If you’re planning on buying a property, you should learn from the former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s tax problems to avoid making the same costly mistakes.
In September, the Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary found herself in hot water after it was discovered that she owed £40,000 in Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT).
Here’s what homebuyers should know about the Stamp Duty situation, to prevent getting caught out the same way when buying a new home if you still own another property.
Why did Angela Rayner underpay Stamp Duty?
The former Deputy Prime Minister had sold interest in her first home in Ashton-under-Lyne to a trust to benefit her child, before buying a new apartment in Hove.
However, according to Paragraph 12 of Schedule 4ZA of the Finance Act 2003, Rayner would still be considered an owner of the property for SDLT purposes. Since Rayner did not follow guidance to seek expert tax advice, she did not know this, and underpaid SDLT as a result.
Rayner must now pay the £40,000 owed and may also face a fine of up to £12,000 for carelessness.
This is due to a 3% surcharge introduced by the Conservative government in the 2015 Autumn Budget, which was increased to 5% in the 2024 Autumn Budget. The legislation was designed to discourage people from purchasing second homes or buy-to-let properties while first-time buyers are struggling with the pressured housing market.
To ensure that buyers pay extra SDLT if they already own a residential property on the day they buy another one, the legislation closed loopholes like using trusts or companies to shift ownership.
This is why Rayner owed extra tax and will face financial penalties, which could have been avoided if she had consulted a tax expert who would have explained her full tax liabilities.
Consult a professional tax adviser on SDLT
There are several lessons to be learned from Rayner’s very public tax blunder, but most important is the reminder that you should always seek professional tax advice before committing to a purchase or sale to ensure you know how much tax you’ll have to pay.
The government’s Stamp Duty Land Tax guide is available online, but it’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to understanding tax rules for property buyers.
So, if you need to speak to a tax adviser whose judgement you can trust, be sure to get in touch with our accountants in Barnsley for guidance on SDLT and asset taxes.
You can reach us by calling 01226 298 298 or sending an email to info@gbac.co.uk.
From 1st September 2025, fully electric cars will have two separate advisory fuel rates, depending on whether the electric car is charged at home or at a public charging station.
Employees can use HMRC’s advisory fuel rates for reimbursement for business travel in company cars, or if they have to repay their employer for fuel used for private travel.
Read on to learn how electric car charging rates are changing and how this might affect employees and employers using electric company car schemes in the UK.
What are the new electric car charging advisory rates?
Previously, the electric car rate was 7p per mile, no matter where the vehicle was charged. Reimbursing at this rate meant drivers would face a shortfall if they used more expensive public charging networks.
Advisory rates for charging electric cars are now 12p for public charging and 8p for home charging.
The new rates can be applied from 1st September, though the previous single rate will still be available until 30th September. From 1st October 2025, only the new rates will apply.
This change reflects the higher cost of using public chargers, but it’s based on the cost of a slow or fast charge – not the more expensive ultra-fast charging that many drivers may use to save time.
Drivers can only be reimbursed for the higher cost of super-fast charging if it can be substantiated.
How might this affect electric company cars?
When business mileage on company cars is reimbursed at acceptable rates, employees and employers won’t face taxable fuel benefits or National Insurance Contribution implications.
However, record-keeping for different charging locations may become more complicated for employers.
It’s also important to note that the new advisory rates only apply to fully electric cars. As hybrid cars are treated as petrol or diesel vehicles, the advisory rates for those types will apply.
The petrol rate isn’t changing, but some diesel rates are increasing by 1p per mile. More information about advisory fuel rates for company cars is available on the government website.
If you need financial advice or accounting support to help manage company car costs, our accountants in Barnsley can provide tax consultancy and payroll services at gbac.
To get in touch, call 01226 298 298, or send an email to info@gbac.co.uk to find out more.
If you’re thinking about selling your business soon, it’s important to consider whether relief will be available to help reduce the Capital Gains Tax (CGT) bill for this asset disposal.
Business Asset Disposal Relief (BADR) is currently 10% lower than the higher CGT rate, at a flat rate of 14%. However, as stated in the Autumn 2024 Budget, this will increase to 18% next spring.
This means business owners should aim to sell their company sooner rather than later, as the tax relief will be less advantageous for disposals made on or after 6th April 2026.
Keep reading for a quick summary of the BADR rules and the relevant considerations.
BADR rules for CGT
Previously known as Entrepreneurs’ Relief until 2020, BADR comes with several conditions. To be eligible, you must be a sole trader/director who has owned the company for at least 2 years.
If you’re selling shares rather than the whole trading company, similarly, you must have been a shareholder, employee, or business partner with at least 5% shares for 2 years.
This means if you haven’t reached the two-year mark of ownership or shareholding yet, you’ll have to wait until you do to sell your company if you want to benefit from BADR.
