More has been disclosed, leaked, of this year’s Budget announcements than in previous years. But we now have the details and there is a lot to consider. The following Budget summary is split into four sections:

1. COVID-19 related support measures for UK businesses
2. Support for the UK housing market
3. Taxation changes
4. Other announcements

Please call if you need to discuss how these changes may affect your business or tax affairs in the coming months.

COVID-19 related support measures for UK businesses

The Treasury is to continue the two existing major support schemes in an attempt to hold back a significant increase in unemployment rates as business owners grapple with the effects of COVID-19 disruption. Details are set out below.

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme 

This scheme, nicknamed the Furlough Scheme, was due to end 30 April 2021. It is now being extended to 30 September 2021.

The judgement must be that there will be enough control over COVID by autumn 2021 to stimulate demand and give employers more confidence to retain staff. The Chancellor has obviously crunched the numbers and considers employment support in this way a more attractive strategy than increasing unemployment costs.

In more detail:

• For employees, there will be no change to the terms – they will continue to receive up to 80% of their salary, for hours not worked, until the scheme ends.
• Employers will be asked to contribute 10% towards wages for hours not worked from July 2021, rising to 20% in August and September 2021.

Self-Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS)

There has been much criticism of this scheme as it has not been possible for self-employed businesses that commenced trading during 2019-20 to claim.

To counter this, the following changes to SEISS have been announced.

1. All qualifying self-employed businesses can continue to claim SEISS grants if they continue to be adversely affected by COVID lockdown measures. The present scheme was due to end 30 April 2021. This has now been extended to 30 September 2021.
2. Businesses previously excluded from claims because they commenced during the 2019-20 tax year will now be eligible to claim the fourth and fifth SEISS grants as long as their tax return for 2019-20 was filed by midnight 2 March 2021.
3. For the fifth grant claims can be made from July 2021. Self-employed persons whose turnover has fallen by more than 30% will continue to qualify for the 80% grant. Those with decreases in turnover of less than 30% will be restricted to a 30% claim.

Restart grants

£5bn of funding is being allocated for these grants. They will support businesses obliged to close during much of lockdown. The grants will consist of:

• A one-off grant of up to £18,000 for hospitality, accommodation, leisure, personal care and gym businesses in England. 
• Non-essential retail that have tended to open first, can apply for a one-off £6,000 grant.

Business rates holiday continued

This year, government will continue with the 100% business rates holiday for the first three months of the 2021-22 financial year, in other words, through to the end of June 2021 for the retail, leisure and hospitality sectors.

For the remaining nine months of the year, to 31 March 2022, business rates will still be discounted by two thirds, up to a value of £2 million for closed businesses, with a lower cap for those who have been able to stay open.

Exemption for COVID-19 related home office expenses

The temporary Income Tax exemption and Class 1 National Insurance Contributions disregard for employer reimbursed expenses that cover the cost of relevant home office equipment is extended and will have effect until 5 April 2022.

Exemption for reimbursement of antigen test costs

The government will legislate in Finance Bill 2021 to introduce a retrospective Income Tax exemption for payments that an employer makes to an employee to reimburse for the cost of a relevant coronavirus antigen test for the tax year 2020-21.

A new Recovery Loan Scheme

The Recovery Loan Scheme ensures businesses of any size can continue to access loans and other kinds of finance between £25,000 and up to £10 million per business once the existing COVID-19 loan schemes close. This will provide further support as businesses recover and grow following the disruption of the pandemic and the end of the transition period.

Once received, the finance can be used for any legitimate business purpose, including growth and investment.

The government guarantees 80% of the finance to the lender to ensure they continue to have the confidence to lend to businesses.

The scheme launches on 6 April 2021 and is open until 31 December 2021, subject to review. Loans will be available through a network of accredited lenders.

Reduced rate of VAT

The temporary reduced rate of 5% for hospitality, holiday accommodation and attractions will be extended until 30 September 2021. This is a welcome bonus for this sector badly affected by COVID lockdown restrictions.

This will be followed by the introduction of a new reduced rate of 12.5% from 1 October 2021 that will be in effect until 31 March 2022 at which point it will revert to the 20% standard rate.

