AUTUMN BUDGET 2024
Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered her Budget on Wednesday 30 October 2024. She pledged to 'invest, invest, invest' to drive growth and 'restore economic stability'.
Billions in tax rises
Ms Reeves said the Budget will raise £40 billion in taxes. Employers' National Insurance contributions (NICs) will be increased from next April while Capital Gains Tax rates will rise with immediate effect. Inherited pensions will fall within the Inheritance Tax net from April 2027 while reliefs applying to agricultural and business assets will be reformed. The Chancellor also confirmed the introduction of VAT on private school fees and the abolishment of the tax regime for non-UK domiciled individuals.
Protecting living standards
Ms Reeves said she would protect living standards by unfreezing the thresholds on Income Tax and employee NICs from 2028 while she extended the cut in Fuel Duty for another year. The Chancellor also pledged a decade of 'national renewal' with increased funding for schools and the NHS. Further spending announcements included housing, transport and the aerospace and automotive sectors.
PERSONAL TAX
Tax bands and rates
The basic rate of tax is 20%. For 2025/26 the band of income taxable at this rate is £37,700 so that the threshold at which the 40% rate applies is £50,270 for those who are entitled to the full personal allowance.
The basic rate band is frozen at £37,700 until April 2028. The NICs Upper Earnings Limit and Upper Profits Limit will remain aligned to the higher rate threshold at £50,270 for these tax years as well. The government has suggested that, from April 2028, these limits will then be uprated in line with inflation.
For 2025/26 the point at which individuals pay the additional rate of 45% is £125,140.
The additional rate for non-savings and non-dividend income will apply to taxpayers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The additional rate for savings and dividend income will apply to the whole of the UK.
Scottish residents
The tax on income (other than savings and dividend income) is different for taxpayers who are resident in Scotland from that paid by taxpayers resident elsewhere in the UK. The Scottish Income Tax rates and bands apply to income such as employment income, self-employed trade profits and property income.
In 2024/25 a new 45% rate was introduced, making six Income Tax rates which range between 19% and 48%. The rates and bands for 2025/26 will be announced in the Scottish Budget on 4 December 2024. Scottish taxpayers are entitled to the same personal allowance as individuals in the rest of the UK.
Welsh residents
Since April 2019 the Welsh Government has had the right to vary the rates of income tax payable by Welsh taxpayers (other than tax on savings and dividend income). For 2024/25 the tax payable by Welsh taxpayers is the same as that payable by English and Northern Irish taxpayers. The Welsh rates for 2025/26 will be announced in the Welsh Budget on 10 December 2024.
The personal allowance
The Income Tax personal allowance is fixed at the current level of £12,570 until April 2028. The government has suggested that, from April 2028, it will then be uprated in line with inflation
There is a reduction in the personal allowance for those with 'adjusted net income' over £100,000. The reduction is £1 for every £2 of income above £100,000. This means that there is no personal allowance where adjusted net income exceeds £125,140.
The government will uprate the married couple's allowance and blind person's allowance for 2025/26.
The marriage allowance
The marriage allowance permits certain couples to transfer £1,260 of their personal allowance to their spouse or civil partner.
Comment
The marriage allowance reduces the recipient's tax bill by up to approximately £250 a year. To benefit from the marriage allowance one spouse or civil partner must normally have no income or income below the personal allowance for the year. Since the marriage allowance was first introduced there are couples who are entitled to claim but have not yet done so. It is possible to claim for all years back to 2020/21 where the entitlement conditions are met. The total tax saving for all years up until 2023/24 could be over £1,000. A claim for 2020/21 will need to be made by 5 April 2025.
Tax on savings income
Savings income is income such as bank and building society interest.
The Savings Allowance applies to savings income and the available allowance in a tax year depends on the individual's marginal rate of income tax. Broadly, individuals taxed at up to the basic rate of tax have an allowance of £1,000. For higher rate taxpayers the allowance is £500. No allowance is due to additional rate taxpayers.
Savings income within the allowance still counts towards an individual's basic or higher rate band and so may affect the rate of tax paid on savings above the Savings Allowance.
Some individuals qualify for a 0% starting rate of tax on savings income up to £5,000. However, the rate is not available if taxable non-savings income (broadly earnings, pensions, trading profits and property income, less allocated allowances and reliefs) exceeds £5,000.
Tax on dividends
Currently, the first £500 of dividends is chargeable to tax at 0% (the Dividend Allowance). This £500 is retained for 2025/26.
These rules apply to the whole of the UK.
