The Buzz Blog

Ross Companies is investing £3.6 million to expand its Ballymena filtration business, backed by a £125,000 grant from Invest NI

The investment takes the workforce from 29 to 54 people. Why the refurbished premises and the new equipment inside it claim completely different rates of tax relief.

Northern Ireland farm fires cost £11.8 million in 2025, and the insurance payout that follows isn't automatically tax-free

NFU Mutual's figures show NI farm fire costs up 73% in a year. What a fire-damaged tractor or shed does to your capital allowances and capital gains position.

HMRC raises late payment interest to 8% after the Bank of England's November rate rise

HMRC's late payment interest rises to 8% and repayment interest to 3%, following the Bank of England's rise to 4%. What it costs, and what to check this week.

HMRC will get the power to take tax debts directly from a bank account from July 2029

From 2029, HMRC can deduct unpaid tax up to £5,000 (individuals) or £10,000 (companies) straight from an account. What changes, and what to do now.

Shaype is investing £2.4 million in a new AI payments project in Belfast, backed by a £536,655 Invest NI grant

Invest NI is putting £536,655 into Shaype's £2.4m Belfast AI payments project. How a research and development grant actually gets taxed.

The second Making Tax Digital quarterly update is due this Saturday, 7 November

HMRC's second MTD quarterly deadline lands 7 November, with no penalty this year. Why that's the exact habit that gets fined from 2027-28.

511 of Greater Manchester's 2,759 accountancy firms have no director under 60

511 of Greater Manchester's 2,759 accountancy companies have no director under 60. What happens to your accounts when your accountant retires.

One in five Northern Ireland accountancy firms has no director under 60

169 of Northern Ireland’s 833 accountancy companies have no director under 60. What happens to your accounts when your accountant retires.

HMRC is consulting on mandatory e-invoicing, and Northern Ireland's cross-border traders already report digitally

HMRC wants views on making e-invoicing mandatory. Why NI businesses trading across the Irish Sea already have a head start.

Savings and rental income get a new, higher tax rate from April 2027

The Budget adds four points onto the tax rate for savings interest and rental profit. Worked numbers on what it costs a saver and a landlord.

The Budget left the £2.5m farm inheritance tax cap unchanged, and Northern Ireland's rising land prices are pushing more farms toward it

NI land hit a record £15,202 an acre in 2025. Worked numbers on how close an average farm now sits to the £2.5m relief cap.

The trading allowance for side hustles rises from £1,000 to £3,000 in April 2027

The Budget triples the tax-free trading allowance for resellers, tutors and dog-walkers. Worked numbers on what it actually saves, and who still needs to file.

The Budget raises the small shop rates threshold to £18,000 and the minimum wage to £13.21 an hour

Business rates relief for small English shops is confirmed, and so is a 3.9% minimum wage rise from April. Worked numbers on which one actually wins for your business.

Today's Budget is expected to raise the minimum wage again, and what it could cost Northern Ireland employers

A Belfast bistro owner's own numbers show what last year's rise cost in pass-through terms. Worked numbers on what a repeat rise could cost a 10-staff NI business, before today's figure lands.

Four ways Labour could raise Budget money without touching income tax, and what each one means for a small limited company

BBC reports four options Healey is weighing before the 28 October Budget: a bigger bank tax, higher gaming machine duty, marketplace VAT collection and welfare cuts. What each actually means for a VAT-registered company.

IPC Mouldings is investing £1.7 million and creating 16 jobs at its aerospace plant in Carrickfergus, backed by £112,000 from Invest NI

Invest NI backed a £1.7m Carrickfergus investment aimed at winning new international business. Worked through: what Northern Ireland's dual market access actually saves on customs paperwork as export sales grow.

Retail sales fell faster than expected in September

ONS data shows retail sales down 0.4% and consumer confidence at its weakest since the Brexit vote, days before the Budget. Worked numbers on what a softer golden quarter costs.

Phorest is creating 25 remote jobs in Northern Ireland for a company based in Dublin, backed by £162,500 from Invest NI

Phorest beat Croatia, Portugal, North America and Estonia to build a remote team in Northern Ireland. Worked through: what the £10,500 Employment Allowance is actually worth as a remote team scales.

Chancellor rules out raising Capital Gains Tax in the Budget

Healey has reportedly ruled out raising Capital Gains Tax in the 28 October Budget. Worked numbers on what equalising it with income tax would have cost on a £120,000 gain.

