Deferring your state pension will lose your income tax exemption
Newsletter issue – October 2026Earlier in the year, the then Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, promised that pensioners who rely solely on the state pension will not pay income tax, but this exemption will not apply to those who defer their state pension. The state pension is expected to rise by over £500 next year, taking it above the £12,570 personal…
Read MoreHMRC reviewing over 100,000 tax calculations due to system error
Newsletter issue – October 2026HMRC is manually reviewing 107,000 tax calculations from the 2025-26 tax year after taxpayers complained that they had been overcharged. The underlying fault has existed for years - first acknowledged in 2021 - and still hasn't been fixed. The error affects how tax-free allowances are allocated across different income types, including earnings, pensions, savings interest,…
Read MoreNew scheme for those with Loan Charge liabilities
Newsletter issue – October 2026HMRC is writing to households with outstanding Loan Charge debts, offering a new Settlement Scheme that can cut liabilities by up to £70k. The scheme aims to reduce most customers' bills, and around one-third may end up paying nothing at all. It applies to UK residents who used 'disguised remuneration' or loan schemes - arrangements…
Read MoreFamily heirlooms could reduce your inheritance tax liability
Newsletter issue – October 2026Certain family heirlooms, artworks, manuscripts, collections, land, or historic estates can significantly reduce - or even eliminate - inheritance tax (IHT) if they qualify as items of national importance and are kept under specific HMRC schemes. These objects of outstanding national, scientific, historical, or artistic importance are known as 'pre-eminent items'. These items can reduce…
Read MoreOctober Questions and Answers
Newsletter issue – October 2026Q: I'm in a marriage where one of us is not earning and one still is. If we move money between our personal savings accounts, who is treated as earning the interest income to work out the tax? A: As the accounts are not joint, HMRC treats the movement of money between spouses' personal savings…
Read MoreOctober Key Dates
Newsletter issue – October 20261st Corporation Tax payments are due for companies with a year-end of 31st December. 19th For employers operating PAYE, this is the deadline to send an Employer Payment Summary (EPS) to claim any reduction on what you’ll owe HMRC. It is also the deadline for employers operating PAYE to pay HMRC by post, for September…
Read MoreArchived Tax Tips and News