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SC Tax We create expert tax solutions to complex financial situations.

16/10/2026

Closing your limited company? 📄 A DS01 strikes it off, usually within about 2 months. Take out your money first, because anything left goes to the Crown, and up to £25,000 can usually be taxed as a capital gain.

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15/10/2026

Most companies are set up with the Companies House model articles, and many directors don’t realise what that means for dividends: with a single class of shares, every shareholder receives the same amount per share.

Updating the articles and creating separate share classes, often called alphabet shares, allows dividends to be declared on each class separately. The process usually involves:

- a special resolution adopting new articles
- creating or redesignating share classes
- filing the prescribed particulars of each class with Companies House on forms such as SH01, SH08 or SH10
- declaring dividends by class with proper minutes and vouchers

The flexibility has limits. Dividends still need distributable reserves, and HMRC’s settlements rules can tax dividends on the original shareholder where shares are passed to a spouse or family with little more than a right to income.

Book a Free 15 Minute Consultation via our website: www.sctax.co.uk

14/10/2026

For owners of profitable companies, a holding company structure can be worth considering.

The holding company owns the trading company, and dividends between UK group companies are usually free of Corporation Tax. That can allow you to:

- extract surplus cash from the trading company without personal tax
- separate valuable assets from trading risks
- reinvest in property or new ventures
- benefit from the substantial shareholding exemption on a future sale of a subsidiary
- use group relief for losses

It needs careful set-up, usually a share exchange with HMRC clearance, and the associated companies rules, admin costs and Business Asset Disposal Relief all need thinking through.

Book a free 15-minute consultation by visiting www.sctax.co.uk

Working at sea? You might not pay UK income tax on your earnings. ⚓The Seafarers’ Earnings Deduction can make 100% of yo...
13/10/2026

Working at sea? You might not pay UK income tax on your earnings. ⚓

The Seafarers’ Earnings Deduction can make 100% of your eligible earnings free of UK income tax. You may qualify if:

- you’re employed on a ship, not an oil or gas rig
- your voyages begin or end outside the UK
- you’re resident in the UK or an EEA state
- you’re not a Crown employee, such as the Royal Navy or Royal Fleet Auxiliary

You also need an eligible period of at least 365 days, made up mainly of days outside the UK at midnight. No single trip home can last more than 183 days, and your total UK days can’t be more than half of the days since you first left.

You claim it on your Self Assessment tax return, even if tax has been taken through PAYE. Keep your discharge book, contracts and payslips, and if you’ve missed it before, you may be able to claim for up to 4 earlier years.

Book a free 15-minute consultation with our team via our website www.sctax.co.uk

Own shares in a company? Here’s how dividend waivers work. ✍️Normally, a company must pay the same dividend per share to...
12/10/2026

Own shares in a company? Here’s how dividend waivers work. ✍️

Normally, a company must pay the same dividend per share to everyone in the same share class. A dividend waiver lets a shareholder formally give up their right to a dividend, so others can be paid without everyone receiving one.

To be valid, a waiver must:

- be signed as a deed and given to the company
- be made before the right to the dividend arises: before a final dividend is declared, or before an interim dividend is paid

Done properly, you aren’t taxed on a dividend you’ve waived. But HMRC can use the settlements rules to tax the waived dividend on you anyway, especially where:

- the company couldn’t have paid the same dividend on every share without the waiver
- waivers are repeated year after year
- a spouse, partner or relative benefits
- the people who receive the dividend pay less tax than you

The usual exemption for gifts between spouses doesn’t protect a dividend waiver, so family companies need particular care. Different share classes can sometimes be a better route.

Book a free 15-minute consultation with our team at www.sctax.co.uk

Cashing in an investment bond? Don’t pay more than you need to.When a life insurance investment bond pays out, the whole...
10/10/2026

Cashing in an investment bond? Don’t pay more than you need to.

When a life insurance investment bond pays out, the whole gain is added to your income for that one tax year. A gain built up over many years can suddenly push you into a higher tax band.

