A SIMPLE GUIDE TO THE BUDGET 2017

Rates and allowances

2017/18 2018/19
£ £
Income tax rates – (non-dividend income)
0% lower rate tax – savings rate only Up to 5,000 Up to 5,000
20% basic rate tax 11,500 to 45,000 11,851 to 46,350
40% higher rate tax 45,001 – 150,000 46,351 – 150,000
45% additional rate tax Above £150,000 Above £150,000
Scottish Income tax rates – (non-dividend income)
0% lower rate tax – savings rate only Up to 5,000 Up to 5,000
20% basic rate tax 11,500 to 43,000 11,500 to 43,000
40% higher rate tax 43,001 – 150,000 43,001 – 150,000
45% additional rate tax Above £150,000 Above £150,000
Personal allowance
Personal allowance 11,500 11,850

The Scottish government budget will take place on 14 December 2017.

Marriage allowance

From 6 April 2018the transfer of £1,185 of a personal allowance to a spouse or partner or deceased partners is available. The inclusion of deceased partners applies from 29 November 2017 and can be backdated 4 years, subject to conditions.

 

 Dividend allowance

The tax-free dividend allowance will be reduced from £5,000 to £2,000 from April 2018. The reduction of the dividend tax free allowance impact is £225, £975 or £1,143 a year depending on whether recipients pay tax at the basic rate, higher rate or the additional rate.

Stamp Duty Land Tax: relief for first time buyers

From 22 November 2017 first time buyers paying £300,000 or less for a residential property will pay no Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT). This measure does not apply in Scotland. SDLT was devolved to Scotland on 1st April 2015. This measure will apply in Wales until 1 April 2018, when SDLT will be devolved to Wales.

 

Portion of consideration Current rates New rate for first time buyers
Up to £125,000 0% 0%
Over £125,000 and up to £250,000 2% 0%
Over £250,000 and up to £300,000 5% 0%
Over £300,000 and up to £500,000 5% 5%

 

Corporation tax

The corporation tax rate will remain at 19% for the 2017/18 and 2018/19 tax years.

Annual investment allowance

The annual investment allowance of £200,000 per annum remains available for companies and for unincorporated businesses.

 Making tax digital

The chancellor announced that the enabling legislation in the Finance (No.2) Act 2017 has been passed. This allows, subject to secondary legislation for HMRC to require businesses to keep records digitally. VAT is the only area mandated to use MTDfB and this is from April 2019.

 VAT 

2017/18 2018/19
£ £
VAT
Standard rate 20% 20%
Registration threshold 85,000 85,000
Deregistration threshold 83,000 83,000

 

A review of VAT thresholds has been announced, with the Chancellor stating that the thresholds will remain unchanged for two years.

Relief from business rates increases

The Chancellor has announced that business rates will rise in line with CPI. This is lower than the inflation rate.

ATED

From 1 April 2018 the charges for the annual tax on enveloped dwellings (ATED) will be increased by 3%. Returns for 2018/19 are to be filed electronically.

 

2016/17 2017/18
£ £
Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED)
More than £0.5m but not more than £1m 3,500 3,600
More than £1m but not more than £2m 7,050 7,250
More than £2m but not more than £5m 23,550 24,250
More than £5m but not more than £10m 54,950 56,550
More than £10m but not more than £20m 110,100 113,400
More than £20m 220,350 226,950

 

IR35
Unsurprisingly, it was announced that HMRC will consult on reforms to IR35 for the private sector. It is unclear if this will look at a more modern approach to self-employment or will keep the assessment used for the public sector which was enacted this year.

Increase in Individual Savings Accounts (ISA) limits
The annual ISA allowance remains unchanged at £20,000.

IHT

The Nil-rate band remains at £325,000. The residence nil-rate band for deaths in the following tax years will be:

  • £100,000 in 2017 to 2018
  • £125,000 in 2018 to 2019
  • £150,000 in 2019 to 2020
  • £175,000 in 2020 to 2021

Interest relief for landlords

Landlords will be able to obtain relief as follows:

Finance cost allowed in full                Finance cost allowed at basic rate

Year to 5 April 2016                100%                                                               0%

Year to 5 April 2017                100%                                                               0%

Year to 5 April 2018                75%                                                                 25%

Year to 5 April 2019                50%                                                                 50%

Year to 5 April 2020                25%                                                                 75%

Year to 5 April 2021                0%                                                                   100%

 Apprenticeships

The annual pay bill and levy rate remains unchanged. A non-levy paying employer will need to co-invest 10% and will benefit from government funding to cover the remaining 90% of the cost. http://www.accaglobal.com/uk/en/employer/recruit-acca-accounting-technician-apprentices.html

Cash accounting

The trading cash basis thresholds for unincorporated businesses will remain at £150,000. The exit threshold is also unchanged at £300,000.

 Disincorporation relief

The current relief will not be extended beyond 31 March 2018.

Taxation of trusts

The taxation of trusts will be subject to a consultation and review in 2018.

Corporation Tax: removal of capital gains indexation allowance

When a company makes a capital gain on or after 1 January 2018, the indexation allowance that is applied in order to determine the amount of the chargeable gain will be calculated up to December 2017.

 R&D

The Research and Development Expenditure Credit rate will increase by 1% to 12% for expenditure incurred on or after 1 January 2018.

 Class 2 and Class 4 NIC

The government has chosen to delay the abolition of Class 2 NICs by a year until 6 April 2019.

Class 4 will remain at 9% and will not be subject to the increases previously announced.

 Landlords

Landlords, now have a choice on deductions in relation to travel expenses as they are now able to use mileage allowances for their property rental businesses

 Diesel cars

The benefit in kind will increase from 3% to 4% with the maximum percentage being 37%.