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Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is payable on the purchase of residential property in increasing portions of the property price above £125,000.

Current rates of SDLT on individual and additional properties are as follows:
– Purchase price up to £125,000 – SDLT rate Zero; additional property rate 3%
– The next £125,000 (portion from £125,001 to £250,000) – SDLT rate 2%; additional property rate 5%
– The next £675,000 (portion from £250,000 to £925,000) – SDLT rate 5%; additional property rate 8%
– The next £575,000 (portion from £925,000 to £1.5m) – SDLT…

I suspect that for Philip Hammond, the last budget seems like it happened mere weeks ago. But the thoughts of employers, employees and of all of us concerned with finances and tax are turning to the Autumn Budget 2017.

Budget predictions are proving to be as difficult as predicting election results, so let’s not venture too far down this route.

However, some of the topics that The Chancellor is going to have to address include workers rights and the rights of those working in the ever-growing gig economy.

The issue of…

If you have been at the helm of your own business for some years, nurturing it from germination to becoming a fruitful concern, your thoughts will, at some point, turn to passing it on – and enjoying the rewards of your hard work.

Long before you start to dream about a relaxing retirement sampling the verdant golf courses of the world, you have another very important duty to perform in order to safeguard the long-term vitality of your business – and to safeguard your nest-egg.

Exiting a business, whether you…

Although Budget 2017 announced that the Government intends to review the rent-a-room scheme, it currently remains a tax-efficient way of letting out a spare room. Broadly, HMRC’s rent-a-room scheme is an optional exemption scheme, which allows individuals to receive up to £7,500 of tax-free gross income (income before expenses) from renting out spare rooms in their only or main home. The exemption is halved where the income is shared with a partner or someone else. Broadly, as long as income is below the annual threshold, it does not…

Over recent years, it has become increasingly popular for employers to allow their employees to work from home, and in doing so, pay an amount to cover any additional household costs incurred. What are the tax implications of such expenses for the employee?

Broadly, no tax liability will arise where an employer make a payment to an employee for reasonable additional household expenses, which the employee incurs in carrying out duties of the employment at home under ‘homeworking arrangements’.

‘Homeworking arrangements’ are arrangements between the employee and the employer under…