Still time to register for the Marriage Allowance

There is still time to register for the marriage allowance before the current tax year ends on 5 April 2024. The marriage allowance applies to married couples and those in a civil partnership where a spouse or civil partner does not pay tax or does not pay tax above the basic rate threshold for Income Tax (i.e., one of the couples must currently earn less than the £12,570 personal allowance for 2023-24). HMRC has revealed that March is the most popular month for marriage allowance applications, with almost 70,000 couples applying in March last year.

The allowance works by permitting the lower earning partner to transfer up to £1,260 of their personal tax-free allowance to their spouse or civil partner. The marriage allowance can only be used when the recipient of the transfer (the higher earning partner) does not pay more than the basic 20% rate of income tax. This would usually mean that their income is between £12,571 and £50,270 during 2023-24.

For those living in Scotland this would usually mean income currently between £12,571 and £43,662.

Using the allowance, the lower earning partner can transfer up to £1,260 of their unused personal tax-free allowance to a spouse or civil partner. This could result in a saving of up to £252 for the recipient (20% of £1,260), or £21 a month for the current tax year.

If you meet the eligibility requirements and have not yet claimed the allowance, then you can backdate your claim as far back as 6 April 2019. This could result in a total tax break of up to £1,256 if you can claim for 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23 as well as the current 2023-24 tax year. If you claim now, you can backdate your claim for four years (if eligible) as well as for the current tax year.

HMRC’s online Marriage Allowance calculator can be used by couples to find out if they are eligible for the relief. An application can then be made online at GOV.UK.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 11-03-2024

Tax on savings interest

If you have taxable income of less than £17,570 in 2023-24 you will have no tax to pay on interest received. This figure is calculated by adding the £5,000 starting rate limit for savings (where 0% of the interest is taxable) to the current £12,570 personal allowance. However, it is important to note that if your total non-savings income exceeds £17,570 then the starting rate limit for savings is unavailable.

There is a tapered relief available if your non-savings income is between £12,570 and £17,570 whereby every £1 of non-savings income above a taxpayer's personal allowance reduces their starting rate for savings by £1.

There is also a Personal Savings Allowance (PSA) that can be beneficial to many savers. This allowance ensures that for basic-rate taxpayers the first £1,000 interest on savings income is tax-free. For higher-rate taxpayers the tax-free personal savings allowance is £500. Taxpayers paying the additional rate of tax on taxable income over £125,140 cannot benefit from the PSA.

Interest from savings products such as ISA's and premium bond wins do not count towards the limit. Taxpayers with tax-free accounts and higher savings can still continue to benefit from the relevant PSA limits.

Banks and building societies no longer deduct tax from bank account interest as a matter of course. Taxpayers who need to pay tax on savings income are required to declare this as part of their annual self-assessment tax return.

Taxpayers that have overpaid tax on savings interest can submit a claim to have the tax repaid. Claims can be backdated for up to four years from the end of the current tax year. This means that claims can still be made for overpaid interest dating back as far as the 2019-20 tax year. The deadline for making claims for the 2019-20 tax year is 5 April 2024.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 11-03-2024

Eligibility for replacement of domestic items relief

The replacement of domestic items relief enables landlords to claim tax relief when they replace movable furniture, furnishings, household appliances and kitchenware in a rental property. The allowance is available based on the cost of domestic items such as free-standing wardrobes, curtains, carpets, televisions, fridges and crockery.

In order for relief to be given, four conditions must be met:

Condition A – the individual or company looking to claim the relief must carry on a property business that includes the letting of a dwelling-house(s).

Condition B – an old domestic item that has been provided for use in the dwelling-house is replaced with the purchase of a new domestic item. The new item must be provided for the exclusive use of the lessee in that dwelling-house and the old item must no longer be available for use by the lessee.

Condition C – The expenditure on the new item must not be prohibited by the wholly and exclusive rule but would otherwise be prohibited by the capital expenditure rule.

Condition D – Capital Allowances must not have been claimed in respect of the expenditure on the new domestic item.

If the 4 conditions are met, then a deduction for the expenditure on the new item can be claimed.

