Tax year end hints and tips

April’s an important month in the tax calendar and come 5th April, one tax year closes, and another opens. In preparation, it’s important to check you’ve been as tax efficient as possible and ready yourself for the new tax year.

The final months of a tax year can provide some great opportunities for maximising your company’s tax efficiency. As we’re speeding towards the end of this tax year, we thought we’d share our five top actions to help you make the most of the current tax year and prepare you for the next:

 Maximise your dividends

Now is the perfect time to draw dividends in order to take advantage of the 2017/18 tax allowances

 Top-up your pensions

You can ‘top-up’ your pension to maximise your personal annual pension allowance

 Check your IR35 status

Your IR35 status (which can vary from contract to contract) determines your tax position with HMRC. It’s important to understand the definition and your personal risk of being defined as a ‘disguised employee’

Unsure about IR35? Download our IR35 eBook.

If you have an active PAYE scheme, you can also:

 Review your final salary payments

Before the last payslips of the tax year are submitted to HMRC, check to see that your annual salary aims have been met

 Get to know your personal tax code

Ensuring your tax code is correct and up to date means you won’t end up over or underpaying tax.

Remember, you’ll need to complete these actions before 5th April.

Best of luck for the new tax year!

You can read more about these and other actions you can take to make the most of the tax year in our handy guide. If you’ve got a grasp on the basics, why not take a look at our Tax Optimisation Strategies eBook. Have a question? Don’t hesitate to contact us.