Tax Planning plays a pivotal role and is a crucial aspect of financial management that individuals and businesses must consider. At NRB, we understand the complexities of taxation and aim to provide comprehensive guidance to our clients to ensure effective tax planning.
As the current tax year draws to a close, it’s essential to consider several factors that could potentially lower your tax obligations:
Pensions
Contributing to your pension fund is an effective method to reduce your tax burden while simultaneously saving for your retirement. If you haven’t reviewed your pension fund, contributions, or tax status recently, please reach out to explore how we can assist you.
Marriage Allowance
Basic rate taxpayers with a spouse earning below the personal allowance threshold (currently £12,570) can apply to transfer up to £1,260 of their surplus. For claims that are dating back to 2019/20, the personal allowance can backdated up to 4 years to cover this. The deadline is 5th April.
ISA
Remember to make the most of this year’s annual ISA allowance, which currently stands at £20,000. You have until 5th April 2024 to utilise it fully.
High Income Child Benefit Charge
If your income surpasses £50,000, you may face a clawback charge if your household has received child benefit. While opting out of receiving these payments can eliminate the need to repay, it’s crucial to ensure you’ve registered your claim. This ensures that any non-working spouse continues to receive state pension credit. Moreover, if grandparents are caring for your children who are below retirement age, this credit can even be transferred to them, securing any ‘gap years’ in their state pension contributions.
IHT
Don’t overlook the opportunity to gift up to £3,000 (Annual Exemption) before 5th April 2024. Additionally, if you didn’t utilise your 2022/23 allowance, you can still do so. Remember, you can carry this allowance forward for only one year.
As the new tax year looms, significant changes are set for 2024/25.
- Dividend Allowance – The dividend allowance, on which the tax rate is 0%, will decrease from £1,000 to £500 from 6 April 2024.
This is potentially hinting at its complete abolition. Assessing remuneration plans now is prudent, as dividends may not always be tax-efficient for-profit extraction.
- Threshold Update – Earnings exceeding £150,000 now trigger self-assessment tax return obligations, raised from the previous threshold of £100,000.
HMRC has promptly informed many taxpayers that their last required tax return was for the year ending 5 April 2023. However, it’s crucial not to assume exemption from further action.
Various factors necessitate tax return completion, such as unaccounted benefits in kind, dividend income, interest surpassing savings allowances, rental income, or incorrect tax codes affecting PAYE deductions. By submitting a tax return before 30 December may enable tax underpayments to be collected through the 2025/26 tax code.
Moreover, charitable donations, pension contributions with unreceived full relief, additional voluntary pension contributions, qualifying loan interest payments, or investments in Enterprise Investment Schemes or Venture Capital Trusts may entitle you to tax relief, claimable through your self-assessment tax return.
- Capital Gains Tax – This will further reduce its annual exemption to £3,000 from 6 April 2024, following last year’s decrease from £12,300 to £6,000 for 2023/24.
Considering advancing capital disposals to 2023/24 could yield savings of up to £840 on taxable residential property sales, subject to a 28% tax rate.
Click here to find out updates for Rates and Thresholds for employers for 2024 to 2025.
Further Information
If you would like more information on the recent tax developments, please contact your usual NRB advisor or our tax team.
To find out more Tax Planning Services, click here to see how NRB can help you.