The amount of the deduction is based on:

  • the cost of the new replacement item, limited to the cost of an equivalent item if it represents an improvement on the old item (beyond the reasonable modern equivalent);
  • the incidental costs of disposing of the old item or acquiring the replacement; and less
  • any amounts received on disposal of the old item.

HMRC’s internal guidance provides an example highlighting that a brand new budget washing machine costing circa £200 is not an improvement if a replacement for a five year old washing machine that cost around £200 at the time of purchase (or slightly less, taking into account inflation).

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 11-03-2024

Spring Budget 2024 – High Income Child Benefit Charge

The High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) came into force January 2013 and has applied to taxpayers whose income exceeds £50,000 in a tax year and who are in receipt of child benefit. It was announced as part of the Spring Budget measures that the income threshold at which HICBC starts to be charged will be increased from £50,000 to £60,000 effective from April 2024.

The HICBC is charged at the rate of 1% of the full Child Benefit award for each £200 (2023-24: £100) of income between £60,000 and £80,000. (2023-24: between £50,000 and £60,000). For taxpayers with income above £80,000 (2023-24: £60,000) the amount of the charge will equal the amount of Child Benefit received. The HICBC therefore either reduces or removes the financial benefit of receiving child benefit. Increasing the HICBC threshold is expected to have a positive impact for approximately 485,000 families. 

The Chancellor had been subject to intense lobbying regarding the unfairness of this charge as it is levied on an individual basis. For instance, currently dual income families on £49,000 each (with a household income of £98,000) may not be liable to the HICBC, but a single parent earning over £50,000 would be. Going forward, the government intends to administer the HICBC on a household rather than individual basis, but this move is expected to take until at least April 2026.

For new Child Benefit claims made after 6 April 2024, any backdated payment will be treated for HICBC purposes as if the entitlement fell in the 2024-25 tax year if backdating would otherwise create a HICBC liability in the 2023-24 tax year.

If the HICBC applies to you or your partner it is usually worthwhile to claim Child Benefit for your child, as it can help to protect certain benefits and will make sure your child receives a National Insurance number. However, you still have the choice of continuing to receive child benefit and pay the tax charge or elect to stop receiving Child Benefit and not pay the charge.

Source:HM Treasury| 05-03-2024

Spring Budget 2024 – non-dom changes

In a move that may partly have been prompted by seeking to mirror a longstanding policy of the Labour party, the Chancellor has announced that the generous non-dom rules are to be axed.

From April 2025, the government plans to abolish the remittance basis of taxation for non-UK domiciled individuals and replace it with a simpler residence-based regime. Individuals who opt into the regime will not pay UK tax on foreign income and gains (FIG) for the first four years of tax residence. They will continue to pay tax on UK income and gains, as is currently the case for non-domiciled individuals. The Chancellor said that after four years, those who continue to live in the UK will pay the same tax as other UK residents.

Individuals who on 6 April 2025 have been tax resident in the UK for less than 4 years (after 10 years of non-UK tax residence) will be able to use this new regime for any tax year of UK residence in the remainder of those 4 years. 

Individuals who move from the remittance basis to the arising basis on 6 April 2025 and are not eligible for the new 4-year FIG regime will, for 2025-2026 only, pay tax on 50% of their foreign income. This reduction applies to foreign income only; it does not apply to foreign chargeable gains. For 2026-27 onwards, tax will be due on all worldwide income in the normal way.  

Overseas Workday Relief (OWR) will also be reformed from April 2025 with eligibility for the relief based on the new regime. OWR will continue to provide Income Tax relief for earnings from duties conducted overseas for the first three years of tax residence with restrictions on remitting these earnings removed.

The government has also announced an intention to move to a residence-based regime for Inheritance Tax from 6 April 2025. This will be subject to consultation.

Source:HM Treasury| 05-03-2024

Checking Furnished Holiday Let property occupancy

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 property must be let on a commercial basis with a view to the realisation of profits. Second homes or properties that are only let occasionally or to family and friends do not qualify.
  • The property must be located in the UK, or in a country within the EEA.
  • The property must be furnished. This means that there must be sufficient furniture provided for normal occupation and your visitors must be entitled to use the furniture.

In addition, the property must pass the following 3 occupancy conditions.

