Autumn Statement in brief
On 22 November 2023, the UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivered his Autumn Statement. We set out some key announcements below.
Businesses:
- Full expensing deduction originally intended to last until 31 March 2026 is now set to be made permanent. The relief allows companies to claim 100% first year deductions (50% for special rate pool) on qualifying new main rate plant and machinery
- Research and Development Expenditure Credit and the SME schemes will be merged from April 2024 to help simplify the process for businesses
- The Small Business Rates (SBR) relief 75% discount will be extended for a year for the retail, hospitality and leisure sector. The SBR multiplier will also be frozen for a year
Self Employed/Individuals:
- Class 2 NICs currently paid at a flat rate of £3.45 per week by the Self-Employed earning more than £12,570 will be abolished from April 2024
- Class 4 NICs paid by the Self-Employed on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270 will be cut from 9% to 8% from April 2024
- Class 1 contributions for employee will be reduced from 12% to 10% from 6 January 2024
- Those who are Self-Employed or in Partnerships can now either use the cash or accrual basis when calculating their taxable profits
- Individuals whose only source of income that’s taxed under PAYE will not be required to file a Tax Return from 2024/25
National Living Wage:
- Is set to increase to £11.44 an hour for those aged 21 and over. Rates for those aged 18-20 will increase to £8.60
Pensioners:
- State Pension to be increased by 8.5%
Self Assessment reform:
- The government will no longer require individuals with income taxed only through PAYE to file a Tax Return from 2024-25
The Autumn Statement has brought some winners and losers, to find out how it may impact you or your business please get in touch with our team.