Jeremy Hunt has announced the Spring Budget on 6th March 2024. As always, a lot of different areas were covered, with some promises to benefit the average working individual. However, the announcements were slightly underwhelming and nothing was announced that was too surprising.
Here’s an overview of Hunt’s speech.
Tax and income support
- National Insurance has been cut by 2% for both employed and self employed people. It means the rate will now be 8% for employed and 6% for self employed people. This will be effective from 6th April 2024
- Non-dom tax regime is being abolished and will be replaced with new rules from April 2025
- The threshold to repay child benefit is being increased to £60,000 from April 2024. It will be a sliding scale of repayment up to an income of £80,000 for one parent. There is to be a consult to assess this repay for household incomes rather than one individual.
- £5,000 “British ISA” tax allowance for individual savers to invest in UK-listed companies
- Longer repayment period for people on benefits taking out emergency budgeting loans from the government
- £90 fee to obtain a debt relief order scrapped
- Government fund for people struggling with cost of living pressures to continue for another six months
Cigarettes, vapes and alcohol
- Freeze on alcohol duty, which had been due to end in August, to continue until February 2025
- New tax on vaping products to start in October 2026, following a consultation
- Existing tax on tobacco to increase, to maintain the “financial incentive to choose vaping over smoking”
Transport and Energy
- Fuel duty frozen again, with the 5p cut in fuel duty on petrol and diesel, due to end later this month, kept for another year
- “Windfall” tax on the profits of energy firms, which had been scheduled to end in March 2028, extended until 2029
- Air passenger duty, the tax paid on flights, to go up for business class tickets
Housing
- Higher rate of capital gains tax paid on profits from selling residential property cut from 28% to 24%
- Furnished Holiday Let regime is being abolished, which means they will be treated the same as standard rentals from an income tax and capital gains tax perspective.
Business and investment
- Threshold at which small businesses must register to pay VAT raised from £85,000 to £90,000 from April 2024
- Tax reliefs for touring and orchestral productions, which had to been due to end in March 2025, made permanent
- Covid-era government loan scheme for small businesses extended until March 2026
If you are wondering how these changes may affect you or your business, please feel free to get in touch with the Turas team by clicking here.