Foyle Food Group is investing £15 million to automate its Omagh plant, backed by £2.9 million from Invest NI

Invest NI is backing a £15m Omagh automation project with £2.9m. Worked through: why only a limited company gets 100% relief on spend above the £1m Annual Investment Allowance cap.

Handing your business to your children could cost nearly double in tax

Reports say Healey could tax family business handovers to children as income, up to double the current bill. Worked through: what that could cost on a £400,000 handover.

The voluntary Living Wage has risen to £14.10 an hour

The Living Wage Foundation's voluntary rate rose to £14.10 an hour this week, £15.45 in London. Worked through: what moving a five-person team up from the legal minimum actually costs.

Amazon and eBay could be made to collect sellers' VAT at this month's Budget

Reports say marketplaces over the £90,000 threshold would collect VAT at source, to fund business rates cuts. Worked through: what changes for a seller's cash flow and bookkeeping, not their tax bill.

Northern Ireland's small business loan fund has now lent more than £2.4 million to 57 companies since May 2025

57 NI businesses have borrowed through Invest NI's commercial loan fund since May 2025. Worked through: what the average loan costs in interest, and what it's worth off your tax bill.

Invest NI's new Groundwork for Growth grant gives Northern Ireland small businesses up to £15,000 to start selling outside the region

A new £2.3m programme, expected to fund 240 businesses over three years. Worked through: what the average award looks like against a real growth plan.

HMRC wants you to start your Self Assessment return now, three months before the January deadline

A first-year payment on account can turn an £8,432 tax bill into £12,648 due on one date. Worked through: what starting a Budget Payment Plan now, instead of December, does to the weekly amount.

DAERA is sending out the first £15 million of Northern Ireland's farm investment grant this week, with 28 days to accept it

Buy before your Letter of Offer is dated and the grant on that item is gone. Worked through: the cashflow gap and capital allowances on an illustrative slurry store claim.

Bolt has lost its Supreme Court appeal and now owes HMRC £190 million in VAT

A VAT basis can survive two hearings and still be overturned. Worked through: what the same margin-scheme mechanics mean for a much smaller business, in cash terms.

HMRC wants sole traders and landlords earning over £30,000 to sign up for Making Tax Digital now

The £30,000 test is gross turnover before expenses, not profit. Worked through: a landlord who clears the threshold on rent alone despite an £18,000 real profit.

Trouw Nutrition has closed its Belfast production plant, with around 29 jobs lost

29 jobs are gone from Ship Street. Worked through: Northern Ireland's own, higher redundancy pay cap, and what a package over £30,000 costs an employer.

A new £10 million Hospitality Grant Scheme is open to Northern Ireland pubs, cafés and restaurants, with round one closing on 13 October 2026

NI businesses apply through the same UK-wide portal as the rest of the country. Worked through: what a capital grant does to your capital allowances, and what training funding does to your tax bill instead.

Energy bills and diesel prices are both rising before next month's Budget

Ofgem's cap rose 4% and diesel hit a record high the same day. What it actually costs a sole trader, a consumer-facing business and a trade van, with worked figures.

Whitespace Global is creating 40 jobs in Belfast over the next three years, at an average salary of £78,500

The average salary is £78,500. Add employer National Insurance and the real cost of hiring one of these roles is £89,525 — worked through for a smaller NI business too.

Economists say the new national care service needs £18bn a year, and warn tax will have to rise to fund it

A former IFS director and a bank economist both say the pension "double lock" can't fund the plan alone. What a one-point rise in income tax or National Insurance would actually cost three kinds of business owner.

The UK's carbon border tax starts on 1 January 2027 and Northern Ireland is fully in scope

£50,000 of imports in a rolling year is enough to trigger a duty to register — a bar a lot of NI construction and manufacturing businesses will clear without realising it.

Invest NI is funding just over a fifth of Encirc's £700,000 training investment in Fermanagh

The £157,200 Invest NI grant is taxable trading income, not a tax-free top-up — and it's taxed on completely different rules to an equipment grant.

England's newest farm funding scheme ran out of money six hours after it opened

SFI26's second window closed the same day it opened, locking out farmers renewing agreements that expire in 2027. What relying on a first-come scheme means for your cash flow forecast.

