News that HMRC has pulled in almost £650m due to complex inheritance gifting rules in the past three years, has once again highlighted the need for careful estate planning by families. Whilst the overall tax receipts from Inheritance Tax (IHT) between April 2022 and February 2023 were £6.4 billion, the focus of this latest news is on the proportion collected as a result of gifts made by the deceased in the period leading up to their death.
Following the completion of the latest round of Self-Assessment, HMRC is reported to be looking into undeclared income from short term lettings that it believes should have been included on tax returns in January. Those believed not to have declared income will be sent ‘nudge’ letters.
Analysis by HMRC suggests that millions of investors will be hit hard by the planned reductions in the dividend allowance coming into effect in April 23 and April 24.
Back in 2015, then Chancellor George Osborne, shook up the dividend taxation system, overhauling an area of economic policy that had not been touched for years. But now the present day Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, has signalled what appears to be the death knell for the allowance as he set out plans in November 2022, to reduce it to just £500 in the 2024/25 tax year.
The Chancellor’s budget announcement that personal allowances and the threshold for the higher rate tax band will be frozen until April 2028, will see thousands more individuals paying higher levels of tax as a result. It is estimated that the move will see more than 200,000 (two-hundred-thousand) individuals moving into the higher rate tax band alone.
It has been calculated that some top earners, with a salary in excess of £100k, could end up paying an effective tax rate of more than 90% as a result of the recent changes to the additional rate threshold announced in the Autumn Statement cum Budget.
If there’s one thing the recent hokey cokey of Chancellors and fiscal policy has achieved it has to be a rigorous testing of our sentiment towards taxation. Whilst it is hard to imagine that anyone has found this funny or even useful for personal and commercial planning purposes, as a research case study it provides tremendous insight on public opinion and our threshold for taxation.
If you’re in the process of writing a will or starting to talk to you family about what your estate looks like, then you may be asking yourself how you can reduce the amount your heirs will be paying in IHT.
There was a lot announced in the mini budget that took place on Friday 23rd September 2022 and it has had a significant impact on markets and currencies ever since.
Our summary of the full statement, helps you understand all of the changes, when they will come into effect and how they might apply to your personal or commercial circumstances.
Our latest tax briefing is now available. Click here to download your copy.
If you’re thinking of becoming self-employed, you may be weighing up the choice between incorporating a Limited Company or trading as a sole trader. One of the key things to consider is the amount of personal tax you’ll end up paying, how it is calculated and when you have to pay it. It is subtly different in each case and you also need to be aware of other taxes which apply.
Yes, a salary of 100k + does still put you in a relatively select group at the top of the UK earners list. Whilst those at the very top of that heap are touching seven-figure salaries, the proportion of those on more than £100k continues to grow.
But with a cost of living crisis, slow growth and record amounts of government borrowing needing to be paid back, if you’re earning £100k or more in the UK, you may find yourself in the spotlight if there are any changes to the income tax bands.