April 2020 Newsletter | Cylchlythyr Misol Ebrill 2020
The new tax year started on 6 April 2020 and we have already completed and submitted a few tax returns. The start of the new tax year brings further change to those with rental properties.
- Higher rate taxpayers who are landlords can only claim mortgage interest relief at the basic rate of 20%, leading to higher tax on rental profits.
- Lettings relief, previously worth up to around £10,000 on the sale of a rental property, has been withdrawn.
- Capital gains tax must be reported and paid within 30 days of the date of completion. We have already arranged one submission on behalf of a client.
Will reviews are available and the signing and witnessing of wills is now often done over garden walls.
As a result of a fall in the value of assets, individuals who have inherited assets such as property or stocks/shares may be able to claim an inheritance tax rebate.
Due to the lockdown, a 6-month extension has been granted to your vehicle's MOT expiry date if this expiry date is on or after 30 March 2020.
Sky Sports and BT Sport have allowed customers to either 'pause' their subscriptions or claim bill credit, where customers contact them directly.
New scams to be aware of:
- HMRC stating that a tax refund is due because of the Coronavirus, where the scammers want your bank details.
- An organisation stating that an individual has been seen out of the house on 2 occasions in a day and is thus liable for a fine of £100-£200 which should be paid immediately, with dire threats.
- An email appearing to be from Tesco.com offering free shopping vouchers, again where the scammers want your personal details.
Universal Credit applications have exceeded 1,000,000 since the lockdown, therefore if you are an applicant, please be patient.
Ask Huw & Aled: is it true that up to £1,000,000 can now be left tax-free by a married couple?
An individual can leave £325,000 tax-free and a married couple £650,000 between them. In addition, the residential nil rate band has now been increased to £175,000 per individual (£350,000 for a couple) and is available when the family home is left directly to children or grand-children.
Thus, if the family home is left to children and grand-children, there is potential inheritance tax relief of £1,000,000.