Cardiff is now the only Welsh council confirmed to introduce a tourist tax

Gwynedd, Conwy and Anglesey have paused their visitor levy plans after backlash. Registration still starts this autumn regardless — what VAT-registered accommodation businesses need to check now.

Northern Ireland's Trader Support Service moves to a new platform on 20 October

The old TSS platform stops taking new goods movements between GB and NI from 20 October. What to check this week if you move goods, or someone moves them for you.

A Bank of England deputy governor says another interest rate rise is increasingly likely

The MPC held at 3.75% on a 6-3 vote, with two more policymakers signalling they're close to flipping. Worked numbers on what a 0.25-point rise would cost your variable-rate borrowing.

Almost seven million adults have never checked their State Pension forecast, including many company directors

HMRC wants everyone to check their forecast this Pension Awareness Week. For directors on a small salary, the number that decides whether the year counts moved — and most payroll set-ups haven't caught up.

Northern Ireland's AI economy doubled in a year to hit its £200m target two years early

400 NI firms are now actively using AI, up from 198 a year ago — but 45% of businesses still haven't started. What the AI Capability Census means if you're one of them.

95 jobs are gone after rising costs pushed Glens of Antrim Potatoes into administration

The 54-year-old Co Antrim food business found no solvent refinancing option after rising costs hit its cashflow. What the statutory redundancy bill actually costs a Northern Ireland employer.

August borrowing came in billions above forecast, five weeks before the Budget

Debt interest hit £8.8bn in August, the highest for that month since 1997. Worked on what the £8.1bn year-to-date overshoot means with five weeks left before 28 October.

Invest NI is funding about a quarter of Boatyard Distillery's almost £2m expansion

The Fermanagh distillery is investing almost £2m to scale production five times over. Invest NI's £510,000 grant is netted off before any capital allowances are worked out.

Brewdog left £20m unpaid to hundreds of businesses when it collapsed

Administrators say unsecured creditors will get less than a penny in the pound of the £190m they're owed. Worked on what that's actually worth if a bigger customer owes your business money.

Invest NI is funding 18% of three Derry companies' £1.6m growth plan

FoodServe, Phase X Consulting and Creevagh Consulting Engineers are investing £1.6m and creating 21 jobs. Invest NI's £289,989 covers 18% of it — the other £1.3m is the companies' own money.

Invest NI will fund up to £45,000 to help you hire for growth outside Northern Ireland

Ambition to Grow closes 12 noon Thursday 1 October. Worked on two new £27,500 roles: £6,750 in employer NI that the £10,500 Employment Allowance could wipe out entirely — or not, depending on your own payroll.

State pension tax: what it costs if you still work

The state pension is set to top £13,036 and cross the tax-free personal allowance. Worked on what that costs a self-employed person or landlord still trading past pension age: £97.60 a year, with no exemption pledge to help.

Techstart's £30,000 Concept Plus Grant, and how your business structure decides what you keep

Personal allowance freeze: what crossing £50,270 costs you

A survey says 70% want it unfrozen at the Budget. Worked on a director's dividend: £1,250 extra tax on the same £5,000, purely for landing on the wrong side of a threshold frozen since 2021.

How National Insurance cut SDC Trailers' profit by 10% on £194m of turnover

Wales cuts business rates 30% for pubs, hotels and gyms

Permanent from April 2027, replacing the current 15% temporary relief. Worked on a £40,000 rateable value pub: £3,012 a year extra saving — and who actually funds it.

What scrapping Irish whiskey’s 15% US tariff would mean for Northern Ireland distillers

Claridge's posted a £9.7m loss on flat revenue — what payroll costs actually did

Claridge's revenue held at £137.8m but it swung from a £2m profit to a £9.7m loss. Worked on a 20-staff hospitality business: £22,148 a year in extra employer NI and minimum wage costs alone.

Over 800 hospitality businesses want VAT cut to 10% — what a rate change means for your VAT return

Pub chains, restaurants and chefs have told PM Andy Burnham to cut hospitality VAT from 20% to 10% before the Budget. Worked: the tax point rules, Flat Rate Scheme trap and pricing decision if it happens.

What Lakeland’s half-penny August milk price rise is worth on an NI dairy farm

Mayors have capped the new tourist tax at 5% — what it costs a small hotel or B&B

Ten Labour mayors have pledged to cap England's new Overnight Visitor Levy at 5%. Worked on a 20-room hotel: £23,579 a year at a £95 average rate, against £4,964 under Manchester's existing flat-fee scheme.

