It’s early days yet, but some pointers on tax have emerged from both the main parties. Within one week of the surprise firing of the general election starting gun, both the Conservatives and Labour have…
Electric vehicles can boost income with salary sacrifice
It may seem counter-intuitive, but taking a pay cut and opting for a salary sacrifice scheme with an electric car can boost take-home pay thanks to tax and national insurance contribution (NIC) savings. Salary sacrifice…
The importance of a well-drafted will
The risk of relying on homemade wills was highlighted in a recent case where a will was held to be invalid. Even a well-written will must be kept up to date given the possibility of…
Landlord update on Renters Reform Bill
The Renters Reform Bill has finally completed its passage through the House of Commons with important concessions made in favour of landlords. Landlords with leasehold property may also benefit from an annual cap of £250…
Have you overlooked a changed tax status?
With allowances frozen or cut, you may have underpaid tax for 2023/24. Your tax position may have changed for the last year without you really noticing. Consider the following: Tax Year 2021/22 2023/24 2024/25 Personal…
Daily penalties come in for late self assessment returns
Around 1.1 million taxpayers who failed to submit the self assessment tax return for 2022/23 on 31 January 2024 now face a £10 daily penalty charge by HMRC. HMRC has imposed a daily penalty of…
Employment Tax: Deductibility of training costs
HMRC has recently published guidance to provide greater clarity about the tax deductibility of training costs for the self-employed. Apart from updating current skills, costs are also deductible if they provide new skills or knowledge…
Employment Law: Request flexible working rights from day one
From 6 April, employees now have the right to request flexible working from their first day at work. However, the right is still only to make a request and employers are under no obligation to…
The end of multiple dwellings relief
From 1 June 2024, the abolition of multiple dwellings relief under stamp duty land tax (SDLT) will stop disputes about what qualifies as a separate dwelling (e.g. a granny annex). However, the scrapped tax will…
Thoughts for buy-to-let owners selling up
While the higher rate of capital gains tax (CGT) on residential property disposals has dropped by 4%, from 28% to 24%, from 6 April 2024, the vast majority of landlords who sell up are facing…