The end of tax year checklist

Jessica Amodio
Partner

After a difficult couple of years, it's important to consider what steps to take at the end of the tax year, to ensure you are making the most of tax reliefs available.

Use up your ISA allowance

You can save up to £20,000 this tax year in an ISA, which is completely tax free. Use your allowance before 5th April, as you cannot carry forward the allowance to the next tax year. This can be either cash or stocks & shares.

Top up your pension

Consider making a lump sum contribution into your pension. The allowance is between £3,600 and £60,000 gross, depending on your earnings. Even a small lump sum can make a difference to your pension pot in the long run. Personal contributions attract tax relief at your marginal rate of tax, which gives even more of a boost.

Maximise your personal allowance

When you earn over £100,000, your personal allowance is reduced. In effect, this means any earnings between £100,000 and £125,000 are taxed at 60%! Consider paying more into your pension pot to bring you below this bracket, and you'll get your tax back.

Transfer your marriage allowance

This applies to married couples, where one is a basic rate taxpayer and the other is a non-tax payer. The non-tax payer can share some of their personal allowance, to reduce their spouse's tax bill by £250. You can apply online via the government website, and backdate claims for previous years too.

Get tax relief on donations

If you've made charity donations during this tax year, higher and additional tax payers can get extra tax back on donations at 20% and 25%. Make sure to add charity donations to your tax return to claim this back.

Check child benefit status

This tax year, child benefit starts to reduce when you earn over £50,270. Consider making a pension contribution to reduce your income below this level, which will reinstate your child benefit.

This article isn’t personal advice. If you’re not sure whether a course of action is right for you, ask for financial advice.