The administration of lasting powers of attorney (LPA) is on its way to becoming fully online. In an ideal world, you should have an LPA (or its Scottish or Northern Ireland equivalent) sitting beside your will. The absence of either can complicate matters considerably for your family. Without a will, the distribution of your estate […]
HMRC is moving ahead with its ‘digital by default’ ambition by pushing VAT registration to online only. Any business unable to use the online registration service will have to call HMRC’s VAT helpline to obtain a paper registration form. According to HMRC, more than 95% of businesses already register online, but there are some circumstances […]
The 31 January 2024 deadline for submitting a 2022/23 self-assessment tax return is not far off, especially for those not yet registered. Anyone who has not previously registered for self-assessment – but needs to submit a tax return for 2022-23 – should do so as soon as possible. A self-assessment activation code can take a […]
Landlords in England and Wales might not be aware, but there is a free property alert service that monitors any significant activity on let property. There is greater risk of a property being fraudulently sold or mortgaged if the landlord lives overseas, the property is empty or if there is no mortgage. Signing up for […]
State pension increases could be outpacing inflation next April, and there’s no guarantee of the Triple Lock surviving the next election. Source: IFS. In mid-September, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published the latest earnings data, covering the period May to July 2023. Earnings data has been the focus of much attention recently because a […]
The government’s backtracking over the introduction of energy performance targets for property let out in England and Wales is facing criticism, but it will be welcome news for landlords with older properties deemed too expensive or difficult to upgrade. Let property must currently have an energy performance certificate (EPC) rated E or above. Without this, […]
In July, the government was reported as holding talks on abolishing inheritance tax (IHT). This wasn’t given much credence at the time, but there are now reports that the March 2024 Budget will include a reduction to the 40% IHT rate as a prelude to future abolishment. IHT is charged at the rate of 40% […]
New HMRC statistics have shed some light on how many companies are affected by the recent hike in corporation tax rates. Just over 1.5 million companies paid corporation tax for the financial year to 31 March 2022, but only 7% fell above the £50,000 small profits threshold. Although fewer than 100,000 companies are likely to […]
You do not have to take your state pension at state pension age The current state pension age (SPA) – the earliest age at which you can draw your state pension – is 66. It will be gradually increased to 67 between April 2026 and April 2028. A further rise to 68 is due, probably […]
The 50th anniversary of the UK’s introduction of VAT was earlier this year, but despite being around for a while, many VAT-registered businesses still find VAT too complex and confusing. No surprise then that more businesses than ever are getting hit with penalties for inaccuracies. Inflation and frozen thresholds Two things that are not helping […]