Dividends received above the allowance are taxed at the following rates for 2025/26:
- 8.75% for basic rate taxpayers
- 33.75% for higher rate taxpayers
- 39.35% for additional rate taxpayers.
The Corporation Tax due on directors' overdrawn loan accounts is paid at 33.75% and remains unchanged.
Dividends within the allowance still count towards an individual's basic or higher rate band and so may affect the rate of tax paid on dividends above the Dividend Allowance.
To determine which tax band dividends fall into, dividends are treated as the last type of income to be taxed.
Pension tax limits
For 2025/26:
- The Annual Allowance (AA) is £60,000.
- Individuals who have 'threshold income' for a tax year of greater than £200,000 have their AA for that tax year restricted. It is reduced by £1 for every £2 of 'adjusted income' over £260,000, to a minimum AA of £10,000.
- The Lump Sum Allowance, which relates to the general maximum that may be able to be taken as a tax-free lump sum, is £268,275.
The IHT changes on pensions discussed later may also lead many to re-evaluate their pension planning.
Individual Savings Accounts
For 2025/26, the limits are as follows:
- Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) £20,000
- Junior ISAs £9,000
- Lifetime ISAs £4,000 (excluding government bonus) and
- Child Trust Funds £9,000.
High Income Child Benefit Charge
The High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) is a tax charge that applies to higher earners who receive Child Benefit or whose partner receives it.
For 2025/26, the income threshold at which HICBC starts to be charged is £60,000. The rate at which HICBC is charged is 1% of the Child Benefit payment for every additional £200 above the threshold. This means that Child Benefit will not be withdrawn in full until individuals have adjusted net income of £80,000 or more.
The government will not proceed with the reform to base HICBC on household incomes as proposed by the previous government.
Non-UK domiciled individuals
Significant changes are made to the tax regime relating to non-UK domiciled individuals. Broadly, from 6 April 2025, changes will be made to replace the remittance basis of taxation, which is based on domicile status, with a new tax regime based on residence. The new regime will provide 100% relief on foreign income and gains for new arrivals to the UK in their first four years of tax residence, provided they have not been UK tax resident in any of the ten consecutive years prior to their arrival.
The protection from tax on foreign income and gains arising within settlor-interested trust structures will no longer be available for non-domiciled and deemed domiciled individuals who do not qualify for the four-year foreign income and gains regime.
Transitionally, for CGT purposes, current and past remittance basis users will be able to rebase foreign assets they held on 5 April 2017 to their value at that date.
Any foreign income and gains that arose on or before 5 April 2025, while an individual was taxed under the remittance basis, will continue to be taxed when remitted to the UK under the current rules. This includes remittances by those who are eligible for the new four-year foreign income and gains regime.
A Temporary Repatriation Facility (the Facility) will be available for individuals who have previously claimed the remittance basis. They will be able to designate foreign income and gains that arose prior to the changes and pay a reduced rate of tax thereon. The funds can then be remitted to the UK with no further tax cost. The Facility will be available for a limited period of three tax years, beginning in 2025/26. The Facility rate will be 12% for the first two years and 15% in the final tax year of operation.
The current domicile-based system of Inheritance Tax will be replaced with a new residence-based system, which will significantly expand the scope of non-UK property brought into UK Inheritance Tax for individuals and trusts.
Overseas Workday Relief will be extended to four years to align with the new four-year foreign income and gains regime and will be subject to a financial limit on the amount of relief that can be claimed, namely the lower of £300,000 or 30% of an individual's total employment income.
EMPLOYMENT
National Insurance contributions
Employees and NICs
From 6 April 2024 the main rate of Class 1 employee NICs is 8%. The employer rate is 13.8%.
The government announced that it will increase the employer rate from 13.8% to 15% from 6 April 2025.
The Secondary Threshold is the point at which employers become liable to pay NICs on an individual employee's earnings, and is currently set at £9,100 a year. The government will reduce the Secondary Threshold to £5,000 a year from 6 April 2025 until 6 April 2028, and then increase it by Consumer Price Index (CPI) thereafter.
The Employment Allowance currently allows businesses with employer NICs bills of £100,000 or less in the previous tax year to deduct £5,000 from their employer NICs bill. From 6 April 2025 the government will increase the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500, and remove the £100,000 threshold for eligibility, expanding this to all eligible employers with employer NIC bills.
The self-employed and NICs
From 6 April 2024 the rates of Class 4 self-employed NICs are 6% and 2%. These rates remain the same from 6 April 2025.