Other support measures

Other measures outlined in the Budget include:

• Extension of the apprenticeship hiring incentive in England to September 2021 and an increase of payment to £3,000.
• £7 million for a new “flexi-job” apprenticeship programme in England, that will enable apprentices to work with a number of employers in one sector.
• Additional £126 million for 40,000 more traineeships in England, funding high quality work placements and training for 16-24 year olds in 2021-22 academic year.

Support for the UK housing market

Support will include a mortgage guarantee scheme that will help home buyers purchase properties up to £600,000, and an extension to the existing stamp duty holiday that was due to end 31 March 2021.

The detail:

Mortgage guarantee scheme

The government will underwrite 95% of the risk of default. It will apply to home acquisitions up to £600,000 and set deposits required to 5%.

Stamp duty holiday

The present £500,000 threshold for paying Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) was increased on a temporary basis and was due to end 31 March 2021. 

The nil rate band will continue to be £500,000 for the period 8 July 2020 to 30 June 2021. From 1 July 2021 until 30 September 2021, the nil rate band will be £250,000. The nil rate band will return to the standard amount of £125,000 from 1 October 2021. This applies to England and Northern Ireland only. The devolved administrations have not announced any further extension beyond 31 March 2021 when this summary was written on Budget Day.

Non-resident SDLT

A 2% SDLT surcharge, above existing rates, for non-UK residents purchasing residential property in England and Northern Ireland is to be introduced from 1 April 2021. 

Taxation changes

Many of the tax changes announced are for a fixed period, generally, from April 2021 to April 2026. This does provide welcome certainty for businesses. Announcements made include:

Income Tax 2021-22 to 2025-26

The basic rate threshold is increasing to £37,700 for 2021-22 (2020-21: £37,500) and then frozen until April 2026. For the same period, the personal tax allowance is set at £12,570 (2020-21: £12,500) and will apply to all regions of the UK.

Taxpayers who will benefit from annual increases in their earnings up to April 2026 may find themselves paying tax at the higher rates if these increases breach the £37,700 annual basic rate limit.

Regional variations to Income Tax rates apply in Scotland and may apply in Wales.

National Insurance

NIC Upper Earnings limits and Upper Profits limits will also remain at a fixed amount until April 2026 and will be based on the Income Tax higher rate threshold of £50,270.

Starting rate for savings

The band of savings income that is subject to the 0% starting rate will remain at £5,000 for 2021-22.

Lifetime Allowance for pension pots

From April 2021 to April 2026 the pensions lifetime allowance will be frozen at £1,073,100.

Cycle to work scheme change

The government will legislate in Finance Bill 2021 to introduce a time-limited easement to the employer-provided cycle exemption to disapply the condition which states that employer-provided cycles must be used mainly for journeys to, from, or during work. The easement will be available to employees who have joined a scheme and have been provided with a cycle or cycling equipment on or before 20 December 2020.

The change will have effect on and after Royal Assent of Finance Bill 2021 and be in place until 5 April 2022, after which the normal rules of the exemption will apply.

Van benefits for zero carbon emissions

The government will legislate in Finance Bill 2021 to reduce the van benefit charge to zero for vans that produce zero carbon emissions. The change will have effect on and after 6 April 2021.

Capital Gains Tax

Any attempt to align CGT rates with Income Tax rates seems to be off the table for the time being. Apart from anti-avoidance changes, the only announcement on this tax that has general relevance is capping the annual exempt amount. This will be fixed at £12,300 from April 2021 to April 2026 for individuals, personal representatives and some types of trusts for disabled people; and £6,150 for trustees of most settlements.

Corporation Tax

As expected, there will be increases in Corporation Tax, but not yet and only for larger companies. Company owners will be relieved that there are no imminent increases in CT rates until April 2023.

From 1 April 2023, there will be two rates of CT.

• Taxable profits up £50,000 will continue to be taxed at 19% under the new Small Business Profits Rate
• Taxable profits in excess of £250,000 will be taxed at 25%
• Profits between £50,000 and £250,000 will be subject to a marginal tapering relief. This would be reduced for the number of associated companies and for short accounting periods.

Carry back of trading losses

The present provisions that restrict the carry back of tax losses is being relaxed, temporarily, extending the period over which incorporated and unincorporated businesses may carry-back trading losses from one year to three years.

