Tax Briefing – Autumn 22
Our latest tax briefing is now available. Click here to download your copy.
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.
It’s a fair question, especially if you’re on a fixed salary. It would be easy to think that you should just receive a set amount each month based on the total salary, less tax, divided by 12 for monthly pay or 53 for weekly payrolls. But the way tax is calculated is not that straightforward and there are various factors which mean your salary will vary by month. Needless to say, the overall salary amount you get paid over the year evens out to that net figure but it won’t arrive in neat even chunks, and here’s why.
With such uncertain times and increased pressure on personal finances, there’s no better time than the start of the new tax year to do a bit of financial planning. With the cost of living rising (the year to March 2022 inflation sitting at 7%) and energy prices and taxes following suit, it’s important to make the most of allowances and reliefs.
Limited companies have always been a very tax efficient vehicle for companies and their Directors, but various changes in other taxes and allowances mean this may not continue to be the case.
Whilst HMRC has announced that it is waiving late filing and late payment penalties on self-assessment tax returns for one month, those required to submit a self-assessment tax return are being urged not to use this as an excuse to delay.
Over twelve million people are now required to submit a tax return and with that number growing each year, more and more people are coming to the process for the first time. The rise in AirBnB lettings, self-employment, the ‘gig economy’ and people having multiple sources of income are the factors driving more taxpayers to self-assessment.
HMRC has announced that it will be closing its telephone lines for 3 days during December, to redirect staff time into dealing with a backlog of letters and queries. The phone lines are those primarily dealing with VAT and Corporation tax queries but other services may also be affected as the department tries to deal with a backlog that has built up during the pandemic.
When it comes to tax, you want to be paying as little as possible – tax that is. But for many, the cost of completing a tax return can feel like a tax in itself and you may be inclined to try and pay as little as possible. But is that a wise idea? Do […]
As the dust settles on the 2021/22 budget and we absorb another round of tax increases and changes to reliefs and tapers, we are once again reminded of just how complex the UK tax system is. Managing this on an individual level is hard enough, imagine having to control and account for it across an […]
Recent analysis by online pension provider PensionBee has once again highlighted the issue of higher rate pension tax relief not being claimed on pension contributions. The research showed that more than 1 million of Britain’s higher rate tax payers are not claiming pension relief through their personal tax returns. It would appear that eight in […]