There is also a lifetime limit, which only allows an individual to claim BADR for up to £1 million of eligible gains. This may not be a concern for most company owners, but those who regularly buy and sell companies should bear this in mind when planning acquisitions and sales.
Considering selling your business?
Calculating the taxable gains is one of the most important steps when preparing to sell a business. In most cases, this will simply be the difference between the selling price and the nominal value.
However, there are some circumstances that can complicate the tax situation, such as:
- Selling shares that were inherited or received as gifts
- Involving shares or loan notes instead of a straightforward cash sale
- Phased payment plans that are dependent on future performance
In cases like these, professional guidance is essential to help establish base costs and gains. For help selling your company in the most tax-efficient way, please contact us in advance.
At gbac, our team of accountants in Barnsley includes experienced corporate finance advisers who can help business owners to sell their companies or raise finance.
For more information or to arrange a corporate finance consultation, get in touch by calling us on 01226 298 298 or emailing info@gbac.co.uk.
If your company has miscalculated its marginal Corporation Tax relief, you may be due to receive a letter from HMRC – if you haven’t already as part of the tax agency’s new campaign.
HMRC is sending one-to-many letters warning companies to make sure they aren’t making any errors when claiming Corporation Tax relief, such as ignoring associated companies.
Here’s a reminder of the rules and what you should do if you receive one of these letters.
Corporation Tax rules for associated companies
If you’re a company director, you should be aware that the tax rate on the first £50,000 in profits is 19%, while the 25% main rate applies when company profits reach £250,000.
The transition from the lower rate to the main rate is eased by marginal tax relief, but some company directors may not be aware that the profit thresholds apply across all associated companies.
For example, if a company has two associated companies, marginal relief will apply to profits from £16,667 to £83,333, unless the other companies are dormant.
HMRC considers companies to be associated if one company is under control by the other, or both companies are under common control. It doesn’t matter where the companies are resident or whether they were only associated for part of the accounting period.
The rules can be quite complicated – in some cases, if a director’s spouse, civil partner, parent, child, or sibling also owns a company, HMRC could treat this as an associated company, too.
What to do if you receive an HMRC Corporation Tax letter
If your company receives a letter about this from HMRC, you will have 30 days to respond and make any necessary amendments to your Corporation Tax marginal relief claim.
Even if HMRC was mistaken in targeting your company and the alleged associated business is dormant, you shouldn’t ignore the letter and should still provide an update to HMRC.
If HMRC doesn’t hear from you, this could lead to a time-consuming formal compliance check.
It’s therefore essential to review your overall company structure if having associated companies increases your Corporation Tax bill, as it may be better to combine associated companies.
For more information, you can read the government’s guide to Marginal Relief for Corporation Tax, or seek professional financial advice for Corporation Tax planning.
Here at gbac, we have a team of accountants in Barnsley who are knowledgeable about tax reliefs and can assist your company with efficient Corporation Tax management.
Contact us by calling 01226 298 298 or sending an email to info@gbac.co.uk to learn more.
After discovering that a third of pension relief claims made by PAYE tax codes weren’t correct, HMRC is now tightening checks on claims submitted for pension tax relief.
If you submit claims for pension relief, keep reading to learn how this could affect you.
What’s the problem with pension relief claims?
Personal pension contributions are made after paying basic-rate tax, so only taxpayers in the higher rate or additional rate bands need to claim relief on private pension contributions.
However, HMRC found that basic-rate taxpayers often tried to claim pension relief, too, or even made claims after relief had already been granted through salary deductions.
To make matters worse, instead of using information from their pension provider, some claimants simply guessed how much they paid into their personal pension that year.
How are pension relief claims changing?
Going forward, it will no longer be possible to claim pension relief over the phone. From 1st September 2025, most pension relief claims must be made online instead.
Postal claims will only be possible for those with a valid reason for not claiming online.
Additionally, while HMRC previously only required taxpayers to provide proof of pension payments if they exceeded £10,000, the agency now requires supporting evidence for all relief claims.
This means you’ll need a letter or statement from your pension provider each tax year showing how much you contributed to your personal pension if you want to make a relief claim.
These changes won’t impact individuals who submit self-assessment tax returns, as their pension relief claims will continue through their tax return as normal.
So, who can claim pension relief?
Higher rate taxpayers and additional rate taxpayers who pay into a personal pension or workplace pension are entitled to claim an additional amount of tax relief.
For example, an additional rate taxpayer would receive a further 25% in pension relief.
In Scotland, taxpayers in the intermediate rate band or higher can apply for tax relief on private pensions.
If tax relief is not automatically given on their pension contributions, taxpayers can also make a claim.
Guidance on how to claim tax relief on private pension payments is available on the government website, or you can contact a financial adviser for personalised pension advice.