This extension will apply to a maximum £2,000,000 of unused trading losses made in each of the tax years 2020-21 and 2021-22 by unincorporated businesses. The £2,000,000 maximum applies separately to unused trading losses made by incorporated companies, after carry-back to the preceding year, in relevant accounting periods ending between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2021 and a separate maximum of £2,000,000 for periods ending between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022.

The £2,000,000 cap will be subject to a group-level limit, requiring groups with companies that have capacity to carry back losses in excess of £200,000 to apportion the cap between its companies. Further detail on the group limit will be published in due course.

R&D tax credit cap to be introduced

For accounting periods beginning on or after 1 April 2021, the amount of SME payable R&D tax credit that a company can receive in any one year will be capped at £20,000 plus three times the company’s total PAYE and National Insurance contributions liability, in order to deter abuse.

Enterprise Management Incentives

As announced on 21 July 2020, the government will legislate in Finance Bill 2021 to extend the time-limited exception that ensures that employees who are furloughed or working reduced hours because of coronavirus (COVID-19) continue to meet the working time requirements for EMI schemes.

The change will apply to existing participants of EMI schemes and it also allows employers to issue new EMI options to employees who do not meet the working time requirement as a result of COVID-19. This measure will have effect until 5 April 2022.

Major new investment reliefs

A new “super-deduction” and a 50% first year allowance are to be introduced that will allow businesses to increase the tax relief they can claim for qualifying investments in plant and other equipment. It will apply to expenditure between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2023.

The super-deduction will mean that assets will qualify for tax relief based on 130% of the actual cost of expenditure incurred. 

Assets that qualify for the special rate relief will qualify for the 50% first year allowance.

The existing Annual Investment Allowance £1m limit will continue to be available until 31 December 2021. 

Freeports

In an attempt to reposition the UK as a global player a raft of tax incentives are to be provided to the eight freeport locations in England announced in the Budget. They will include enhanced structures and buildings allowances.  

Inheritance Tax

No changes in the present rates and allowances that are all frozen at current levels until April 2026.

This means the nil-rate band will be £325,000 and the residence nil-rate band at £175,000 for this period. 

VAT

There be no changes to the standard 20% rate. 

The £85,000 registration limit and the £83,000 deregistration limit will be frozen until 31 March 2024.

Other announcements

Universal Credits

The recent increase in benefits of £20 per week is to be extended for a further six months.

Working Tax Credit claimants will receive equivalent support via a £500 one off payment.

Duties

There will be no increases in duty on alcoholic drinks or fuel.

Vehicle excise duties will see a small increase in line with the Retail Prices Index (RPI).

Air Passenger Duty long haul rates will also increase in line with RPI as will gaming duty and Landfill Tax.

ISA investment limits for 2021-22

The limits set for 2021-22 are:

• Adult ISAs the limit remains at £20,000
• Junior ISA limit remains at £9,000
• Child Trust Funds remain unchanged at £9,000

National Living Wage increase

The NLW will increase to £8.91 per hour from 1 April 2021.

Visa reforms

There will also be new reforms to the immigration system that will help ambitious UK businesses entice top talent. These reforms will include a new unsponsored points-based visa to attract highly skilled migrants and a new, improved visa process for scale-ups and entrepreneurs.

Help to Grow schemes

Two new Help to Grow schemes are set to launch by the autumn to help support 130,000 small and medium sized businesses. The Help to Grow: Management scheme will help small and medium sized businesses get world-class management training with the government contributing 90% of the cost. 

In addition, the Help to Grow: Digital scheme will help small businesses develop digital skills by giving them free expert training and a 50% discount on new productivity-enhancing software, worth up to £5,000 each.

Single contactless payments

Our final comment on the Budget seems to anticipate a coming consumer spending bonanza. The legal limit for single, contactless payments is increasing from £45 to £100.

Autumn Budget 2018

 

The Prime Minister announced at the Conservative Party conference that the end of austerity was in sight. Recent tax revenues have exceeded expectations, and although there was an expectation that these declarations and indicators would herald a relaxation of fiscal policy, the Chancellor is mindful of the potential fallout next year when we leave the EU, with or without a deal. The Chancellor mentioned he would consider a Spring Budget in the event of a ‘no deal’ Brexit.

 

And so, prudence seems to have directed his thinking.

