Emergency Budget Update
Posted: Friday 28 May 2010
The election is over and a coalition is in place. There is to be an emergency Budget on 22 June, and there may be things which you should be doing before then.
Capital Gains Tax
First and foremost, with regards to CGT the coalition has stated they are seeking “a detailed agreement on taxing non-business capital gains at rates similar or close to those applied to income, with generous exemptions for entrepreneurial business activities”.
But:
- what constitutes a “non-business” asset;
- what will the rate be; and
- when will this come into play?
As it is unlikely that we will have any clear answers before the emergency Budget, we are advising clients to be in touch, to discuss their own personal situation. Much depends on the type of assets you are looking at and generally speaking, although it may be a good option to sell assets now to take advantage of the 18% rate, you should not go ahead with this without thinking of what you might do with the proceeds. As always, tax planning should not be carried out in a panic.
Inheritance Tax
The big rise in the IHT threshold to £1 million is no longer on its way. This means that you now have no option other than to plan for IHT, and you should start planning sooner rather than later.
Morton Fraser’s Private Client Team will all be watching closely on the 22nd June when the details of the emergency budget are announced.
If you have any queries, or would like some advice, we would be pleased to assist.