With retirement costs and the State Pension Age rising, it’s important to make sure you’re contributing enough to your personal pension to support you through retirement.
This includes optimising tax reliefs, which our Barnsley accountants can help you with.
Here at gbac, our experienced team will be happy to assist you with tax-efficient pension planning. Just call us on 01226 298 298 to get started, or email info@gbac.co.uk for more information about our services.
Before Parliament closed for its summer recess, the UK government announced there will be another review of the State Pension Age (SPA), which was last reviewed in 2023.
After being forced to make a U-turn on means-testing winter fuel payments, while standing firm against compensation demands from the Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI), the government most likely was not happy about the requirement to review the SPA again.
The news that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will be undertaking two new SPA reviews was somewhat overshadowed by other statements, such as the relaunching of the Pensions Commission.
However, this SPA review will significantly impact individual and government finances.
Here’s what you should know about the current State Pension situation.
SPA increases in 2026 and 2044
After increasing from 65 years old in 2018–2020, the State Pension Age is now 66 years old for both men and women. From next April, this will gradually increase to 67 years old by April 2028.
While the first SPA review in 2017 suggested that it should rise to 68 years old in 2037–2039, the second review in 2022 proposed this should take place later in 2041–2043.
However, under current plans, the increase to 68 will be phased in from April 2044–2046.
These reviews prompted the government to complete another review before making a final decision about this. In any case, any changes to the SPA will have 10 years’ notice.
Will the SPA go up in 2037?
It seems unlikely that the original proposal to increase the SPA to 68 in 2037–2039 will go ahead, not least because this would be difficult to legislate with a 10-year notice period.
UK life expectancy projections have also fallen since the first review, giving more reasons to delay further SPA increases. At the time, it was predicted that a man and woman aged 68 in 2037 would live another 21.1 years and 23 years respectively, but the latest figures suggest 18.4 years and 20.9 years.
This decrease in life expectancy should lead to abandoning the SPA increase to 68 years old, but as this could save billions annually, the government is likely to push in the other direction.
Need advice on pension savings?
You can check your State Pension Age and State Pension forecast on the government website.
If your current age means that your retirement planning will be affected by future SPA increases, then it’s a good idea to review your own private pension savings, as well.
With nearly half of working-age adults in the UK not saving enough for their private pensions, more workers should consider consulting accountants for pension advice.
For example, we have a friendly team of experienced Barnsley accountants here at gbac, who can help you with planning retirement savings in the most tax-efficient way for your situation.
To find out more, call us on 01226 298 298, or email us at info@gbac.co.uk and we’ll be in touch soon.
As summer starts to fade, another Autumn Budget approaches… but what changes to UK tax rules can we expect the Chancellor of the Exchequer to announce this autumn?
Last year, Chancellor Rachel Reeves made statements about a £22 billion ‘fiscal black hole’ that she believed should be filled by restricting benefits like the Winter Fuel Payment for pensioners.
This led to a lot of speculation about tax rises ahead of the 2024 Autumn Budget, which is happening again a year later after no tax increases were featured in the 2025 Spring Statement.
This year, on top of slow economic growth, the £1.25 billion cost of backing down on means testing the Winter Fuel Payment and the £5 billion expense of reversing the controversial disability benefit reforms are driving the most recent round of speculation on possible tax changes.
Expected by early November, here are some of the tax announcements that could be on the table.
Potential tax updates in Autumn 2025
As the Chancellor has ruled out increasing Income Tax, National Insurance, and VAT for workers, this leaves the following targets for potential tax updates:
- Income Tax freeze – Originally frozen from 2022 to 2026, then extended to 2028, the Chancellor could further extend the allowance and threshold freezes until 2030.
- Pension contribution tax relief – Introducing a flat relief rate for pension contributions would be bold, but could generate billions from higher and additional rate taxpayers.
- Wealth Tax – Former Labour leader Neil Kinnock recently brought back the idea of introducing a wealth tax, which hasn’t been ruled out yet by the Labour government.
Extended freezes to encourage fiscal drag seem most likely, while a wealth tax seems less likely – as a recent report by the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee stated that gathering all the data needed to assess an individual’s total wealth is currently too difficult for HMRC.
Time to review your personal finances?
Have you reviewed your personal finances yet this year? If not, this could be a good time to take stock of your financial circumstances and make adjustments ahead of the next Autumn Budget.
It may be extremely beneficial to consult a professional tax adviser, who can help you take inventory of your savings, investments, and assets and guide your future tax plans.
Our knowledgeable accountants in Barnsley are here to assist with tax planning that uses allowances wisely, helping you reduce your tax liability while complying with HMRC’s rules.
For business or personal accounting support, contact the team at gbac by calling 01226 298 298, or email us at info@gbac.co.uk and we will be in touch soon with more information.
