Use your personal tax reliefs
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 | Capital and the related income can normally be transferred between husband and wife or civil partners without any tax liabilities. Such transfers must be outright gifts and can be made free of both capital gains tax and inheritance tax |
| Consider paying your spouse/civil partner/children a salary for working in your business |
| Consider taking your spouse/civil partner into partnership |
| Consider one-off or recurring donations to charity |
Benefits in kind
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| Keep records of business trips showing the date, mileage, and purpose of trip to satisfy HM Revenue & Customs queries |
| Consider reimbursing your employer for the full cost of private petrol to prevent the car fuel charge applying |
| Remember that no tax is charged on beneficial loans totalling less than £5,000 per employee |
Pensions
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| Check that your pension arrangements are adequate, especially if you are self employed or not in a company scheme |
| There is no limit on the amount that may be contributed to a registered pension scheme. The maximum amount on which an individual can claim tax relief in any tax year is the greater of the individual's UK relevant earnings or £3,600. |
| Employees in a company scheme may consider paying additional voluntary contributions to help boost their final pension, or may consider contributing to any other registered pension scheme. |
| A charge may apply in respect of contributions where an individual has relevant income of £130,000 or more. |
Inheritance tax
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| Review your estate planning strategy |
| Review your Will |
| Consider lifetime gifts to individuals or trusts (gifts to spouses are exempt) |
| Maximise business property relief and agricultural property relief |
| Life assurance policies can be used as a way of making gifts to beneficiaries, and also to build up sufficient money to pay any IHT that may eventually become due |
| The annual £3,000 exemption applies to both husband and wife or civil partners and can be carried forward for one year, but then used only if the exemption for the later year is utilised |
| Other reliefs are: £250 small gift exemption, marriage gifts exemption, and gifts for charities, national purposes, public benefit, and political parties |
Year end tax planning for sole traders, partnerships, and companies
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| This planning centres on the accounting year end rather than the tax year end: |
| Defer income/advance expenditure |
| Companies may defer sales of chargeable assets until after the year end, thereby deferring capital gains |
| Sole traders and partnerships may consider advancing the sale of chargeable assets if current year capital gains annual exemptions have not been used |
| If your business is seasonal, consider changing your accounting date. The tax rules associated with such a change are complex and great care on the selection of an alternative accounting date is required |
| Accelerate bonuses to staff and directors |
| Make extra employers' contributions to pension schemes. A charge may apply in respect of contributions where an individual has relevant income of £130,000 or more |
| If you are thinking of embarking on a new business venture, bring forward the commencement date to offset any initial losses against current year's business profits |
| Gains made on the sale of business assets may be rolled over on certain classes of business asset against purchases of replacement assets. Consider whether you need to bring forward the purchase of a replacement asset to enable this relief to be used |
| Remember the annual investment allowance is claimable on most plant and machinery |
Dividend v bonus
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| For company profits of up to £300,000, it is normally more economical to pay a dividend than a bonus |
| Consider the timing of dividends and bonuses with regard to the personal tax position of company shareholders |
