x optical zoom at the price of less than $300. Even the DSLR cameras nowadays are getting more and more affordable.Also when competitions are getting stronger, manufacturers will try to make cameras with as many features as possible. It is like an unwritten rule that compact digital cameras nowadays must be able to record video and audio. When you launch a point and shoot camera without this feature, your potential clients might not even want to look at it.Also some digital cameras nowadays are equipped with sophisticated editing software and touch screen capability. You can now add stars, fog it up or add other wacky stuff on the camera.Since you can operate your camera with touch screen, you can expect that one day, you will see the LCD screen big enough to occupy the back of your camera. Can you imagine how much fun it is to look at your pictures in such a big screen and it will be more breath taking when the manufacturers throw in wide angle lens together.Now, when you are going into digital photography, it is only logic that you have a digital camera. Photography is more than a hobby. It is about keeping the memory of that special moment. You want to remind yourself that you were once there at that period. You want to be able to show your child that you were young once and how life was back then. It is a different experience when you look back at your photos 10 years ago. Go have a look at them now.