In the 2015 UK Budget delivered on the 18th March 2015, the Chancellor George Osborne announced the following tax and financial measures;
- an increase in the personal tax allowance to £10,800 (2016), and to £11,000 (2017);
- abolishment of Employer’s National Insurance for employees under 21, and for apprentices from 2016;
- abolishment of Class 2 NIC for the Self-Employed from April 2016;
- abolishment of the annual Self-Assessment Tax Returns from next year to be replaced with a new online Digital Tax Return;
- increase in annual ISA to £15,240 per annum allowing flexibility to withdraw and re-invest ISA monies without losing tax benefits;
- a cut in the Lifetime Pension Allowance from £1.25m to £1m;
- the first £1,000 received on savings from 1 April 2016 is to become tax-free;
- a new Diverted Profit Tax for multinationals on ‘artificially diverted profits’ to be brought in from April 2015;
- a restriction on Entrepreneurs’ relief to those disposing of genuine business interests only;
- a review of Inheritance Tax avoidance through the use of Deeds of Variation;
- the introduction of new penalties for professionals assisting with tax evasion;
- a new Help to Buy Isa where for every £200 saved, the government will top up by £50 to help build up a deposit for first-time buyers.
- “more generous" tax credits for TV and film, expanded support for video games industry and new tax credit for orchestras, and a consultation on tax support for local newspapers.
Please click here to find out more detail about the budget.
For detailed information and advice on how these measures may affect you, please speak to your usual Beavis Morgan partner.