  1. Pattern of occupation condition. The property must not be used for more than 155 days for longer term occupation (i.e., a continuous period of more than 31 days).
  2. The availability condition. The property must be available for commercial letting at commercial rates for at least 210 days per year.
  3. The letting condition. The property must be let for at least 105 days per year and homeowners should be able to demonstrate the income from these lettings. 

Where there are a number of furnished holiday lettings properties in a business, it is possible to average the days of lettings for the purposes of qualifying for the 105 days threshold. This is called an averaging election.

There is also a special period of grace election which allows homeowners to treat a year as a qualifying year for the purposes of the furnished holiday let rules where they genuinely intended to meet the occupancy threshold but were unable to do so subject to a number of qualifying conditions.

It was announced as part of the Spring Budget measures that the present favourable tax benefits of letting properties using the FHL rules are to be abolished from April 2025.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 11-02-2024

Record number of taxpayers file on time

HMRC has confirmed that more than 11.5 million people submitted their 2022-23 self-assessment tax returns by the 31 January deadline. This included over 778,000 taxpayers who left their filing until the final day and almost 33,000 that filed in the last hour (between 23:00 and 23:59) before the deadline!

Whilst this was the highest ever number of filings, there are still an estimated 600,000 taxpayers that have missed the deadline and are yet to file. Are you among those that missed the 31 January 2024 filing deadline for your 2022-23 self-assessment returns?

If you have missed the filing deadline then you will usually be charged a £100 fixed penalty if your return is up to 3 months late, regardless of whether you owed tax or not. If you do not file and pay before 1 May 2024 then you will face further penalties unless you have arranged to pay with HMRC.

If you are unable to pay your tax bill, there is an option to set up an online time to pay payment plan to spread the cost of tax due on 31 January 2024 for up to 12 months. This option is available for debts up to £30,000 and the payment plan needs to be set up no later than 60 days after the due date of a debt. This should be done sooner rather than later as a 5% late payment penalty will be charged if tax remains outstanding, and a payment plan has not been set up, before 1 April 2023.

If you owe self-assessment tax payments of over £30,000 or need longer than 12 months to pay in full, you can still apply to set up a time to pay arrangement with HMRC, but this cannot be done using the online service.

You can also plan ahead for the 2023-24 tax year by spreading the cost of your tax bill using HMRC’s Budget Payment Plan. The Budget Payment Plan enables those who are up to date with previous payments to make regular weekly or monthly contributions towards their next tax bill.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 05-02-2024

Should you pay tax on selling goods online?

HMRC has published new guidance for taxpayers that regularly sell goods or services through an online marketplace. The guidance makes it clear that this activity could be treated as a ‘trade’ for UK tax purposes. If this is the case taxpayers may need to pay tax on income they earn from buying and selling goods as a trade or business using online marketplaces such as eBay. 

If taxpayers are just selling unwanted items that have been laying around their home, such as the contents of a loft or garage, it is unlikely that they will have to pay tax. However, if they buy goods for resale, or make goods with the intention of selling them for a profit, then they are likely to be trading and will have to pay tax on their profits.

There is also a £1,000 tax allowance for miscellaneous trading income. This is known as the Trading and Miscellaneous Income Allowance. Where this £1,000 allowance covers all the individual’s relevant income (before expenses) the income is tax-free and does not have to be declared to HMRC. 

Traders should note that since 1 January 2024, digital platforms are required to collect and report seller information and income to HMRC. These digital platforms must report sellers’ income by January 2025. The changes are an internationally agreed set of rules requiring digital platforms to report certain information to HMRC.

If you have trading income from online sales and are unsure what, if anything, you need to declare, please call so we can help you consider your options.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 05-02-2024

Using your own vehicles for work-related journeys

If you are an employee and use your own money to buy things you need for your job you can sometimes claim tax relief for the associated costs. Usually, it is only possible to claim tax relief for the cost of items used solely for your work.

You may also be able to claim tax relief for using your own vehicle, be it a car, van, motorcycle or bike. As a general rule, there is no tax relief for ordinary commuting to and from your place of work. The rules are different for temporary workplaces, when the expense is usually allowable, and if you use your own vehicle to do other business-related mileage.

