The first budget under the new government is incoming on the 30th of October and it seems likely that there will be a lot of major changes to things like Capital Gains and Inheritance Taxes, as well as pension rules.
If, and at the moment it is very much an IF, these changes happen, they may affect many of you and people like you. Fear not, we have your back, here are our five things to think about ahead of the budget (don’t panic, but don’t delay)
1. Review selling your assets and shares ahead of the 30th.
it might not be logical to liquidate everything, so get some good advice.
2. Declare dividends now.
There are strong indications that there will be increased taxes on dividend income, so talk to someone about getting ahead of the curve.
3. Make use of the 25% pension tax free withdrawal if you can.
If you are 55 or over you can currently withdraw 25% of your pension pot as a tax-free lump sum. Again, this might not be right for everyone, it depends on your individual circumstances, but there is a lot of chatter about this being capped or stopped. So again, get some good, personal advice.
4. Make your pension scheme contributions now.
Again, this varies for everyone, but with changes to the rules in the offing it’s a good idea to review your contributions now (after all, it’s rarely a bad time to invest in your future)
5. Do some Inheritance Tax planning. Now.
Again, as with all the above, we have no hard and fast idea exactly what will change in the budget statement (not even Rachel Reeves will know 100% at this stage) but Inheritance Tax seems to be a hot button area, and we always advise people that a small investment in planning now can save a lot of pain (and money) in the future. Now more so than usual.
