🟣🟢 100 days...

🌅 Hello there…

In this week’s Financial Stuff:

• 🐶 Puppy training

• 🎯 Company year end Planning - ✅ 3 things

• 🤔 What was working once…

So let’s get started…👉

Have I mentioned that I’m getting a puppy…?🐶 

Well, Sunday is pick up day and the whole family is super excited for the arrival of Ottie, our 8 weeks old Red Fox Labrador Retriever.

I’ve promised myself that I’m going to do my very best to ensure that she is properly trained to be really well mannered and obedient…

So naturally I’ve been doing my research and thinking and planning what I will need to do in the days, weeks and months ahead to achieve this.

I’ve had dogs before but this time around I’m more conscious of just how much ‘free’ information is available online.

It can feel overwhelming.

And all I want is to know what is the most effective way to get the job done properly.

Which is exactly what many people I talk to say about all the information and financial ‘advice’ they find online.

With enough time and motivation and interest everyone can design and implement an effective financial strategy and plan.

But usually the key factor here is TIME.

I’ve mentioned before that I’m a big fan of the Dan Sullivan principle of ‘Who, not How’

In the case of my precious puppy, I definitely still want to be the Who to actually do the day to day training. I have no desire to delegate that to anyone else.

But I’ve saved myself a lot of time and stress by paying someone to give me a proper step by step plan to follow - that is tried and tested.

Which means that I know exactly what I’ll be doing from day one and 🤞(fingers crossed) if I implement effectively, I’ll get the results I desire.

Watch this space…

🎯BUSINESS OWNERS STRATEGIES
Company Year End Planning Opportunities

In the UK, approximately 31% of companies have their accounting year-end between October and December.

This period is popular as many businesses choose to align their financial year-end with the calendar year, particularly in December, which simplifies tax and financial planning.

So if your company year end is the end of December, that means that you have 100 days left to do some proper planning.

It is essential that you have up to date management accounts in order to make smart decisions before the year end. If you don’t that is definitely number 1 on the to do list!

With that said, here are 3 things to consider…

1. Maximise Company Pension Contributions

As a business owner, making contributions to your own pension can reduce your company's taxable profit, while also benefiting you personally through long-term savings.

For example, if your management accounts are indicating you’ll have a taxable profit of, say, £50,000 the corporation tax on that could be reduced or wiped out by a one off pension contribution.

Pension contributions are both tax-deductible and a tax-efficient way to draw money from your company and put it into your own pension pot.

Employer pension contributions don't count as salary, or as a taxable benefit, avoiding income tax and National Insurance contributions.

2. Dividend Strategy

Most owners of small businesses who are shareholders take income through salary and dividends.

Before your company’s accounting year end, review and plan your dividend payments.

Dividends attract lower tax rates compared to salary, but ensure they remain reasonable to avoid drawing scrutiny from HMRC.

Planning how much dividend to take before the end of the tax year can help optimise tax efficiency.

Ensure that dividends are declared and documented properly to avoid any challenges from HMRC.

4. Director’s Loan Account

Directors can lend or borrow money from their business, but there are specific tax implications.

If you have an overdrawn director’s loan account, ensure that it is repaid before the company year-end to avoid any additional tax charges, like the Section 455 tax.

Alternatively, if the company owes you money, consider charging interest to benefit from interest deductions.

These strategies, tailored specifically for owner-shareholders, help minimise tax exposure while maximising savings and benefits.

Ideally you want to run them past your accountant to ensure compliance and optimal planning based on individual circumstances.

Some acccountants are better than others at flagging up company year end planning - which is why it’s up to you to start thinking about it well ahead of your year end.

Let me know if you’d like me to deep dive into any of these topics!

🤔 MARKET INSIGHTS
What used to work…

A reminder that there will always be a ‘flavour of the month’ in investment trends.

😎AND FINALLY
This week on Youtube…

In this week’s video I’m discussing some of the speculation about pension changes that we might see in the upcoming Autumn Budget…

Check it out here 👇👇👇

As always, I hope you found this helpful.

If you have any questions at all, drop me a note.

Hilary 😎

P.S Whenever you’re ready there are 2 ways I can help:

• Wondering how much money you need to retire on? Watch here» How much money do I need to retire from my business?

• Feeling overwhelmed and not sure what to do to get financially secure? Book a Discovery call and find out if we can help you

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