What Newry’s £3.2 million Invest NI grant does to a tax return

Invest NI is putting £3.2m into First Derivative's new Newry AI centre. Here's how a capital or revenue grant actually affects your tax return.

The £100,000 tax trap is about to catch far more parents — and owner-directors face a different number

Centax says nearly 12,000 parents now hide income under £100k for free childcare, up from 1,100 in 2022. Worked: 62% marginal rate on salary against 48.3% on dividends.

NI gas: 19.2% in Greater Belfast and the West, 9% in the Ten Towns, from 1 October

The Utility Regulator has approved both increases, and both tariffs cover small business customers as well as homes. Worked on a café burning 60,000 kWh — £428 a year of pure geography.

Register for Self Assessment by 5 October to avoid a penalty based on your tax bill

HMRC rebuilt the registration service today — a UTR in 72 hours instead of 15 days by post. The 5 October deadline did not move, and late registration costs 0% to 30% of your tax. Worked on a £6,611.80 first bill.

NI cattle prices: cut the January payment, then average

The Irish steer price is down 103p/kg on the year and GB is 66p/kg ahead. Why your 31 January payment on account is built on the peak year, and the averaging claim the cash basis removes. Worked on 90 finished steers.

HMRC varied or cancelled 73% of the penalties it reviewed

HMRC’s July performance update: 22,168 of 30,307 automated-penalty reviews went the taxpayer’s way last quarter. The review is free, you don’t pay while it runs — and the tribunal odds are the opposite. Worked on a £3,100 penalty stack.

NI bovine TB: how £54m of compensation is taxed

DAERA’s wildlife consultation closes 9 October. Reactor compensation is a trading receipt — spreading relief, the fresh herd basis election, and why the cash basis loses you both. Worked on 24 reactors.

HMRC's £70 pension letters: what employers should do

Around a million low earners are owed a pension top-up because of the scheme their employer picked. The worked figures, the two-minute payslip test, and what to tell your staff before the letter lands.

Company car tax in 2026/27: what an electric car actually costs

Electric is 4% this year, a 130g/km petrol car is 32%. The full sum for a director and the company — benefit in kind, Class 1A, private fuel and capital allowances, worked.

Vaping duty starts on 1 October at £2.20 per 10ml, with extra rules for NI businesses buying EU stock

Most shops here need no approval and can sell unstamped stock until 31 March 2027. Stock arriving from the EU is the exception — it needs an approved warehouse and an EMCS document raised before the goods cross.

Thirty-six Northern Ireland employers named for underpaying staff, twenty of them by less than £100 a head

£147,393 owed to 1,241 NI workers, averaging £118.77 each. The naming threshold is £500. Worked three ways — and why ACAS is the wrong number here.

658 employers named for underpaying the minimum wage, with penalties of 200% of the arrears

£4m of arrears, £7m of penalties, and a £500 naming threshold. Worked through: what a ten-minute unpaid handover costs a fourteen-person business.

Electronic cattle tags reach Northern Ireland on Monday, and farmers pay £600 for the reader

Voluntary bovine EID starts on 7 September, and NI is first in the UK. £1.50 to £2 more per tag, £600 for a reader — worked through on a 130-calf Co. Antrim herd.

Long-term government borrowing hits 5.89% with the Bank Rate at 3.75%

Gilt yields are at a 28-year high before the 28 October Budget. Fixed-rate business lending follows that curve rather than the Bank Rate — and HMRC, at 7.75%, is dearer than both.

How suppliers should treat the £100 heating oil vouchers landing from 9 September

Northern Ireland’s home heating oil voucher reaches 340,000 households. For suppliers the £100 is a sale carrying 5% VAT, and the phones get busier.

Selling to an employee ownership trust now costs £239,268 in tax on a £2m sale

The EOT capital gains relief halved on 26 November 2025. What that costs a Northern Ireland seller, and the DfE-funded feasibility study that models it.

Bank impersonation scams are rising, and the refund rule stops at ten employees

Mandatory scam reimbursement stops at ten employees. What the gap costs a company in £, and the two free controls that close it.

Companies House closes web filing in April 2028, and small companies will have to file a profit and loss

From 1 April 2028 the free Companies House web filing route closes and every set of accounts must go through commercial software in iXBRL. Small and micro companies must include a profit and loss — publishing it is a box you tick. And the rule bites on the filing date, so a 31 July 2027 year end is already caught.