Employers usually make expense payments based on a set rate per mile depending on the mode of transport used. There are approved mileage rates published by HMRC. The approved mileage allowance payment rates are available where you use your own car on a business trip. Where the approved mileage rates are used, the payments to you are not regarded as a taxable benefit.

Where an employer pays less than the published rates, the employee can make a tax relief claim for the shortfall using mileage allowance relief. For all cars, the approved mileage allowance payment for the first 10,000 business miles is 45p per mile and 25p per mile for every additional business mile. The approved mileage rates are 20p per mile for bicycle travel and 24p per mile for motorcycle travel.

There is an additional passenger payment you can receive of 5p per passenger per business mile from your employer. This is available if you carry fellow employees in your car or van on journeys which are also work journeys for your colleagues. 

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 05-02-2024

Penalties if you missed the filing deadline

Have you missed the 31 January 2024 filing deadline for your 2022-23 self-assessment return?

If you have missed the filing deadline, then you will be charged a £100 fixed penalty if your return is up to 3 months late, regardless of whether you owed tax or not. If you do not file before 1 May 2024 then you will face additional daily penalties of £10 per day, up to a maximum of £900 unless you have arranged to pay HMRC.

If your tax return is still outstanding after 6 months, a further penalty of 5% of the tax due, or £300, whichever is greater will be due. And again after 12 months, another 5% or £300 charge, whichever is greater.

There are also additional penalties for paying outstanding tax late. These are 5% of that unpaid at 30 days, 6 months and 12 months. Interest will also be charged on any tax paid late.

You can appeal against any penalties that have been issued by HMRC if you have a reasonable excuse. However, you need to act fast, and the excuse must be genuine and HMRC can of course ask for evidence to support any claim. An appeal must usually be made within 30 days of receipt of the penalty.

If you do not have the necessary funds to make any payments due, you should be pro-active and contact HMRC as soon as possible. Pretending the problem does not exist will not make the problem go away and will likely make matters worse.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 29-01-2024

File early to have self-assessment tax coded out

The coding out threshold may entitle you to have tax underpayments collected via your tax code when you are in employment or in receipt of a company pension. Instead of paying off debts in a lump sum, money is collected in equal monthly instalments over the tax year.

If you want to benefit from this opportunity to pay tax due on 31 January through your tax code, then you need to file early. The deadline for the 2022-23 tax year has already passed.

You can pay your self-assessment bill through your PAYE tax code as long as all these apply:

  • you owe less than £3,000 on your tax bill (you cannot make a part payment to meet this threshold);
  • you already pay tax through PAYE, for example you’re an employee or you get a company pension; and
  • you submitted your paper tax return by 31 October or your online tax return online by 30 December.

HMRC will automatically collect what you owe through your tax code if you meet these three conditions unless you have specifically asked them not to (on your tax return). There are circumstances when HMRC will not collect the monies through your tax code, for example, if you do not have enough PAYE income to cover he debt.

If you would like to consider paying your self-assessment bill in this way for the 2023-24 tax year, you have until 30 December 2024 to file your online self-assessment returns to have the monies collected in the 2025-26 tax year starting on 6 April 2025. If you qualify to have your tax debt coded out then this is a good reason to deal with your tax return obligations as soon as you can, after the end of the relevant tax year. 

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 29-01-2024

Do you need to tell HMRC about additional income?

There is an online tool that allows taxpayers to check if they need to notify HMRC about additional income. The online tool can be found at www.gov.uk/check-additional-income-tax.

This could include money earned from sources such as:

  • selling things, for example at car boot sales or auctions, or online;
  • doing casual jobs such as gardening, food delivery or babysitting;
  • charging other people for using your equipment or tools; and
  • renting out property or part of your home, including for holidays (for example, through an agency or online).

In most cases, these types of income are taxable. However, there are two separate annual £1,000 tax allowances for property and trading income. If you have both types of income, you can claim a £1,000 allowance for each. The online tool will indicate if this is relevant.

Where each respective allowance covers all the individual’s relevant income (before expenses) the income is tax-free and does not have to be declared. Taxpayers with higher amounts of income will have the choice, when calculating their taxable profits, of deducting the allowance from their receipts, instead of deducting the actual allowable expenses. 

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 29-01-2024

Do you need to register for self-assessment?

