Owning property in the UK can create an Inheritance Tax exposure even if you live permanently overseas and rarely visit the UK. The key point is simple. If you own property in the UK from abroad, that property can fall within the scope of UK Inheritance Tax. That does not mean 40% is automatically payable… Read more »
The way an acquisition is financed can be just as important as the business being bought. A carefully negotiated structure may reduce the amount of external borrowing required, improve cash flow and make a transaction more workable for both buyer and seller. For buyers considering an acquisition, the starting point should not always be a… Read more »
Family Investment Companies were once regarded as a specialist planning tool, but that is changing. With frozen Inheritance Tax thresholds, higher investment taxes and pensions moving into the IHT net from April 2027, more families are looking for ways to pass wealth down without surrendering control too early. A Family Investment Company, or FIC, can… Read more »
The Government may have promised not to raise the main taxes on working people, but that does not mean your pension, property, investments, business or estate are protected from change. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has refused to rule out tax rises, saying the UK is in a “challenging position”. Chancellor John Healey will deliver his… Read more »
Owning more than one limited company can have Corporation Tax consequences that are easy to miss. The associated company rules can reduce the profit thresholds at which Corporation Tax increases and may also bring quarterly instalment payments into play much earlier than expected. For family businesses, this is particularly important. Companies owned by different relatives… Read more »
Selling through Deliveroo, Just Eat, Uber Eats and Amazon can make reaching customers easier, but the VAT position behind those sales is not always as straightforward as the money arriving in your bank account. Platform commissions, refunds, discounts, delivery charges and timing differences can all affect the figures. HMRC may identify a discrepancy, but that… Read more »
We have covered the dispute between Property118, Cotswold Barristers and HMRC throughout. The latest decision is an important victory for the promoters, but it does not settle whether the underlying tax planning works. The First-tier Tribunal has cancelled the Scheme Reference Numbers issued by HMRC. Landlords should still be clear about what was decided, what… Read more »
An Inheritance Tax bill can place an historic house, important landscape or valuable collection at risk of being sold or broken up. Conditional Exemption offers an alternative for certain nationally important assets. It can allow qualifying property to pass on death or by lifetime transfer without an immediate Inheritance Tax charge, provided strict conditions are… Read more »
Setting up a holding company in Dubai can sound like an easy way to reduce UK tax. However, incorporating a business overseas does not automatically move its income outside the UK tax system. Where the owners, directors and decision makers remain in the UK, an offshore company may offer little or no tax advantage. The… Read more »
Many property investors and homeowners assume that building work is automatically subject to VAT at 20%, but this is not always the case. Certain conversions, renovations and disability adaptations may qualify for VAT at 5% or even 0%, meaning that an incorrect invoice could cost thousands of pounds more than necessary. Understanding the correct VAT… Read more »
