In depth
Tax updates & analysis.
Technical commentary on the issues affecting owner managed businesses, property investors and professional intermediaries.
Pre-letting expenses – what landlords can claim?
Ask most new landlords when their letting business started and they will give you the date the first tenant moved in. HMRC’s own guidance tends to say much…
Read more →Joint tenants or tenants in common: why the way you hold property shapes your tax.
The decision most co-owners never knowingly made. Here is something we see far more often than we would like. Two people buy an investment property together, the conveyancer…
Read more →Your electric company car is still a tax win. Here is how to keep it that way.
When Mr Whitfield moved his twelve-strong sales team into electric cars a few years ago, it felt like the easiest decision he had ever made as managing director.…
Read more →The new cash ISA rules: the lower limit is not the part to watch.
The headlines about the new cash ISA rules have, understandably, focused on the lower limit. Far less has been said about the rules sitting quietly behind it, and…
Read more →Non-resident Landlords Scheme (NRLS) explained.
If you own property in the UK but live abroad, or you rent a home from someone who is a non-resident in the UK, there is a corner…
Read more →Reduced VAT on Long stay accommodations – avoid these mistakes with the 28 day rule.
Are you running hotel, inn, boarding house, or similar establishment which provides long stays? Or maybe you do accounting and VAT returns for such a business? Then it…
Read more →Buying your second home? Don’t forget to nominate your main residence to HMRC.
Many people who own more than one home do not realise that they hold a valuable statutory right, and that failing to exercise it in time can quietly…
Read more →Making Tax Digital for Income Tax: what sole traders and landlords need to know
MTD IT A practical guide to the rules, the thresholds, the deadlines and the penalties. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax is the largest change to the way…
Read more →HMRC information notices: six things worth knowing before you reply.
A practical guide for taxpayers, accountants and advisers, drawing on Dr Robin Garai v HMRC [2026] UKFTT 920 (TC) Few pieces of HMRC correspondence cause more anxiety than…
Read more →Beyond the return: what a late VAT payment really costs, and when an excuse will hold.
For most of us, submitting a client’s VAT return feels like the moment the work is done. Two First-tier Tribunal decisions released on the same day, Long Life…
Read more →Capital gains tax on property: how it works and the reliefs most people miss
Capital gains tax on property confuses tax payers more than almost any other tax. Here is how the calculation actually works, using a £250,000 gain as an example.…
Read more →HMRC Confirms temporary 5% VAT rate for children’s meals and family attractions.
HMRC has published Revenue & Customs Brief 5/26 confirming a temporary reduced VAT rate of 5% for certain children’s meals, children’s admission tickets and qualifying family attractions. Subject…
Read more →Higher rate Stamp Duty on Additional Property – How to claim it back?
Are you buying a second property in the UK? There is a stamp duty cost that catches a surprising number of buyers off guard. When you buy a…
Read more →Ltd Co or Personal – Which is better for Property Ownership?
“Should I buy my next property through a limited company?” is the question I get asked more than almost any other. The honest answer is: it depends, but…
Read more →Stamp Duty Relief – Substance over Form!
If you transfer your old home to a trust or a connected company while buying the second home, can you avoid the 5% surcharge on SDLT? Or if…
Read more →Five expenses landlord always almost forget to claim!
Most landlords claim maintenance expenses, mortgage interest, insurance and letting agent fees. Far fewer claim everything they are actually entitled to. Here are five that regularly get missed.…
Read more →Stamp Duty Relief – When and how to claim it.
Most landlords know you can reclaim the SDLT surcharge if you sell your old home within three years of buying your new one. Far fewer know exactly how…
Read more →Second home – How to get Stamp Duty relief ?
Buying a new home before you have sold your old one? You could be paying thousands of pounds more in stamp duty than you need to. When you…
Read more →Section 24 & Finance cost for landlord Income Tax.
Most landlords know Section 24 exists. Very few understand how badly it hurts them. Before 2020, if your rental income was, say, £30,000 and your mortgage interest was…
Read more →Stamp Duty Group Releifs – hidden risks!
Tax law never stops fascinating. Sometimes a relief that looks straightforward and an easy claim is hiding nuanced provisions capable of serious harm. A client recently approached us…
Read more →UK CIR Rules: Small Oversights, Big Tax Consequences!
Corporate Interest Restriction can directly affect a company or group’s cash tax, financing decisions and even future acquisitions or restructuring plans as well as reported results. If your…
Read more →Can a VAT expert improve your business cash flow?
Cash flow is king for any small business. Can a good tax accountant actually help improve your cash flow? Here is a real example from a client story.…
Read more →MTD IT – Don’t miss the steps.
MTD IT is a genuine change to how landlords and self-employed people manage their tax affairs, and from conversations I had recently with people many are not sure…
Read more →MTD IT – What & When!
If MTD IT applies to you, here’s what it means in practice. From 6 April 2026, you will need to keep all your financial records digitally using approved…
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