Northern Ireland bans destroying unsold clothes and shoes, catching 360 of its 82,680 businesses

The ESPR ban has applied here since 19 July, and not to a GB-only seller. It bites at 250 staff plus €50m turnover or €43m balance sheet — £42.87m and £36.87m at the ECB’s 27 August rate. Recycling counts as destruction. On £48,000 of end-of-season stock the skip costs £36,675 net; a clearance run costs £9,000.

Selling your business now costs 18% in Capital Gains Tax, £80,000 more on a £1m gain

Business Asset Disposal Relief went 10% to 14% to 18%. HMRC's new data shows claimants jumped 45% to 61,000 as owners rushed disposals to beat it. On a £1.5m gain the rise costs £80,000 — and who is on the share register is worth another £30,360.

Crypto exchanges report to HMRC directly from January 2027, after 17,600 people declared gains

HMRC's first cryptoasset Capital Gains Tax statistics: 17,600 people, £13.8bn of proceeds, £1.38bn of gains, £78,000 average. Worked at 2026-27 rates that average is £16,938 to £18,000 of tax. The Cryptoasset Reporting Framework's first exchange reports land with HMRC by 31 May 2027.

NI hospitality VAT returns to 20% on Tuesday while the Republic stays on 9%

HMRC’s temporary 5% rate on children’s meals and family attractions runs out on 1 September. Worked on a Co. Antrim soft play, holding the £8.50 door price costs £911 a week; holding margin means £9.71. The cross-border gap is on food only — NI is 3 points better on drink.

How DAERA's £13 genotyping payment is taxed depends on your accounting basis

The Bovine Genetics Genotyping Scheme opens 1 September at £13 a genotype from a £16.6m budget. The payment is a taxable trading receipt. Worked on a 198-animal Co. Tyrone herd: £4,524 across both tranches, netting to nil on the accruals basis and to £669 of tax in the wrong year on the cash basis.

An apprentice costs £98,300 over five years, with no employer's National Insurance to pay

A Bilston manufacturer told City A.M. an apprenticeship runs close to £100,000. At statutory minimum rates it is £98,300 over five years — and she is right. But employer NI on an under-25 apprentice is 0%, training is now 100% funded for non-levy employers, and £3,000 of cash payments land from 1 October. Worked year by year.

Go Succeed grants: £4,000 for capital costs, and a mentoring rule that decides who can apply

Go Succeed grants open 1 September, closing midday 13 October — up to £4,000 at 50% of eligible capital costs. The 60% mentoring rule decides who can apply, the eligible list is narrower than it sounds, and nothing may be ordered before a Letter of Offer. Worked on an £8,000 machine: £9,600 out before a penny comes back, £3,240 net cost.

Causeway Coast’s £650,000 capital grant: no capital allowances on the grant-funded share

Causeway Coast and Glens has opened a £650,000 capital grant — £5,000 to £30,000 at up to 70%, closing 5 October. It is paid retrospectively, and under CAA 2001 s532 the grant-funded share carries no capital allowances. Worked on a £42,857 machine: net cost £9,643, well above the £2,143 the funding rate implies.

The Treasury review of how pubs and hotels are valued for rates matters more than the 20% cut

The Treasury has launched a review of how pub and hotel rateable values are calculated, led by Jerry Schurder, reporting March 2027 and feeding the 2029 revaluation. Worked on a £600,000 pub: growing trade by £100,000 adds £1,910 to the bill and hands back 83% of the 20% relief.

The writing down allowance drops to 14% on 1 April, so relief arrives more slowly

The main rate writing down allowance falls from 18% to 14% from 1 April 2026, and a new 40% first-year allowance started on 1 January. Worked on a £180,000 main pool: £7,200 less deduction in year one, £3,811 more tax over three years, and nearly four extra years to clear the tail.

Northern Ireland’s spending power grew fastest in the UK and remains £3,707 a head below average

ONS: real household disposable income per head up 4.1% in 2024, best of the twelve UK regions — off a base of £22,258 against a UK average of £25,965. Worked on a Ballymena coffee shop: the April wage rise costs £8,076, a 22p price rise is worth £10,725.