 

The remainder of this update confirms tax and other changes announced that will affect businesses and other taxpayers from next year.

 

Personal Tax and miscellaneous matters

 

Personal Tax allowance

 

The personal Income Tax allowance for 2019-20 will be increased to £12,500 (2018-19 £11,850). It will remain at this increased level for two years.

 

Changes to personal tax allowances will apply to the whole of the UK.

 

Income Tax bands, rates and the dividend allowance

 

The Income Tax bands for 2019-20 have been increased. They are:

• Basic rate band increased to £37,500 (2018-19 £34,500)
• Higher rate band £37,501 to £150,000 (2018-19 £34,501 to £150,000)
• Additional rate, no change, applies to income of more than £150,000.

As a result, the higher rate threshold will increase to £50,000 from April 2019. There is no change in Income Tax rates and the tax rates applied to dividend income.

 

Changes to these Income Tax bands apply to England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Scottish parliament now set their own Income Tax bandings.

 

Earlier payments of Capital Gains Tax (CGT)

 

UK residents will be required to make a payment on account for CGT due on a residential property sale. The new regulations will also affect disposals by non-UK residents.

 

The changes will apply from April 2019 for non-UK residents and April 2020 for UK residents.

 

Capital Gains Tax Private Residence Relief changes

 

From April 2020, the government intends to make two changes to the Private Residence Relief:

1. The final exempt period will be reduced from 18 months to 9 months, with no change to the 36 months available for those who are disabled or in care homes, and
2. Lettings relief will be reformed so that it only applies in certain circumstances where the property owner is in shared occupancy with the tenant.

CGT Entrepreneurs’ relief

 

Two changes are coming into effect:

1. Claimants must have a 5% interest in the distributable profits and the net assets of the company to qualify, and separately
2. That the minimum period, during which certain conditions must be met to qualify for the relief, is being increased from one to two years.

The first measure will have effect for disposals on or after 29 October 2018.

 

The second measure will have effect for disposals on or after 6 April 2019, unless a business ceased before 29 October 2018.

 

Inheritance Tax: changes to the nil-rate band

 

From 29 October 2018, amendments to the residence nil-rate band will provide certainty as to when a person is treated as “inheriting” property and clarify the “downsizing” rules.

 

Rent-a-room relief change cancelled

 

The expected change to require shared occupancy to qualify for rent-a-room relief is not to be introduced.

 

ISAs

 

For 2019-20, the ISA limit will remain at £20,000. The limit for Junior ISAs and the Child Trust Fund is to be increased to £4,368.

 

Limit on pensions’ savings to be increased

 

The life time limit on pension savings is to be increased in line with inflation to £1,055,000 for the 2019-20 tax year.

 

Stamp duty first time buyers’ relief in England

 

This relief is being extended to cover the purchase of qualifying shared ownership property and will be effective for transactions on or after 29 October 2018 and will be backdated to 22 November 2017.

 

The first £300,000 of an initial share purchased will not be liable to SDLT based on the market value of the property. The remainder of the value over £300,000 will be charged at 5%. No SDLT will be chargeable on the associated lease. Relief is not extended to further shares purchased and will not apply to purchases of property valued at over £500,000.

 

Tobacco duty increases confirmed

 

The rates for duty for all tobacco products increased by inflation plus 2% from 6pm, 29 October 2018.

 

Hand-rolling tobacco also rose by an additional 1% above this increase, to 3% above the RPI from the same date.

 

Duties on beer, wine and spirits

 

There are to be no increases to the duty charged on beers, spirits or cider, except for certain ciders treated as high strength for duty purposes.

 

Wines and high strength sparkling cider drinks will see duty increased in line with inflation from 1 February 2019.

 

Vehicle excise duty

 

The VED rates for cars, vans and motorcycles is due to increase by reference to the RPI from 1 April 2019.

 

Fuel duty increase frozen

 

Duty increase is frozen for the ninth consecutive year.

 

Air passenger duty (APD) increases

 

Travellers should note that APD will increase in line with inflation for long-haul flight passengers only. The new rates will apply from 1 April 2020.

Business Tax changes

 

Corporation Tax

 

Corporation Tax rates to remain at 19% for the financial year beginning 1 April 2019.

