Alistair Ross Financial Adviser

31/10/2024

A brief summary of the budget yesterday.

Pensions being liable for inheritance tax from 2027 was the biggest news from what I could see. If you wish to discuss any matters arising from the budget or indeed any financial matters, please feel free to get in touch:

IHT to be levied on defined contribution pensions

Potentially the most impactful change for individual financial plans in this Budget was the announcement that from April 2027, defined contribution (DC) pensions will be included in the assessment for IHT.

IHT threshold freeze extended to 2030

In another hit for IHT, the current nil rate band of £325,000 and residence nil rate band of £175,000 have been frozen for a further two years. Initially set to see inflation-level rises from 2028, this freeze has been extended until 2030.

Capital gains tax rates to increase

As was widely expected, capital gains tax (CGT) will increase. From today, the lower rate of CGT will rise to 18% from the current rate of 10%, and the higher rate will be increasing to 24% from its current level of 20%.

Taxes to increase on to***co, vapes and soft drinks

There were a number of increases announced to duty, with tax on to***co to rise by the Retail Price Index (RPI) plus 2% on an annual basis. Hand-rolled to***co will be hit with a 10% increase in duty this year, and there will be a new flat-rate duty on va**ng liquid introduced from 2026.

Fuel duty to remain frozen while air passenger duty set to rise

However, not all duty is going up, with fuel duty set to stay at its current level and the existing 5p per litre cut also set to stay in place for another year.

And while increased air passenger duty on economy flights will add just an extra £2 to a short haul flight, private jets will see an increase of 50% on duty. The Chancellor noted that this equates to around £450 for a flight to California.

Threshold on personal tax and national insurance to begin to rise from 2028/29

The current thresholds for personal tax and national insurance have been in place since 2022, providing a real time reduction in their level over this time. It had been widely expected that the freeze would be extended beyond the current plan for 2028.

However, Reeves has said that from the 2028/29 tax year, personal tax thresholds will increase in line with inflation.

Employer NI to increase from 13.8% to 15%

While the government has kept their promise not to increase employee NI, it was confirmed that employer NI will be going up from 13.8% to 15%. Perhaps the bigger change was the announcement that the earnings threshold at which employers must pay it is being reduced from £9,100 per year to £5,000 per year.

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Thanks
Alistair

15/07/2023

Rocky & Mick 🥊💪❤️

24/05/2023

Out of office for annual leave.

Return to work Tues 30th of May, at which time I will respond to any enquiries.

22/03/2023

For anyone that is due to hit state pension age between 2037 and 2044

Ministers have delayed plans to raise the state pension age to 68 amid falling life expectancy in the UK, according to reports.

16/12/2022

This is purely for information only, don't shoot the messenger and I don't want any political arguments.

A little know part of the Scottish budget was an added 2% onto the Land and Building Transaction Tax LBTT additional dwelling tax. Now 6% from 4% from today.

In killie talk. If u buy a 2nd property, u will pay a 6% tax on the purchase price. This used to be 4%

Source - savills Estate agencies

09/12/2022

Haven't posted on this in a while but a situation came up today that I think it worth sharing.

A good mate was having a grumble about having to wait 4 weeks to get a Dr's appointment while in some discomfort. I quickly looked into his mortgage protection policy (life cover and critical illness) and as with most insurers he has some additional free benefits one of which was:

Bupa Anytime HealthLine

He promptly got in touch and is now being tended to. A happy lad.

With the NHS reeling at present, it may be worth speaking with you IFA to see if there are any benefits included in any plans they set up for you. Most of the time this can also be used by immediate family as well.

Feel free to get in touch if you wish to review any policies you have. In most cases older style policies won't have such benefits included.

16/12/2021

The Bank of England has raised interest rates to 0 25 per cent in an effort to curb rising inflation

08/09/2021

Topical post given the rise in NI and reasons for it

If you or someone you know has worries about paying care costs feel free to contact me for a free consultation/discussion.

Going by the news, having assets or money over £20k will mean paying for your own care costs in England. This is currently £16-£28k in Scotland on a tapered scale.

16/04/2021

The House of Lords has voted in favour of capping the standard variable rates SVRs charged to mortgage prisoners

30/01/2020

A good article on the benefits of taking good financial advice:

"In What it's worth - Revisiting the value of financial advice data was analysed from the ONS’s Wealth and Assets survey which has tracked the wealth of thousands of people over two yearly “waves” since 2004-06.

The results were startling with those who took financial advice being on average £47,706 better off than those who didn’t. This is split between a £30,991 boost in pension wealth and an increase of £16,715 in other financial assets."

Royal London, in conjunction with the International Longevity Centre recently put a number on how much financial advice is worth to those who receive it. Here, Tom Dunbar elaborates on the findings of