Excalibur

Chartered Accountants

Directors: Susan Lawes BAcc ACA, Stephen Lawes BA ACA

• If you submit your self-assessment tax return prior to 30th September each year, the Inland Revenue may code any underpayment in order that you pay it automatically by instalments directly from your salary rather than having to find a large cheque.
• Company cars are becoming very expensive from a taxation point of view. Have you considered the alternatives? You can earn a mileage rate of up to £0.40 per mile tax free. If your employer pays a lower rate, you can claim the difference against your tax.
• If you own a company, have you considered taking dividends rather than a bonus? This can save National Insurance contributions and delay paying tax.
• Is your investment income allocated correctly? If you are a higher rate tax payer, and your spouse is a basic rate tax payer, it could be advantageous to elect for the income from joint investments to be assessed on them alone.
• Are you disposing of any assets giving rise to a capital gain? If you plan long enough in advance, a proportion can be transferred to your spouse in order that some or all of the gains can be assessed on them, using their exemption and lower tax rates. Watch out for the "settlements" legislation.
• Plan the timing of your share and other disposals carefully. If you have a large gain, consider selling some pre 5th April and some post in order to spread the gain over 2 years and make best use of the exempt amounts available. It may also be advantageous to sell loss making assets to reduce the tax due on the profit making assets.
• Have you submitted your claim for tax credits? The helplines are very busy at present, but we do have a small stock of the application forms available.

These are just a few suggestions with general appeal.

For more detailed suggestions for your particular circumstances, take advantage of our free initial consultation.