 

Employment Allowance reform

 

From 2020, the government will legislate to restrict access to the £3,000 NIC Employment Allowance, to employers with employer NIC liabilities of under £100,000 in the previous tax year. Connected employers will have their contributions aggregated for this purpose.

 

Annual Investment Allowance increased

 

The Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) is to be increased from the present £200,000 to £1m from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2020. It is then presumed that this will return to the £200,000 limit. This should provide a welcome boost to business investment during the Brexit transition period.

 

Please note that not all capital purchases qualify for this relief. Please call for clarification of what is covered if you are considering a significant acquisition.

 

R&D tax credit claims to be restricted

 

From 1 April 2020, the amount of payable tax credit that can be claimed under the R&D SME tax relief scheme will be limited to three times the company’s total PAYE and NIC payments for the period. Any loss that cannot be surrendered can be carried forward and used against future profits.

 

The government will consult with interested parties on this issue.

 

IR35 changes

 

The changes recently made to IR35 arrangements in the public sector are to be rolled out to the private sector. The changes will come into effect from April 2020 and small firms will be exempt. Firms that have concerns that they may be affected should contact us for more details.

 

Car and van fuel benefit charge increases

 

For 2019-20, these will increase by reference to the September 2018 Retail Prices Index.

 

A new 2% digital services tax

 

From April 2020, the major social media, search engine and online retailers will be subject to a 2% tax on revenues generated from UK users of their services. The Chancellor did indicate that if an internationally recognised levy was introduced, that the UK may fall into line in place of this 2% UK tax.

 

At last, rates relief for High Street retailers

 

In a much anticipated announcement, smaller retailers in England, occupying shop premises with rateable values under £51,000, should benefit from a cut of one-third in their business rates bills for 2 years from April 2019.

 

They should also benefit from £675m to be spent on improvements by councils to help transform high streets, the redevelopment of empty shops as homes and offices and the repurposing of old and historic buildings.

 

In a humorous exchange, the Chancellor also announced 100% business rates relief for public lavatories.

 

Plastics tax

 

For those readers who are concerned about the environment they will be pleased to note that the government is to consider introducing a tax on the production and importing of plastic packaging from April 2022.

 

The charge will apply to plastic packaging that does not contain at least 30% recycled plastic.

 

Changes to the apprentices’ levy

 

From April, larger employers will be able to invest up to 25% of their apprenticeship levy to support apprentices in their supply chain. Additionally, some smaller employers will pay half what they currently pay for apprenticeship training: a reduction from 10% to 5%. The government will fund the remaining 95%.

 

Charities small trading exemption increase

 

The limits that exempt small scale trading by charities from UK tax are to be increased to:

• If annual charity income is under £32,000 the trading limit is £8,000.
• If annual charity income is between £32,000 and £320,000, the trading limit is 25% of income.
• If annual charity income is more than £320,000, the trading limit is £80,000.

The changes will apply from 6 April 2019 for unincorporated charities and from 1 April 2019
for incorporated charities.

 

A new structures and buildings allowance (SBA)

 

This will provide tax relief for qualifying capital expenditure on new non-residential buildings where all contracts for the physical construction works are entered into on or after 29 October 2018.

 

Relief will not include the cost of land or dwellings.

 

Tax relief for electric charge points to be extended

 

The present first year allowances available for the installation of electric charge points is to be extended for four years, until the end of the financial year 2022-23.

 

Reduction in tax writing down allowance

 

The special rate of writing down allowance is being reduced from 8% to 6% from April 2019.

 

Supposedly, this is intended to closer align tax depreciation with commercial depreciation rates.

 

Anti-avoidance measures

 

The Finance Bill will contain a number of measures that will continue to improve HMRC’s campaigns to reduce the impact of tax avoidance schemes.

 

Tax to be protected in insolvency

 

From 6 April 2020, the government will change the insolvency rules so that taxes collected on behalf of employees and customers, primarily employees PAYE and NIC and customers VAT, will be treated as a preferential creditor on winding up rather than distributed to other creditors.

 

Company loss relief loop-holes to be closed

 

Most of the changes will apply from April 2019 and will prevent relief for carried forward losses being claimed in excess of that intended by legislation.

 

The changes will include:

• the definition of “relevant profit”,
• the computation of life assurance and annuity business profits,
• the deductions allowance in group situations,
• the calculation of terminal relief,
• the cap on profits against which certain losses may be allowed,
• and other minor considerations.

