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Applying for Marriage Allowance

The marriage allowance can be claimed by married couples and those in a civil partnership where a spouse or civil partner does not pay tax or does not pay tax above the basic rate threshold for Income Tax (i.e., one of the couples must currently earn

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Tax when you get your pension

There are special rules which allow individuals who have set up private pension scheme(s) to benefit from significant tax reliefs when saving for their retirement. There is no overall limit to the amount of employer or employee contributions and no

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Qualifying for residence nil rate band

The Inheritance Tax residence nil rate band (RNRB) is a transferable allowance for married couples and civil partners (per person) when their main residence is passed down to a direct descendent such as children or grandchildren after their death.

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Changes at HM Treasury

Last week saw the resignation of the previous Chancellor Rishi Sunak from the Government. The previous Chancellor said he could no longer continue in his role in good conscience. The Prime Minister almost immediately sought to fill this role and

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Tax gap remains at 5.1%

The tax gap for the 2020-21 tax year has been published and remains at 5.1%. This is the second lowest recorded percentage and remains unchanged from the previous 2019-20 tax year. The tax gap is basically the difference between the amount of tax

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Old style £20 and £50 notes

The Bank of England will be withdrawing legal tender status of paper £20 and £50 banknotes after 30 September 2022. This means that if you have any old £20 or £50 notes you should use them or deposit them at your bank or Post Office by the end of

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Filing and paying company tax returns

If you have recently setup a new limited company or are thinking of doing so then one of the areas that you need to be aware of is the accounts and tax filing regime for companies. After the end of its financial year, a private limited company must

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Furnished Holiday Lets and VAT

The furnished holiday let (FHL) rules allow holiday lettings of properties that meet certain conditions to be treated as a trade for some specific tax purposes. As an FHL is treated as a business, it is important to remember that VAT must be

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Joining the MTD ITSA pilot

Some businesses and agents are already keeping digital records and providing updates to HMRC as part of a live pilot to test and develop the Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax Self Assessment (ITSA). Under the pilot, qualifying landlords and

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Standards for tax agents

HMRC last published guidance on the standard for agents in January 2018 (updating the first set of standards published in February 2016). The standard applies to all tax agents who transact with HMRC and to any professional who advises or acts on

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