For Class 2 NICs from 6 April 2024:
- Self-employed people with profits of £6,725 and above get access to contributory benefits, including the State Pension, through a National Insurance credit, without paying Class 2 NICs.
- Those with profits under £6,725 and others who pay Class 2 NICs voluntarily to get access to contributory benefits including the State Pension will continue to be able to do so.
Other changes for 2025/26
The government will increase the Lower Earnings Limit (LEL) and the Small Profits Threshold (SPT) by the September 2024 CPI rate of 1.7% from 2025/26. For those paying voluntarily, the government will also increase Class 2 and Class 3 NICs by 1.7% in 2025/26.
The LEL will be £6,500 per annum (£125 per week) and the SPT will be £6,845 per annum. The main Class 2 rate will be £3.50 per week and the Class 3 rate will be £17.75 per week.
Employer NICs relief for veterans
The government is extending the employer NICs relief for employers hiring qualifying veterans for a further year from 6 April 2025 until 5 April 2026. This means that businesses will continue to pay no employer NICs up to annual earnings of the Veterans Upper Secondary Threshold of £50,270 for the first year of a veteran's employment in a civilian role.
National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage
The government has announced increased rates of the National Living Wage (NLW) and National Minimum Wage (NMW) which will come into force from 1 April 2025. The rates which will apply are as follows:
| NLW | 18-20 | 16-17 | Apprentices | |
| From 1 April 2025 |
£12.21 | £10.00 | £7.55 | £7.55 |
The apprenticeship rate applies to apprentices under 19 or 19 and over in the first year of apprenticeship. The NLW applies to those aged 21 and over.
Comment
For an NLW worker working 37.5 hours per week, the increases announced today will increase their annual gross pay by £1,505.54 and their monthly gross pay by £125.46.
Taxable benefits for company cars
The rates of tax for company cars are amended for 2025/26:
- The charge for zero emission cars rises from 2% to 3%.
- The charge for other cars increases by 1%.
- The maximum benefit of 37% remains.
The government has confirmed increases to the benefit in kind rates for company cars for tax years up to and including 2029/30.
Car fuel benefit charge
The government will uprate the car fuel benefit charge by CPI from 6 April 2025.
Treatment of double cab pick-up vehicles
The government will treat double cab pick-up vehicles (DCPUs) with a payload of one tonne or more as cars for certain tax purposes.
From 1 April 2025 for Corporation Tax, and 6 April 2025 for Income Tax, DCPUs will be treated as cars for the purposes of capital allowances, benefits in kind and some deductions from business profits.
The existing capital allowances treatment will apply to those who purchase DCPUs before April 2025. Transitional benefit in kind arrangements will apply for employers that have purchased, leased, or ordered a DCPU before 6 April 2025. They will be able to use the previous treatment, until the earlier of disposal, lease expiry, or 5 April 2029.
Company vans
The government will uprate the Van Benefit Charge and the Van Fuel Benefit Charges by CPI from 6 April 2025.
Mandating the reporting of benefits in kind via payroll software
The government confirms that the use of payroll software to report and pay tax on benefits in kind will become mandatory, in phases, from April 2026. This will apply to income tax and Class 1A NICs.
Tackling tax non-compliance in the umbrella company market
To tackle the significant levels of tax avoidance and fraud in the umbrella company market, the government will make recruitment agencies responsible for accounting for PAYE on payments made to workers that are supplied via umbrella companies.
Where there is no agency, the responsibility will fall to the end client business.
This will take effect from April 2026. The measure will protect workers from large, unexpected tax bills caused by unscrupulous behaviour from noncompliant umbrella companies.
Ending contrived car ownership schemes
The government will publish draft legislation relating to loopholes in car ownership arrangements, through which an employer or a third party sells a car to an employee, often via a loan with no repayment terms and negligible interest, then buys it back after a short period.
This arrangement means those benefiting don't pay company car tax, which other employees pay, and so this measure will seek to level the playing field.
The changes will take effect from 6 April 2026.
Taxation of Employee Ownership Trusts and Employee Benefit Trusts
The government is introducing a package of reforms to the taxation of Employee Ownership Trusts and Employee Benefit Trusts.
These reforms will prevent opportunities for abuse, ensuring that the regimes remain focused on encouraging employee ownership and rewarding employees.
The changes will take effect from 30 October 2024.
Clarification of taxable status of Statutory Neonatal Care Pay
The government will legislate to clarify the Income Tax treatment of Statutory Neonatal Care Pay. This will ensure the payment is liable to Income Tax and ensure consistency with the tax treatment of other statutory maternity and paternity pay schemes.
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