Top slicing relief helps. The gain is divided by the number of complete years you held the bond, and that “slice” is used to work out your tax rate. If the slice fits within your basic rate band, there may be no extra tax to pay.

Example: Jane earns £40,000 and cashes in a UK bond with a £50,000 gain, held for 10 years. Without relief, she’d pay around £7,900 in extra tax. With top slicing relief, her £5,000 slice keeps her in the basic rate band, so there’s nothing more to pay.

Good to know:

- UK bonds come with a 20% tax credit, so basic rate tax is treated as already paid
- You can usually take up to 5% a year of what you paid in, for 20 years, without an immediate tax charge
- Timing matters: cashing in when your other income is lower can mean less tax
Book a free 30-minute consultation with our team. Link in bio.

Sold shares this tax year? You may need to report the gain to HMRC, even if you’ve never filed a tax return before.You n...
08/10/2026

Sold shares this tax year? You may need to report the gain to HMRC, even if you’ve never filed a tax return before.

You need to report if:

- your total gains are over the £3,000 annual allowance, or
- you’re registered for Self Assessment and sold more than £50,000 of assets, even if your gains are under £3,000

For 2026/27, Capital Gains Tax on shares is 18% within the basic rate band and 24% above it. Shares held in an ISA or pension are outside the scope of Capital Gains Tax.

If you’d like help working out what to report, book a free 15-minute consultation @ www.sctax.co.uk

06/10/2026

Getting married can be a good time to review how you own your investments.

Spouses and civil partners who live together can transfer assets to each other on a no gain, no loss basis, so there’s no Capital Gains Tax on the transfer. That gives couples real flexibility:

- Selling shares: using both £3,000 annual allowances and a basic rate spouse’s 18% rate can cut the tax bill. In our example, a £20,000 gain costs £4,080 if one higher rate spouse sells, and £2,940 if it’s split first.
- Dividends: each spouse has a £500 dividend allowance and their own tax bands. At the 35.75% higher rate, £10,000 of dividends costs £3,396 in tax, which could fall to nil in the hands of a spouse with no other income.

If you’d like to review your position, book a free 15-minute consultation via our website: www.sctax.co.uk

05/10/2026

YouTuber, streamer or creator? Your tax isn’t standard, and your accountant shouldn’t be either. 🎥

We’re specialist accountants for content creators, working with some of the UK’s best-known YouTubers and streamers.

Here’s where we make a difference:

- VAT done right: YouTube and Google ad revenue is often outside the scope of UK VAT, while UK brand deals usually aren’t.
- Niche expenses: props, costumes, games and filming kit that would normally be disallowed may be allowable if they’re wholly and exclusively for your content.

Every income stream covered: ad revenue, brand deals, memberships and merch, all handled properly.

Book a free 15-minute consultation with our team by visiting our website www.sctax.co.uk

Untaxed income from abroad? If you’re UK tax resident, you’re taxable on your worldwide income and gains.That includes:-...
01/10/2026

Untaxed income from abroad? If you’re UK tax resident, you’re taxable on your worldwide income and gains.

That includes:

- Rent from property overseas
- Interest from foreign bank accounts
- Overseas pensions
- Foreign dividends and investments
- Gains on selling property or shares abroad
- Income from work done abroad

It’s generally taxable as it arises, even if the money never comes to the UK.

If it hasn’t already been taxed through Self Assessment, you’ll usually need to register by 5 October after the end of the tax year and report it on your tax return by 31 January. If you’ve paid tax abroad, you may be able to claim credit for it against your UK bill.

For 2025/26, the deadline to register is 5 October 2026.

Missed it in earlier years? HMRC receives information on overseas accounts from tax authorities around the world. Coming forward before HMRC contacts you usually means lower penalties.

New to the UK? If you weren’t UK resident in any of the previous 10 tax years, you may be able to claim the 4-year foreign income and gains regime.

Book a free 30-minute consultation with our team via www.sctax.co.uk

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