Wokingham Accountants
Accountancy may not strike everyone as exciting, but it is fast moving. We’ll keep you informed about issues we think may be of interest or relevance to you.
It is easy to make mistakes when completing your VAT return. However, where mistakes are made, it is important to correct them. This is fairly straightforward to do. Four-year window You can correct errors in your next VAT return if the error was made in the preceding four years and it is either less than … Read more
The tax exemption for trivial benefits is a useful one as it allows employers to provide certain low-cost benefits to employees without an associated tax or National Insurance liability, such as Christmas or birthday gifts. However, not all benefits qualify, and there are some pitfalls to be wary of. What is a ‘trivial benefit’? To … Read more
In an ideal world, everyone’s estate would be distributed according to their wishes. However, where someone dies without making a will, who gets what is determined by the intestacy provisions. The way in which the estate is distributed depends on the value of the estate and whether the deceased is married or in a civil … Read more
Adjusted net income is a key measure of income for tax purposes. It is total taxable income before taking account of any personal allowances and after deducting trading losses, pension contributions and certain tax reliefs, such as Gift Aid. The calculation Step 1 Calculate your net income for the year. To do this you first … Read more
There are many possible situations in which a person may make a loan to a family member, for example, a parent may lend money to an adult child to provide them with a deposit for a property. Where the parent has a personal or family company and there are unextracted profits in the company, it … Read more
Cars are a special case when it comes to capital allowances. While capital allowances may be claimed on cars used in a business, partners and sole traders have the option of using the simplified expenses system instead. Where the cash basis is used, it is not possible to deduct the full cost of the car … Read more
If you are running a business, regardless of whether you operate as a sole trader, in partnership or the business is run as a limited company, you will need to register for VAT if your total taxable turnover in the previous 12 months exceeds the VAT registration threshold of £90,000 or if you expect your … Read more
Employer’s National Insurance rose considerably from 6 April 2025. Not only did the rate increase from 13.8% to 15%, but the secondary threshold also fell from £9,100 to £5,000. This is the amount that an employer can pay before a liability to secondary Class 1 National Insurance contributions arises. For 2025/26, the secondary threshold is … Read more
Employers are able to provide employees with a range of health and welfare benefits without giving rise to a tax charge under the benefits in kind legislation. Employees can benefit from one health screening assessment or medical check-up each tax year free of tax. A health screening assessment is an assessment to identify employees who … Read more
There are various ways to enjoy savings income without paying tax on it. In addition to the personal allowance, basic and higher rate taxpayers benefit from a personal savings allowance. Taxpayers whose taxable non-savings income is not more than £5,000 can also enjoy a zero rate on savings income in the savings rate band. In … Read more