There are a number of reasons why you might need to complete a self-assessment tax return. This includes if you are self-employed, a company director, have an annual income over £150,000 and / or have income from savings, investment or property.

The £100,000 self-assessment threshold changed for taxpayers taxed through PAYE only. The limit increased from £100,000 to £150,000 with effect from 6 April 2023.

Taxpayers that need to complete a self-assessment return for the first time should inform HMRC as soon as possible. The latest date that HMRC should be notified is by 5 October following the end of the tax year for which a self-assessment return needs to be filed.

HMRC has an online tool www.gov.uk/check-if-you-need-tax-return/ that can help you check if you are required to submit a self-assessment return.

You are required to submit a self-assessment return if any of the following apply:

  • you were self-employed as a ‘sole trader’ and earned more than £1,000 (before deducting items available for tax relief);
  • you were a partner in a business partnership;
  • you received a total taxable income of more than £150,000 in 2023-24 (£100,000 in 2022-23);
  • you were obliged to pay Capital Gains Tax when you sold or ‘disposed of’ an asset that increased in value; or
  • you had to pay the High Income Child Benefit Charge.

You may also need to file a tax return if you have any untaxed income, such as:

  • money from renting out a property
  • tips and commission
  • income from savings, investments and dividends
  • foreign income
Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 21-01-2024

Reminder to claim the Marriage Allowance

The marriage allowance applies to married couples and those in a civil partnership where a spouse or civil partner does not pay tax or does not pay tax above the basic rate threshold for Income Tax (i.e., one of the couples must currently earn less than the £12,570 personal allowance for 2023-24).

The allowance works by permitting the lower earning partner to transfer up to £1,260 of their personal tax-free allowance to their spouse or civil partner. The marriage allowance can only be used when the recipient of the transfer (the higher earning partner) does not pay more than the basic 20% rate of Income Tax. This would usually mean that their income is between £12,571 and £50,270 for 2023-24. For those living in Scotland this would usually mean income between £12,571 and £43,662.

Using the allowance, the lower earning partner can transfer up to £1,260 of their unused personal tax-free allowance to a spouse or civil partner. This could result in a saving of up to £252 for the recipient (20% of £1,260), or £21 a month for the current tax year.

If you meet the eligibility requirements and have not yet claimed the allowance, then you can backdate your claim as far back as 6 April 2019. This could result in a total tax break of up to £1,256 if you can claim for 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23 as well as the current 2023-24 tax year.

HMRC’s online Marriage Allowance calculator can be used by couples to find out if they are eligible for the relief. An application can then be made online at GOV.UK.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 15-01-2024

Less than one month to tax return filing deadline

A new press release from HMRC has highlighted that 49,317 taxpayers took the time to file their tax returns online over the New Year holiday. It is estimated that over 6.5 million taxpayers have already filed their tax returns for 2022-23. This leaves almost 5.7 million taxpayers that are yet to file.

The deadline for submitting a 2022-23 self-assessment tax returns online is 31 January 2024. You should also be aware that payment of any tax due should also be made by this date. This includes the payment of any balance of self-assessment liability for the 2022-23 plus the first payment on account due for the current 2023-24 tax year.

If you miss the filing deadline then you will usually be charged a £100 fixed penalty which applies even if there is no tax to pay, or if the tax due is paid on time. If you do not file and pay before 1 May 2024 then you will face additional daily penalties of £10 per day, up to a maximum of £900. If the return still remains outstanding further higher penalties will be charged after six months and again after twelve months from the filing date. There are also additional penalties for late payments amounting to 5% of the tax unpaid at 30 days, 6 months and 12 months.

HMRC’s Director General for Customer Services, said:

‘The clock is ticking for those customers yet to file their tax return. Don’t put it off, kick start the new year by sorting your Self-Assessment. Go to GOV.UK and search ‘Self-Assessment’ to get started start today.’

If you are filing online for the first time you should ensure that you register to use HMRC’s self-assessment online service as soon as possible. Once registered, an activation code will be sent by mail. This process can take up to 10 working days. 

We would encourage our readers to complete their tax return as early as possible to avoid any last-minute stress as the 31 January 2024 filing date is fast approaching.

Source:HM Revenue & Customs| 08-01-2024