TaxDigit

15/08/2026

VAT ALERT: electricity VAT drops to 0% on 1 October 2026 — and it is not just households.

From 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027, qualifying electricity supplies move from the 5% reduced rate to 0%. Worth around £45 a year to a typical household, and timed to land in the October Ofgem price cap.

It also covers care homes and hospices, charities on their non-business use, residential accommodation, academies and housing associations — and any premises using no more than 1,000 kWh a month, which takes in a lot of small shops, salons and village halls.

Electricity only: gas, oil and LPG stay at 5%. Great Britain only: Northern Ireland stays at 5% under the Windsor Framework.

Watch the edges. A bill straddling 1 October should be apportioned, not charged at 5% throughout. A credit note issued after 1 October for earlier supply still carries 5%. It all reverses on 1 April 2027. And none of it reaches your bill if your supplier has no current certificate of qualifying use on file.

Full guide, plus a five-point checklist to run before the October bill lands:
https://taxdigit.co.uk/electricity-vat-zero-rate-october-2026-march-2027/

Talk to our VAT team: 01483 230 777 | [email protected]

Accountants in Surrey explain the 0% VAT rate on domestic electricity from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027 - who qualifies and the straddling-date traps.

10/08/2026

MILEAGE ALERT: the tax-free rate is now 55p per mile — and it is backdated to 6 April 2026.

The first increase in 15 years is now law under the Taxation (Energy and Vehicles) Act 2026.

• First 10,000 business miles: 45p rises to 55p
• Above 10,000 miles: still 25p
• Self-employed simplified mileage: same new rates
• Already reimbursed at 45p since April? That is now an under-payment

55p is a maximum, not a minimum. If your employer still pays 45p, you can claim Mileage Allowance Relief on the difference.

Full guide, including what employers must correct:

https://taxdigit.co.uk/mileage-rate-55p-per-mile-2026-27-backdated-april-2026/

Call 01483 230 777 or email [email protected]

Accountants in Surrey explain the mileage rate rise from 45p to 55p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles, now law and backdated to 6 April 2026.

30/07/2026

VAT ALERT: locum doctors can be VAT exempt - and there is a four-year refund window open.

HMRC published Revenue and Customs Brief 6 (2026) on 17 July 2026, replacing Brief 9 (2025) after the tribunal in Isle of Wight NHS Trust v HMRC.

- GMC-registered locum doctors can fall within the exemption at Item 5, Group 7, Schedule 9 VATA 1994
- It applies even when supplied through an employment business
- No longer limited to out-of-hours GP cover
- BUT allied health professionals, anaesthesia associates and physician associates are excluded

Clinics have been absorbing 20% irrecoverable VAT on locum cover. Suppliers can reclaim up to four years on form VAT652 - subject to unjust enrichment and partial exemption.

Full guide: https://taxdigit.co.uk/locum-doctor-vat-exemption-hmrc-brief-6-2026-refund-claims/

Talk to our VAT team: 01483 230 777 | [email protected]

20/07/2026

STAMP DUTY ALERT: Stamp duty on shares is being replaced. HMRC has published draft legislation for a new Securities Transfer Tax - one digital, self-assessed tax replacing stamp duty and SDRT from 2027.

No more paper stock transfer forms. No more waiting for HMRC to stamp documents. Payment within 30 days (or 14 for electronic settlement). Group relief and reconstruction relief stay - but become self-assessed.

The catch: deals signed before commencement fall under a four-year transitional period. If you are buying or selling a company or reorganising a group, timing now matters.

Full guide on our blog.

01483 230 777 | [email protected]

Accountants in Surrey explain the new Securities Transfer Tax: draft legislation replaces stamp duty and SDRT with one digital tax from 2027, with a 4-year transition.

15/07/2026

BUSINESS RATES ALERT for holiday-let and self-catering owners.

From 24 July 2026, self-catering properties that form part of a wider business — or a complex of 5+ units — no longer need to pass the 70-day letting test to be charged business rates instead of council tax.

Standalone single lets still must hit 140 days available and 70 days let. Get it wrong and you face council tax, plus a possible second-homes premium of up to 100%.

Full guide: https://taxdigit.co.uk/holiday-let-business-rates-70-day-letting-test-exception-2026/

Call 01483 230 777 | [email protected]

Accountants in Surrey explain the new exception to the self-catering 70-day letting test from 24 July 2026 - who now qualifies for business rates.