VAT: reverse charge process to be extended to construction services

 

This change, to extend the reverse charge process to the building and construction industry is due to come into effect from 1 October 2019.

 

This will place the onus for dealing with the VAT charge due on subcontractors’ bills to the main contractor.

 

This will cause accounting rather than cash flow issues for main contractors as they will add entries to their VAT returns to pay the subcontractors VAT, but then deduct the same amount as input VAT on the same return.

 

The aim is to stop subcontractors adding VAT to their bills and then disappearing without remitting the VAT to HMRC.

 

VAT registration threshold – no change

 

The present VAT registration limit (£85,000) and deregistration limit (£83,000) will continue to apply for a further two years; until 31 March 2022.

 

A summary of the Spring Statement will be added later today.

Prospects for growth, especially for productivity have been downgraded, but the Chancellor was bullish in his forecasts for investment and the Government’s intention to sort out the slow pace of house building in the UK. A few non-tax comments of note were:

• Unemployment at its lowest rate since 1975.
• Chancellor is providing an extra £3bn to prepare for Brexit over the next two years.
• Government to create 5 new garden towns, make better use of land and aim to be building 300,000 new homes a year by the mid-2020s.
• Devolved administrations will have more money to spend. An increase of £2bn for Scotland, £1.2bn for the Welsh Government and £660m for the Northern Ireland Executive.

Our summary of a selection of specific tax changes and other budget announcements for 2018-19 and future years follow.

Personal Tax and miscellaneous matters

Personal Tax allowance

The personal allowances for 2018-19 is £11,850 (2017-18 £11,500). According to HMRC, this means that an average taxpayer will pay £1,075 less tax than in 2010-11.

Income Tax bands, rates and the dividend allowance

The Income Tax bands for 2018-19 have been increased. They are:

• Basic rate band increased to £34,500 (2017-18 £33,500)
• Higher rate band £34,501 to £150,000 (2017-18 £33,501 to £150,000)
• Additional rate, no change, applies to income of more than £150,000.

There is no change in Income Tax rates, and the tax rates applied to dividend income. Readers should note that the present £5,000 tax-free dividend allowance will, as previously announced, be reducing to £2,000 from April 2018.

The Scottish parliament sets the basic rate limit for Scotland meaning that higher rate taxpayers may pay more tax in 2018-19.

Marriage Allowance extended

There is a small increase in this allowance to £1,185 from April 2018. This is the amount of unused personal tax allowance that can be transferred between spouses, or civil partners, if the person receiving the transfer is not a higher rate tax payer.

From 29 November 2017, the Government will also allow Marriage Allowance claims on behalf of deceased spouses and civil partners, and for the claim to be back dated four years in appropriate cases.

Offshore trusts

Changes will be made to ensure that payments from an offshore trust intended for a UK resident individual do not escape tax when they are made via an overseas beneficiary or a remittance basis user. This will take effect from April 2018.

Abolishing Stamp Duty Land Tax for certain first-time buyers

With immediate effect, first-time buyers will pay no stamp duty on homes costing no more than £300,000.

First-time buyers of homes worth between £300,000 and £500,000 will not pay stamp duty on the first £300,000. They will pay the normal rates of stamp duty on the price above that. This will save £1,660‎ on the average first-time buyer property.

80% of people buying their first home will pay no stamp duty, but there will be no relief for those buying properties over £500,000.

National Living Wage (NLW) and National Minimum Wage (NMW) increases

From April 2018, the NLW will increase from the present £7.50 per hour to £7.83 per hour.

From the same date, the NMW rates will also increase to:

• £7.38 per hour for 21 – 24 year olds
• £5.90 per hour for 18 – 20 year olds
• £4.20 per hour for 16 and 17 year olds
• £3.70 per hour for apprentices

Fuel duty no change

For 2018, the fuel duty will remain frozen, for the eighth consecutive year.

New railcard for the 26 to 30 age group

No doubt to win back the support of the younger generation, the government will work with the rail industry to introduce a new railcard from Spring 2018.

Duty frozen for most alcoholic drinks

The duty on beer, wine, cider and spirits to be frozen. However, cheap, high strength cider will be subject to a new band of duty from 1 February 2019.