From January 2026, investors will need to comply with new reporting requirements for purchasing, selling, transferring, or exchanging crypto assets. This will help HMRC link crypto activity to tax records.
According to the latest figures, in the UK, around 7 million people own a crypto asset – such as Bitcoin, which has seen a significant increase in value in the last year.
If you’re a crypto investor or intend to become one soon, here’s what you should know about tax on crypto assets in the UK and what you must do to report your crypto activity to HMRC.
When are crypto assets liable for Capital Gains Tax?
Generally, ‘chargeable assets’ that will become liable for Capital Gains Tax (CGT) on disposal include possessions worth over £6,000, properties, and non-ISA shares.
Crypto assets are treated similarly to shares, meaning each type is pooled.
It will therefore be considered a disposal for CGT purposes if you:
- Sell a crypto asset (even if you don’t withdraw the proceeds)
- Exchange a crypto asset for a different type of crypto asset
- Use crypto assets as payment for goods or services
- Gift crypto assets to someone else (other than a spouse or civil partner)
Simply moving crypto assets between different wallets is not considered a disposal. However, a transaction using a crypto debit card or a cryptocurrency conversion will be.
Crypto asset reporting requirements
Investors will need to give their name, date of birth, address, and either a Unique Tax Reference (UTR) or National Insurance number to their crypto service providers.
Failing to disclose this information, or submitting an incorrect report, will result in a £300 fine.
Some investors may use crypto asset service providers based outside of the UK, but this won’t avoid the reporting requirements if the country the provider is based in follows the same rules.
However, there are several countries hosting crypto providers that haven’t signed up to these requirements yet, and using a decentralised exchange could also bypass them.
Non-voluntary disclosure to HMRC
Previously, HMRC relied on individuals making voluntary disclosures for crypto assets, but this led to high levels of non-compliance, contributing to the growing UK tax gap.
Crypto asset service providers will now report their collected data to HMRC, with the first reports for 2026 due by May 2027. HMRC can then check whether individuals have accurately reported disposals.
From 2024–2025 onwards, self-assessment tax returns now include a specific section within the CGT pages for individuals to report any gains from crypto asset disposals.
Further guidance on crypto asset reporting requirements is available on the government website.
Need help with tax management?
Failure to declare income and gains to HMRC and pay any tax owed can result in significant financial penalties, so it’s essential to make sure you’re doing it right.
It can be confusing to keep up with evolving tax rules for newer asset types, but if you want to cover all your bases, it’s a good idea to consult a professional tax adviser.
Here at gbac, we have a team of experienced accountants in Barnsley who can assist you with all areas of tax planning, ensuring you make the most of your tax allowances and remain fully compliant.
For a consultation on crypto asset tax management, call us on 01226 298 298 or email info@gbac.co.uk.
In an ominous update for UK workers, the government has confirmed changes and reviews to pensions, including adjustments to unused pension death benefits and the State Pension age.
Added to the fact that almost 50% of working-age adults currently aren’t making private pension provisions, this news could affect the retirement plans of millions of people.
What are the latest pension changes?
Unfortunately, it’s bad news for unused pensions and younger workers. The government is expanding the scope of Inheritance Tax (IHT) and increasing the minimum age to claim the State Pension.
Unused Pensions
Draft legislation that will take effect on 6th April 2027 is due to make most unused pension death benefits liable for IHT (though death-in-service benefits will be exempt).
State Pension Age
The State Pension Age (SPA) will increase to 67 years old by March 2028. An increase to 68 years old is set for 2044–2046, which will impact people born after 6th April 1977.
The next increase hasn’t been brought forward yet due to uncertainty about life expectancy.
Not enough people are saving for private pensions
Unsurprisingly, the UK government is very concerned that so many people aren’t saving privately for their own retirement pot, though this is typically due to low earnings.
There are over 3 million self-employed earners without pension savings, and the situation is worse for women and some ethnic groups. Overall, around 40% of people aren’t saving enough.
According to current estimates, a single person would need £32,000 a year to maintain a moderate lifestyle, while a couple would need almost £44,000 a year.
As the full State Pension is just under £12,000, this alone will not be enough to live on.
Due to such low numbers, even with employees being enrolled into pension schemes automatically, a pensions commission will investigate the obstacles to pension saving and publish a report in 2027.
Need help with pension savings?
It is important for working-age adults to make adequate provisions for their future. If you need professional guidance on setting money aside for your retirement, we can help.
Here at gbac, our experienced Barnsley accountants can assist self-employed individuals and employed workers to plan and save for their family’s financial future.
Whether you need help tracing lost pensions or setting up new savings accounts for your private pension, you can come to us to discuss the most tax-efficient options for your circumstances.
Simply phone our team on 01226 298 298 or email your query to info@gbac.co.uk and we’ll be in touch.