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New Tax Year Planning Pt. 1
March 26, 2019

In the first of two posts about tax planning, ahead of the new tax year, we look at how you can use salaries, dividends and pensions to maximise tax-free income.

Salaries

You may think this is a strange one to put in for tax planning, but it is an obvious one, and sometimes we all miss the obvious. The main thing to remember about personal allowances is use it or lose it – it’s that simple.

In the current year we get a personal allowance of £11,850 which is the amount we can earn without paying any tax. If you have your own company, and you or your spouse haven’t used your allowances for the year, it is worth thinking about taking an amount as a salary to use these allowances up. After all, if you don’t, it means some tax-free money has gone.

Dividends

As with the above, if you are a shareholder of your own company, think about taking £2,000 in dividends, as this would be tax-free. Please ensure however that you have profits of at least this amount, as dividends should only be taken out of net profits.

You should even look at the possibility of taking out more than £2,000 if the company can afford it, as dividends over £2,000 are taxed at 7.5% for those in the 20% tax bracket (a saving of 12.5%) and at 32.5% for those in the 40% tax bracket (a saving of 7.5%). The same warning as before still applies however; the company must be making equivalent profits.

Pension Income

If you are taking a pension income and your fund could stand you taking out more and this amount is available tax-free, i.e. by taking up to £11,850, then why not? You should always maximise the tax-free element – even if you extract it and put it in the bank – as at least you are not paying tax on it. Don’t forget this applies per person, so if you are married, your spouse can do the same.


If you would like to find out more information or would like help with any aspect of tax planning mentioned, please contact Money Advice & Planning Ltd on 0345 241 1808 or e-mail us at enquiries@mapfinances.co.uk.

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