July's £2.3bn borrowing overshoot and the Budget threshold risk for a 12-person payroll

The ONS says the UK borrowed £1.8bn in July against a forecast £500m surplus, and the Budget is now dated 28 October. Worked on a 12-person payroll: a penny on employer NI costs £3,076 — the threshold costs £3,900, and the Employment Allowance £10,500.

Northern Ireland farm profits passed £1bn, and the tax bill lands on 31 January

DAERA's first estimate puts 2025 farm profits at £1.03bn, up 36% in real terms. Worked: a Co Tyrone beef farm facing £17,561 on 31 January — and £2,815 less if it averages.

HMRC sent 81,000 crypto warning letters last year, and tax is due on each swap

81,172 letters in 2025-26, nearly triple 2024. Worked: a £7,000 bitcoin stake swapped in October 2025 leaves an £8,400 bill on a holding now worth £24,000 — and the loss cannot go backwards.

The Treasury has started handing out rates relief by sector, and some trades are left out

234 booksellers say they were left out of the 20% rates cut given to pubs and clubs from April 2027. Cebr puts their average rise at £4,563 — worked into what that costs a shop, a cafe and a salon.

Your accountant must register with HMRC by 18 November to keep acting for you

HMRC's second tax adviser registration window closes 18 November 2026. What it means if your accountant is in the Republic, and the Northern Ireland carve-out nobody is covering.

Business water bills are rising, and most firms have never claimed the £822.77 allowance

Ofwat has provisionally approved £3.4bn more spending, and NI non-domestic charges already rose 7.9% in April. Three allowances most small businesses never claim.

Northern Ireland payrolls grew and paid 5.4% more while UK payrolls shrank

NISRA's August report: NI payrolled employees up 1.1% while the UK fell 0.3%, and NI pay up 5.4% against the UK's 4.2%. What that does to your wage bill.

India halved its whiskey tariff, but customers of unregistered exporters still pay 150%

The UK-India deal has been live since 15 July, but the cut only reaches your customer if you registered first — and NI exporters hold two EORI numbers.

What a 2% monthly fall in house prices does to a landlord's numbers

Rightmove reports the biggest August fall since 2018 — worked through on one rental: tax absorbs a quarter of a price fall, and £5,475 comes off what you can borrow.

Company cars move onto the payroll in April 2027 as the P11D is switched off

Mandatory payrolling starts 6 April 2027 for cars, fuel, vans and medical cover — worked on one director, one EV and three medical policies, plus the 50% trap.

NI packaging now follows EU law while GB packaging follows UK rules

PPWR applied in NI on 12 August and not in GB. NI producers now sit in two packaging regimes at once — worked on a 180-tonne Mid-Ulster food producer.

When your adviser gets it wrong, who actually pays?

Brompton is suing its former tax advisers. HMRC bills you first — worked: a £144,000 duty error costs £187,920 to £209,520, about 18 months of profit.

175 jobs in Ballykelly, 60 at risk in Belfast: what NI's AI split means for your cost base

TES is at 175 staff from a team of two; Rapid7 is cutting 12% globally. For most NI owners AI arrives as a variable cost — worked.

NI output grew in July while new orders fell and costs rose fastest in the UK

Activity back to 51.4, but new business is 47.8 and backlogs 45.4 — NI is burning its order book. Plus the fastest cost inflation of 12 UK regions, worked.

HMRC will sign up sole traders and landlords for Making Tax Digital from September, after 436,000 filed

864,000 were in scope for the first MTD quarterly update and 436,000 filed. From September HMRC signs up the gap itself — worked, why waiting doubles the November job.

Stormont's £39m capital grants, and why a grant-funded machine gets no capital allowances

£27.4m of the Local Growth Fund is capital, and capital grants are taxed by the opposite mechanism to resource ones. Worked: why a 40% grant is worth 30%.

HMRC petitioned to wind up a Mayfair hotel, and the legal threshold is £750

A £30.5m hotel and a two-van plumbing company reach a winding-up petition through the identical section of the identical Act. Priced: what a £48,000 VAT bill costs if you sit on it.

A million people came to Belfast for the Fleadh, and some traders crossed the VAT threshold

The Fleadh brought over a million people through the city centre and an estimated £53m. The VAT threshold is a rolling twelve-month test — here’s the arithmetic, and the 30 September deadline it may have just started.

