By Lyndsey Hall
At this time of year we think about New Year’s resolutions. It is also a good time to start planning your tax affairs before the end of the tax year on 5th April.
- An obvious tax planning point would be to maximise your ISA allowances for the 2020/21 tax year (currently £20,000 each).
- You might also want to consider increasing your pension savings before 5 April 2021 as the unused annual pension allowance is lost after three years.
- For those looking to do some inheritance tax planning, it would be a good time to review (or make) your Will.
Pension planning for 2021
For most taxpayers the maximum pension contribution is £40,000 each tax year, although this depends on their earnings. This limit covers both contributions by the individual and by their employer.
Note that the unused allowance for a particular tax year may be carried forward for three years and can be added to the relief for the current, but then lapses if unused.
Hence the remaining pension allowance for 2017/18 will lapse on 5 April 2021 if unused.
Note that there are rumours that pension tax relief may be restricted in the next Budget. Under the current rules, the net after tax cost of saving £4,000 in a personal pension for a higher rate taxpayer is £3,000. HMRC then add a further £1,000 to your contribution and there is a further £1,000 relief when your tax liability is calculated, thus the value of your pension pot would be £5,000, for a net cost of £3,000. Remember that pension fund investments can go down as well as up, but a 40% fall would be unlikely.
If you’d like to discuss your Year End Tax Planning with an advisor, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
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