An Early Spring Clean for your finances

I thought I would offer some thoughts on the things you should be doing as you recover from Christmas and before the new tax year begins even though we are few months away from April.

ISA’s

• It is an allowance which if not used each tax year is lost.  (Currently £20,000)
• You can mix up allowance between a Cash and Stocks & Shares ISA if that helps.
• Remember you can convert a Cash ISA’s into Stocks & Share ISA or vice versa, as they transferred they retain their historical ISA status.
• ISA’s are a very useful products when investing for the short, medium and long term.
• You can decide the risk structure for your investments.

Gifting

• If you want to gift from your estate then you have multiple options.
• You have a £3,000 ‘Gift Allowance’ each year, plus you can carry forward any unused annual gift allowance from the previous year, but only 1 years’ worth.
• Gift £250 to anyone you like.
• You also have marriage gift allowances.

Pension Savings

• Investing in a Pension plan benefits from tax relief at the rate you pay income tax.
• There is a ceiling on how much you can invest each year as an individual, currently £40,000.
• Yes you can, if available and appropriate, carry forward previous year’s unused relief – but it is wise to seek advice on how this is calculated first.
• Even if you are someone who does not pay any tax you can invest up to £3,600 into a pension and still benefit from tax relief – many of my clients do this for their children and grandchildren.

Final Tip - 2018 wishes

• Have fun and create 2 or 3 wishes for 2018 – everyone tends to undertake resolutions and sadly fail – I recommend you create ideas on things you want to not what you should do.
• Write them down on a card for example and display them, on the fridge door or somewhere prominent so they keep reminding you to make them happen.
• (Life is not a rehearsal).

These are just a few tips or hints.  We do suggest it may be wise you seek advice before undertaking any major steps with your finances.  In a collection of recent reports it has shown that taking Independent Financial Advice potentially adds value to the decisions you make in the long term.  It could help you plan and undertake the appropriate steps which are relevant to your circumstances and requirements.

The value of your investment can go down as well as up and may not get back the full amount you invest.  Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.  Tax Treatment depends on your individual circumstances and are subject to change.

12 Jan 2018

« Back to latest news