The two Tax-Free Childcare rules that stop most company directors

Dividends don’t count towards the earnings test, and £100,000 is a cliff not a taper. Priced: what the classic £5,000 director’s salary really costs you.

The 26.5% marginal corporation tax rate

Between £50,000 and £250,000 of profit, every extra pound costs 26.5p — not 19% and not 25%. The maths, the associated company trap that quietly costs £1,875 a year, and what to do before your year end.

Invest NI’s £20,000 innovation grant opens Monday with a real support rate of 58%

£5,000 to £20,000 at a 70% rate, applications 10 August to 4 September. But it’s paid in arrears, the costs are ex VAT, and you cannot spend a penny before the Letter of Offer.

HMRC told the software firms what's going wrong with MTD

HMRC's July note to software vendors lists exactly how a first quarterly update fails — including one that goes through and leaves the obligation open. Today is the deadline.

An NI tribunal awarded £20,500 after a hotel changed a verbally agreed working pattern

A Fermanagh hotel changed a receptionist's agreed three-day week in the interests of "fairness". The tribunal found the verbal arrangement was contractual — and the change was indirect sex discrimination.

What HMRC's proposed legal duty to correct old errors means for your business

Draft legislation would make failing to correct an error you already know about count as deliberate behaviour — a six-year exposure becomes twenty. The worked numbers, and the window that's still open.

How Palantir paid 8% UK corporation tax, and the part any company can use

Palantir paid £2.1m of UK corporation tax on over £25m of profit. Of the two mechanisms behind that, one is closed to you — and one had its eligibility limits raised on 6 April this year.

Mayors get a share of income tax from 2028, with no change to your rate

Regional mayors get a share of income tax from April 2028 and business rates from April 2027. Rates don't change — but a ten-person business with premises sits on about £50,000 of tax its council is about to have a stake in.

What to do in the 12 weeks before the Budget on 28 October

What is already law for 2026-27, what a £990 rate change has already cost the average owner-director, and the five things worth doing before Budget day.

HMRC is posting 1.8 million Simple Assessment letters, and directors taking dividends should expect one

HMRC is sending 1.8 million Simple Assessment (PA302) letters for 2025-26.

Scotland's 48p top rate may be raising nothing as directors switch to dividends and pensions

New HMRC outturn data suggests the 48p rate is costing about £22m. The mechanism — dividends and pensions sit outside Holyrood's reach — is worth four figures to owner-directors anywhere in the UK.

What to check now accountants have to register with HMRC

HMRC's mandatory tax adviser registration is live, rolling out in windows to 31 March 2027. What it is, when your accountant's deadline falls, and three questions to ask.

The 20% business rates cut for pubs and which venues qualify

Pubs, social clubs and live music venues in England get 20% off business rates from next April. The eligibility rules don't land until autumn. What to do now.

Half a million sole traders aren't ready for the MTD deadline

New research says most sole traders don't even know the 7 August Making Tax Digital deadline exists, let alone have software in place. Here's what actually needs doing.

What the pause in hiring means for small businesses

New research says firms are delaying recruitment amid political and tax uncertainty. For a small employer, the answer is knowing your numbers.

What a new hire actually costs (it's more than the salary)

Salary is only the starting point. Employer NI, pension, holiday, kit and ramp-up time all land on top — how to budget for a hire properly.

Management accounts: monthly reports for running a business

Regular, forward-looking financial reports that help you run the business now — what they show and when you need them.

How to price for profit (without just guessing)

A small pricing change flows almost straight to profit. How to price on cost, margin and value — and the mistakes to avoid.

Working on your business as well as in it

The oldest business advice there is, and the hardest to follow. Why owners get stuck in the work — and how to get out.

Performance on Purpose: the thinking behind Buzz coaching

Andy Jackson's coaching approach: build the person, develop the leader, improve the business — so performance serves a purpose.

The three freedoms: financial, time and mind

Owners don't really chase revenue — they chase freedom. The three freedoms of financial, time and mind, and how to build toward them.

How to build a business that doesn't depend on you

If the business can't run without you, what you own is a job. How to reduce owner-dependency through systems, people and letting go.

How to register as self-employed

Earning money working for yourself? A step-by-step guide to registering as a sole trader with HMRC, the deadline and the £1,000 allowance.

How to set up a limited company

Incorporating is quick and cheap — the real questions are whether you should, and what being a director involves. A plain-English guide.

