High Income Child Benefit Charge 2024/25 update What is the High Income Child Benefit Charge? Child Benefit is a financial benefit provided by the UK government to parents or guardians responsible for raising children. It is paid to eligible families to help with the cost of raising children. The High Income Child Benefit Charge is… Read More

Optimum Director Salary and Dividends 2024/25 – Limited Company Directors When you are trading through your own limited company one of the key tax planning items for you to consider is how much salary and dividends to pay. The advice in this article is aimed towards limited company contractors, freelancers and micro businesses with one… Read More

Self-employed pension tax relief 2023/24 Unlike employees who usually benefit from workplace pension schemes, self-employed individuals have to take responsibility for their own retirement savings. The world of pensions can be a daunting and complicated area and if you’re not sure of anything you should speak with a qualified pensions advisor before making any decisions.… Read More

Company Pension Contributions for Directors 2023/24 update If you work through your own limited company, it can be very tax efficient to have your company make pension contributions directly into your pension scheme. In this article we will explain why this can be tax efficient and how it compares to making personal pension contributions. Please… Read More

Corporation Tax Changes 2023 The rate at which corporation tax is charged on company profits is changing from 1 April 2023 and will no longer be at the fixed rate of 19%. From 1 April 2023 the main rate will be 25% for companies with taxable profits over £250,000. Profits below this level will be… Read More

Optimum Director Salary and Dividends 2023/24 – Limited Company Directors When you are trading through your own limited company one of the key tax planning items for you to consider is how much salary and dividends to pay. The advice in this article is aimed towards limited company contractors, freelancers and micro businesses with one… Read More

Borrowing from your limited company – director loans You are allowed to borrow money from your own limited company but there are various rules and tax traps to be aware of which we discuss in this article. You can’t take a loan from your company indefinitely without causing tax issues (if you could, many people… Read More

Leasing an electric car through a limited company This article is based on the rules in place at the date of publication which was September 2021. We are being increasingly asked by business owners whether it’s tax efficient for them to get an electric car through their own limited company, so we have written an… Read More

Limited company directors and working from home Updated March 2024 If you are running a limited company from a commercial office space, any costs you incur such as rent, business rates, utilities, insurances and service charges will usually be allowable costs for your company which reduce the business profit and therefore reduce the corporation tax.… Read More

IR35 Changes 2021 – April 2021 private sector IR35 update April 2021 saw some sweeping changes to IR35 for the private sector. The underlying principles of IR35 didn’t really change – what changed is who is responsible for the decision as to whether or not an engagement is inside or outside of IR35. Please note… Read More

What are payments on account? We explain when you need to make payments on account to HMRC for your self assessment tax return   We hope you enjoy this article from our archives. As tax rules change a lot over time, the information in this post may not be current, but we hope you still… Read More

Leasing a van through your limited company   Question: “I run a small limited company and am planning to get a company commercial vehicle (van) through my business, but I am unclear on how the tax works, can you explain what tax relief I will get as well as any other tax issues to consider?… Read More

Reclaiming VAT on expenses – What can you reclaim VAT on? This article looks at some of the main rules in relation to reclaiming VAT on your business expenses. Please note that this isn’t a definitive list of rules, and you should always check with your accountant, or HMRC, if you’re in any doubt. This… Read More

Distributable profits and cash I’m a contractor and a sole shareholder/director of my own limited company. There is currently £20,000 in my limited company bank account but distributable profits in my accounting software are showing as a completely different figure. Can you please explain to me how this could be the case?   We hope… Read More

Profit and loss account explained   We hope you enjoy this article from our archives. As tax rules change a lot over time, the information in this post may not be current, but we hope you still find it interesting.   This article is based on the 2018/19 tax rates As a director of a… Read More

Year end accruals and prepayments I run a small PR agency as a limited company and I am just coming up to my first year end which is 30th September 2017. I am a little confused with what income and costs I should be including in my accounts as I have some timing issues around… Read More

Trivial Benefits for Limited Companies   Question – I run a small limited company as a freelance designer where myself and my wife are the only shareholders with no other employees. I read about something called trivial benefits which I believe I can take advantage of, can you explain what these are and how they… Read More

Contractor Travel Expenses Question, Contractor Travel Expenses: I am a limited company contractor and I have been working on an 18 month contract which is based at Cannon Street in the city of London (this was my first contract). My contract is due to finish soon after which I will be taking on a 12 month… Read More

IT contractor closing down a limited company I am an IT contractor and have been trading through my limited company for eight years. I am the sole director and shareholder. I have been offered a role as a full time employee which I am going to accept. I don’t see the need to keep my company… Read More

Understanding a Balance Sheet “I run a small creative business and every year my accountant sends me my tax return and accounts which include a profit and loss account and a balance sheet. I understand my profit and loss account but find my balance sheet a mystery. Can you help me understand what a balance… Read More

Is it possible to treat a garden office as a business expense to get tax relief? Question, I run a small limited company, mainly working from home, and I am considering building a garden office and am wondering if I can claim some or all of the costs as a business expense to save tax?… Read More

What is the best way to claim mobile phone expenses from your limited company? Question, I am an IT contractor trading through a limited company and although I use my mobile phone for both business and personal calls, I don’t currently claim anything from my company because my monthly tariff is so low. I don’t… Read More