14/07/2026

TAX ALERT: HMRC wants to freeze the capital on your shares.

A consultation closing 14 September 2026 would:

❄ Freeze capital on shares at the amount originally subscribed
❄ Close the capital-reduction demerger route completely
❄ Scrap the buyback "trade benefit test" — replaced by a 5% holding, 2 years, and you must have worked in the business
❄ Add a 5-year clawback if a departed shareholder comes back

Planning a succession, an exit or a company reorganisation? The rules you'd use today may not be there in eighteen months.

Full guide:
https://taxdigit.co.uk/hmrc-distributions-consultation-2026-freezing-capital-buybacks-demergers/

☎ 01483 230 777 | ✉ [email protected]

Accountants in Surrey explain HMRC’s consultation, closing 14 September 2026: frozen capital on shares, no capital-reduction demergers, new buyback rules.

14/07/2026

VAT ALERT: the Capital Goods Scheme is shrinking from 29 July 2026.

What is changing:
- Computers and computer equipment come out of the scheme completely
- The threshold for land, buildings and civil engineering works rises from £250,000 to £600,000 (excluding VAT)

The catch: it is not retrospective. Anything you bought before 29 July 2026 stays in the scheme and keeps running its 5 or 10-year VAT adjustment - even if it now sits below the new threshold.

If you are planning property works or a big IT spend this year, the date you commit the money decides which rules follow you for the next decade.

We have broken down what changes, what does not, and the 5 things VAT-registered businesses should do now.

Call 01483 230 777 or email [email protected]

Accountants in Surrey explain the Capital Goods Scheme reform from 29 July 2026: computers removed and the land and buildings threshold raised to £600,000.

06/07/2026

📉 A big change is coming to investment ISAs.

From 6 April 2027, HMRC will apply a 22% charge on interest earned on cash held inside non-Cash ISAs (Stocks & Shares and Innovative Finance ISAs) — an anti-circumvention measure from the Budget 2025 ISA reforms.

The background: the annual Cash ISA allowance falls from £20,000 to £12,000 for under-65s (over-65s keep £20,000), and the government wants to stop savers simply parking cash in an investment ISA to get around it.

Key points:
💷 The 22% charge applies to all account holders — regardless of age or income tax band
🔒 Under-65s can't transfer from non-Cash ISAs into Cash ISAs
🚫 You can't hold 100% money market funds in a non-Cash ISA
✅ Genuinely invested money is unaffected — the target is idle cash

There's time to plan ahead. As accountants in Surrey serving clients across the UK, TaxDigit will help you make the most of your allowances before the rules change.

📖 Read the full breakdown: https://taxdigit.co.uk/isa-reform-2027-22-percent-charge-cash-investment-isas/
📞 01483 230 777 • [email protected]

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02/07/2026

HMRC is coming for "till fraud" — and this time it's targeting the software itself. A new government consultation proposes MANDATORY anti-fraud standards for EPOS and MPOS till systems, aiming to stamp out Electronic Sales Suppression (ESS): the deliberate hiding of sales to understate turnover and tax. If you run a retail or hospitality business, this matters. HMRC already holds serious powers — up to £50,000 for making or supplying a suppression tool, and £1,000 plus daily penalties just for possessing one. The consultation is open now and closes 18 August 2026 — a real chance to have your say. Make sure your till records are clean, complete and reconcile to your bank. Our Guildford team can run a health-check and handle any voluntary disclosure. Read the full breakdown on our blog: https://taxdigit.co.uk/electronic-sales-suppression-epos-mpos-consultation-2026/ Call 01483 230 777 or email [email protected] #حسابدار

30/06/2026

📢 Big change ahead for Self Assessment.

HMRC has just opened a consultation on "timely payments" — and from April 2029, around 2.1 million taxpayers with both PAYE and Self Assessment income could start paying their tax in-year, straight from their payslip.

If you're a company director, landlord or high earner, this could reshape your cash flow. Smaller, regular payments instead of one big January bill sounds simpler — but only if your forecast is right. Plan early and you stay in control.

👉 Read the full breakdown on our blog: https://taxdigit.co.uk/timely-payments-self-assessment-itsa-consultation/

📞 01483 230 777 · ✉️ [email protected]
Accountants in Surrey, serving clients across the UK.

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