When to register for VAT, and how the Flat Rate Scheme works

The £90,000 threshold, when it's worth registering early, and whether the Flat Rate Scheme suits you — VAT registration in plain English.

Section 24: what the mortgage interest changes mean for landlords

Section 24 changed how landlords get relief on mortgage interest — and why some now pay tax on properties that barely break even.

VAT for online sellers: Amazon, Shopify, OSS and IOSS

Marketplaces, selling to the EU, OSS and IOSS, and stock held abroad — the VAT complexity online sellers need to get right.

How to pay yourself from a limited company: salary vs dividends

Salary or dividends? How to pay yourself tax-efficiently, with the new 2026/27 dividend rates and where directors get it wrong.

Allowable business expenses: what you can claim

What you can claim, what you can't, home office, mileage and the wholly-and-exclusively rule — for sole traders and companies.

Self Assessment: the complete guide

Who needs to file, how to register, the key deadlines, payments on account and penalties — the whole thing, start to finish.

The second Self Assessment payment on account is due on 31 July

HMRC is reminding Self Assessment taxpayers that the second payment on account is due 31 July. Here's what that deadline actually means.

The Battersea Power Station accounting probe and checking a small company's accounts

The FRC is looking into claims that undeveloped land at Battersea Power Station was overvalued by hundreds of millions of pounds.

The economy is stalling — here's why cashflow visibility matters more now

UK growth is expected to flatline again as the Iran conflict pushes up fuel and food costs. Here's why this is exactly the wrong time to be flying blind on cashflow.

Director's loan accounts, explained

Taken money out of your limited company that wasn't salary or a dividend? Here's what a director's loan account is, and why documentation matters.

Payroll for your first hire: what changes

Taking on your first employee changes what's expected of you as a business. Here's what payroll actually involves once you make that first hire.

What actually happens on a discovery call

Booked a discovery call and not sure what to expect? Here's exactly what we cover, what we'll ask, and what you'll walk away with.

Freelancer invoicing: getting paid on time

Late payment is one of the biggest stresses of freelance life. Here's how to invoice in a way that actually gets you paid on time, without awkward chasing.

The real cost of late VAT returns

A late VAT return costs more than a single penalty. Here's what actually adds up when VAT slips, and how Making Tax Digital changes the picture.

How to read a cashflow forecast

Cashflow forecasts don't have to be intimidating. Here's what actually matters when you're reading one, and how to use it to make real decisions.

IR35: inside or outside — what it means

IR35 explained in plain English for PSC contractors: what inside and outside status actually means, who decides it, and why it matters for take-home pay.

Landlord tax: what you can (and can't) claim

A plain-English rundown of what landlords can and can't claim against rental income, and why the answer changes depending on how the property is owned.

What a “dedicated accountant” should actually mean

Every firm says you'll get a dedicated accountant. Here's what that phrase should actually mean in practice, and how to tell if you're not getting it.

Sole trader or limited company: when should you switch?

Not sure whether to stay a sole trader or move to a limited company? Here's how to actually think about the switch, and what changes when you do.

What the OBR's "most alarming yet" report means for your planning

The OBR's latest fiscal risks report makes grim reading for the public finances. Here's what a 50-year forecast should actually mean for your business planning today.

Government targets VAT-dodging online sellers to back the high street

New reforms accelerate the end of cheap-import duty relief and put more scrutiny on online sellers' VAT. Here's what it means if you sell online or run a shop.

5.6 million people now check their tax on an app, so move your bookkeeping off paper too

HMRC says 7.6 million people used its app last year. The direction of travel for tax admin is digital — here's what that means if your business isn't there yet.

The tax gap is 6.4% — and small businesses are the biggest slice

HMRC's 2024-25 tax gap figures put small business non-compliance at the top of the list. Most of it isn't fraud — it's bad bookkeeping.

Five numbers every business owner should know

Profit doesn't tell you the whole story. Here are the five numbers worth checking regularly — and why once a year isn't often enough.

Making Tax Digital: what's changing, and when

MTD is rolling out further over the next two years. Here's exactly who it affects, when it lands, and what you need to have in place.

How to switch accountants

Worried a switch means weeks of chasing and admin? Here's what actually happens when you change accountants — and why it's simpler than you think.

The Value Gap: what it is, and why it matters

Most businesses are leaving money on the table without realising it. Here's how to find out how much — and what to do about it.