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The maximum annual investment limit for Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) will remain at £20,000 for 2018/19 (of which, for eligible investors, £4,000 may be saved in a Lifetime ISA). Although the investment limit is not rising in the new tax year, a couple will still be able to add up to £40,000 to their ISA accounts during the year – a substantial investment limit – and the interest received will be tax-free.

The maximum investment limit for Junior ISAs will rise from 6 April 2018 to £4,260, so there…

Recent government statistics indicate that out of four million eligible couples, around half are still not benefiting from the income tax Marriage Allowance (MA). The allowance was first introduced in April 2015, which means that a backdated claim made in 2017/18 could be worth up to £662. It’s worth checking to make sure claims are made, where appropriate.

In brief, Marriage Allowance is a way for couples to transfer a proportion of their individual Personal Allowance between them in a tax-efficient manner. Where a couple satisfies the following criteria, it…

Draft regulations, together with a draft explanatory memorandum and a draft VAT Notice, covering required changes to the VAT regime under the Making Tax Digital (MTD) project were published for consultation in December 2017. The consultation runs until 9 February 2018, and it is expected that live pilot testing will then begin in spring 2018.

With this in mind, the Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) has recently been urging software houses and HMRC to identify MTD-compliant software packages urgently to allow businesses to make an informed decision on which…

The new Fulfillment House Due Diligence Scheme will open for online applications on 1 April 2018. From that date, businesses in the UK that store any goods imported from outside the European Union (EU) owned by, or on behalf of, someone established outside the EU, will need to apply for HMRC approval if those goods are offered for sale. The deadline for applications from existing businesses falling within the scope of the scheme is 30 June 2018, and there are penalties for late applications. For businesses that commence…

In the Scottish Budget, which took place on 14 December 2017, Scotland’s Financial Secretary, Derek Mackay, announced that two thirds of income taxpayers will pay less next year on their current income. However, new bands of income tax were also announced, which will see taxes rise for Scottish taxpayers in the middle income bracket.

The Draft Budget 2018/19 proposes a progressive income tax policy which protects low earning taxpayers through the introduction of a new Starter Rate of tax.

It was also confirmed that a new intermediate rate of tax of 21%…