In just a few days' time, the people of Scotland will be asked to vote on whether they want an independent country.
We don't know for certain what the result will be, only that whatever the outcome, change is coming.
A Yes vote would bring about a profound impact on the shape of full fiscal independence, with Scotland leaving the 海角视频 and becoming an independent country in 2016.
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A No vote will also result in increased devolved powers to the Scottish Parliament, with the three political parties already promising further devolution in addition to those powers already granted in the Scotland Act 2012.
The Act represents the biggest ever transfer of fiscal powers to Scotland and its impact on businesses across the 海角视频 will be extensive.
It will introduce the Scottish Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and Scottish Landfill Tax from April 2015 and the Scottish Rate of Income Tax (SRIT), which, under current constitutional arrangements, will be implemented from April 2016.
Income tax is not a devolved tax, but the Scottish Parliament will be responsible for setting the rate that is payable annually by Scottish taxpayers and it will form part of the existing framework of the 海角视频 tax system, administered and collected by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
In general terms, a Scottish taxpayer will be defined as someone who is 海角视频 resident for tax purposes and who has their only or main place of residence in Scotland for all or the majority of the tax year.
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So any 海角视频 employer who employs Scottish taxpayers will be affected.
In the next few months, businesses will have to give HMRC up-to-date information on their employees to help identify precisely who are potentially Scottish taxpayers and employers will be required to deduct and account for the tax through the PAYE system at the appropriate rates.
This is potentially a huge undertaking and it's important that businesses - and individuals - are aware of what this means for them, sooner rather than later.
On the face of it, the identification of Scottish taxpayers should be a fairly straightforward process, and for many, particularly those who live in and spend all or most of their time in Scotland, Scottish taxpayer status will be applied correctly but as is often the case the devil is in the detail.
Complexity will inevitably arise for employees and employers with a high incidence of cross-border mobility, leading to a number of challenges, including the identification of employee populations where it may be more difficult to determine Scottish taxpayer status, for example those who occupy more than one property and/or who travel extensively within the 海角视频.
Businesses will also need to ensure that payroll systems are set up (or capable of being set up) to manage the application of both 海角视频 and Scottish tax withholding and compliance requirements.
Essentially, we are entering unchartered territory with SRIT - it is the first time the rate of income tax payable by a 海角视频 resident individual will be determined by the location of the place they consider to be their home.
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So whatever the outcome of the referendum, there will be employer and employee implications to consider ahead of the introduction of SRIT in 2016, particularly for businesses with a high incidence of cross-border mobility.
So why is this important in the West Midlands?
As it stands, many organisations in the Midlands currently do business in Scotland, whether they are headquartered there, employ people in Scotland or have Scottish suppliers.
Looking at the manufacturing industry alone, we estimate up to one in five of the 55,000 Midlands manufacturing companies have business links with Scotland in some form.
For businesses, investing time in understanding and then quantifying the commercial risks and opportunities of independence or increased devolution might make commercial sense, but there is also a price tag on both the cost and management time involved.
Given the difficulty in coming up with definitive numbers, many are deferring this process until after September 18.
But regardless of the outcome of the vote, we know change will come in the form of The Scotland Act, so businesses need to plan now for things they know are definite.
The rest we can plan once we know the outcome of the vote.
Stuart Wallace is head of tax at PwC in the Midlands