Duty on tobacco products to increase

The duty on cigarettes will increase by 2% above inflation and hand-rolling tobacco by 3% above inflation, with effect from 6pm, 22 November 2017.

Universal Credit (UC) changes

In response to recent adverse publicity the Government has agreed to various changes that are intended to ease the financial hardship for new claimants. They include:

• Households in need, who qualify for UC will be able to access a month’s worth of support within 5 days. This will be funded by an interest free loan that can be repaid over a 12-month period.
• Claimants will be eligible for UC from the day they apply, the present 7-day rule will be scrapped.
• Low-income households affected by areas with higher rent increases will receive an extra £280 on average to meet these higher costs.

Pension lifetime allowance increased

The lifetime allowance will increase to £1,030,000 from April 2018.

Diesel Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) change

From April 2018, the first year VED (car tax) rate for diesel cars that don’t meet the latest standards will go up by one band. The Chancellor emphasises this is cars only, and that the money will go to a new Clean Air Fund.

Business Tax changes

Corporation Tax changes

Although there is no change to the rate of Corporation Tax, maintained at 19%, HMRC is to freeze indexation allowance on corporate capital gains for disposals after 1 January 2018.

£64m for construction and digital training courses

The new funding will be split as to:

• £34m to teaching construction skills, and
• £30m towards digital courses using Artificial Intelligence.

Partnership tax

Legislation has been revised to be more compatible with commercial arrangements for allocating shares of profit, and to avoid additional administrative burdens for taxpayers. The changes will have effect for the tax year 2018-19 and subsequent tax years.

Business rates changes

From April 2018, business rates will rise by any increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rather than the Retail Prices Index (RPI). The change has been brought forward two years. Historically, the RPI has tended to be higher than the CPI.

Rates revaluations will now be undertaken every 3 years rather than the present 5 years. This will start after the next rates revaluation due during 2022.

Pubs with a rateable value up to £100,000 will continue to receive a £1,000 discount next year.

Venture Capital Schemes

Changes are to be made to the Enterprise Investments Scheme, the Seed EIS and Venture Capital Trusts. The aim is to target Venture Capital Schemes on companies where there is a real risk to the capital being invested, and will exclude companies and arrangements intended to provide ‘capital preservation’.

Incentives to encourage VCTs towards higher risk investments will include:

• removing certain ‘grandfathering’ provisions that enable VCTs to invest in companies under rules in place at the time funds were raised, with effect on and after 6 April 2018;
• requiring 30% of funds raised in an accounting period to be invested in qualifying holdings within 12 months after the end of the accounting period, with effect on and after 6 April 2018;
• increasing the proportion of VCT funds that must be held in qualifying holdings to 80%, with effect for accounting periods beginning on and after 6 April 2019;
• increasing the time to reinvest the proceeds on disposal of qualifying holdings from six months to 12 months for disposals on or after 6 April 2019;
• introducing a new anti-abuse rule to prevent loans being used to preserve and return equity capital to investors, with effect on and after Royal Assent of Finance Bill 2017-18.

EIS and VCTs will also see increased limits for investments in knowledge-intensive companies:

The Government will legislate to:

• double the limit on the amount an individual may invest under the EIS in a tax year to £2 million from the current limit of £1 million, provided any amount over £1 million is invested in one or more knowledge-intensive companies;
• raise the annual investment limit for knowledge-intensive companies receiving investments under the EIS and from VCTs to £10 million from the current limit of £5 million. The lifetime limit will remain the same at £20 million; 
• allow knowledge-intensive companies to use the date when their annual turnover first exceeds £200,000 in determining the start of the initial investing period under the permitted maximum age rules, instead of the date of first commercial sale.

The changes will have effect on and after 6 April 2018. This measure is subject to normal state aid rules.

R & D expenditure credit increase

The Government will legislate to increase the rate of the R&D expenditure credit from 11% to 12%, to support business investment in R&D.

This change will have effect on and after 1 January 2018.

Diesel car supplement increase

The diesel car supplement is to be increased from 3% to 4% from 6 April 2018. This will increase the company car tax and car fuel benefit charge (for company cars provided with an element of private use).

This change will apply to all diesel cars registered on or after 1 January 1998 that do not meet the Real Driving Emissions (Step 2) standards.