Tax Insights

A Costly Oversight in Stamp Duty Land Tax In early September, former Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner resigned after discovering she had underpaid £40,000 in Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on the purchase of her flat in Hove. Her situation serves...

Understanding HMRC's Simple Assessment From June 2025, HMRC will begin issuing "simple assessment" letters, a new form of communication that is expected to catch many recipients by surprise. These letters are part of HMRC's effort to streamline tax collection for...

Looking after your employees Feed employees with free or subsidised food in a staff canteen. Where the food is available to all employees, or all who work at a particular site, there is no taxable benefit for employees when they receive free or subsidised food. A...

Making the rules work for you Choose the most tax-advantageous structure for your new business. Tax changes, such as the recent increase to the rate of employer NICs, have made the decision on how to structure a new business quite difficult. Traditionally, a business...

Handing on your wealth Top-up your state pension entitlement. Everyone has a nil rate band of £325,000 on which no IHT is charged. If you have children, or stepchildren, you can add up to £175,000 (known as the residence nil rate band) to your nil rate band by leaving...

Preparing for the future Maximise tax relief on your pension contributions by using all of your annual allowance. The annual allowance for 2025/26 is £60,000, but you can also use surplus allowance from the previous three tax years (see the following tip). To avoid an...

Making the most of bricks and mortar Let rooms in your own home to one or more lodgers. Rent-a-room relief allows up to £7,500 of rent per property to be received tax free per year. The rooms must be let as residential accommodation in the home you live in, and no...

Making the most of your money. Contribute up to £9,000 to your child’s Junior ISA. The fund builds up free of tax on investment income and capital gains until your child reaches 18, when the funds can be either withdrawn or rolled over into an adult ISA. Relatives and...

Check your PAYE tax code. HMRC may change your tax code in various circumstances, for example if you start to get income from an additional job or pension or you start or stop getting employee benefits. Your code may include estimated amounts of savings income, based...

The 1975 Budget and Subsequent Fiscal Policy The 1975 Chancellor's Budget holds a unique position in UK fiscal history, representing a significant policy decision that has seemingly deterred subsequent administrations from similar action. The year 1975 was marked by...

Proactive Tax Year Preparation Planning for the beginning of the new tax year is as important as the planning done for the end of the old one. While the 5th of April, the tax year's conclusion, is a major focal point, the following day, while appearing to need less...

Understanding the January 31st Deadline: Online Sellers Tax Rules The end of January wasn't just the deadline for personal tax returns; it also marked the beginning of a new era of tax reporting for online sellers. As of January 2025, online platforms like eBay,...