Latest Posts

Breathing space to help those in debt

HM Treasury has confirmed that the new 'breathing space' scheme to help those with problem debts will become operational next year. The scheme will provide legal protections from creditor action while those affected will receive professional

Read article

Scottish Income Tax rates announced 2020-21

Public finance minister Kate Forbes delivered her first Budget statement to the Scottish Parliament on 6 February 2020. This followed the shock resignation of finance minister, Derek Mackay. This is the first time that Scotland has held a Budget

Read article

Still time to utilise annual tax-free allowance

We would like to remind our readers that there is still time to use the annual exemption for Capital Gains Tax (CGT). In the current 2019-20 tax year, this amounts to £12,000. This means that there is no CGT to pay on the first £12,000 of

Read article

Checking your NIC records

HMRC offers an online service to check your National Insurance Contributions (NIC) record online. In order to use the service, you will need to have a Government Gateway account. If you don't have an account, you can apply to set one up

Read article

Review occupancy for Holiday Lets owners

The furnished holiday let (FHL) rules allow holiday lettings of properties that meet certain conditions to be treated as a trade for tax purposes. In order to qualify as a furnished holiday letting, the following criteria need to be met: The

Read article

Change to off-payroll working rules

A welcome change to the implementation of the new off-payroll working rules has been announced. The Government has confirmed that the changes that come into effect April 2020 will not be retrospective. This means that the new rules will only apply to

Read article

Gifts to spouse or charity

There is usually no Capital Gains Tax (CGT) to be paid on the transfer of assets to a spouse or civil partner. However, the gift is still treated as a disposal that has taken place for CGT purposes, on a no- gain no-loss basis. When the asset is

Read article

Statutory payment rates 2020/21 confirmed

Following the government policy paper published in January 2020, announcing the proposed new rates for statutory maternity pay (SMP), statutory adoption pay (SAP), statutory paternity pay (SPP), statutory shared parental pay (ShPP) and statutory sick

Read article

Still time to plan for tax year 2019-20

As the deadline for submitting your 2018-19 tax return has passed, now is a good time to focus on the 2019-20 tax year. It is important to carry out an annual review and ensure that you have planned properly for the current tax year. This includes

Read article