Hello,
The Autumn Budget is approaching! This week, the Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced the date of the 2025 Autumn Budget and outlined her priorities for it. The possible content of the Budget on 26 November is causing much speculation, and, of course, you will find comprehensive coverage of Budget announcements on rossmartin.co.uk when the time comes.
In other news, HMRC have released their latest property income statistics for 2023-24, showing that income received by unincorporated landlords has reached its highest level in five years.
HMRC have also updated their guidance on claiming personal pension relief via PAYE, and we now know the information requirements that apply from 1 September.
We cover two tax cases this week. In the first, Moses Mukuna v HMRC, a bus driver’s extensive expense claim was denied after the tribunal found evidence of fraud.
The second decision, Archer (UK) Limited v Revenue Scotland, is significant for Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in Scotland, where pre-April 2015 leases have been extended. This decision may open the door for LBTT repayment claims in some cases, subject to any successful appeal against the decision by Revenue Scotland, or amendment to the legislation by the Scottish Parliament.
Finally, please be aware that there will be no SME Tax Update next week while we undertake team training. We will be back on 18 September, as normal.
More news and updates below.
The Ross Martin Tax Team
Online PRACTICAL tax resources for accountants and tax advisers BY accountants and tax advisers.
Next-Day Budget Analysis PDF
The Autumn Budget 2025 is shaping up to be one of the most consequential in recent memory.
Our Autumn Budget Analysis 2025 is a concise, clear summary, branded and ready for you to send directly to your clients. Compiled by our technical team of Chartered Tax Advisers and accounting specialists, it distils the Budget into:
- Persona-based client scenarios
- Expert technical commentary with worked examples and compliance angles.
Secure your copy today from £260 to ensure your client comms are first-rate, timely, and backed by expert analysis.
Quick News
Autumn Budget 2025 Day is 26 November
The Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has announced that the 2025 Autumn Budget will be presented on Wednesday, 26 November 2025.
HMRC publish rental income statistics
HMRC have released their latest property income statistics for 2023-24. The statistics show that property income received by all unincorporated landlords reached its highest point in the last five years, having increased to £55.53 billion, up from £47.44 billion last year.
Update to claiming personal pension relief via PAYE code
UPDATE: HMRC have lowered the threshold for requesting supporting evidence for additional and higher rate taxpayers who claim relief on their personal pension via their PAYE tax code. In addition, claims can no longer be made by telephone. HMRC's guidance has now been updated, detailing the new rules.
Winter Fuel Payment recovery
UPDATE: It was previously announced that eligible individuals would automatically receive the Winter Fuel Payment (WFP) for 2025-26, but it would be recovered by HMRC when a person's income exceeded £35,000. HMRC have published updates on how WFP recovery will work in practice. We take a closer look. Note that the opt-out deadline is 15 September 2025.
Tax Cases
Rats ate bus driver's fraudulent £61k expense claim
In Moses Mukuna v HMRC [2025] TC09619, the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) found that tax relief was not available on extensive employment expenses claimed by a bus driver, due to fraudulent behaviour.
No LBTT charge for extending a lease granted under SDLT
In Archer (UK) Limited v Revenue Scotland [2025] FTSTC 10, the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) for Scotland found that a Minute of Variation to extend a lease originally granted under the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) regime was not a deemed new lease for Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) purposes. No LBTT was due.
Editor's Choice
PRR: Private Residence Relief
What is Private Residence Relief (PRR)? What are the qualifying conditions? Can you claim relief on two homes? How do you claim PRR? Can you claim PRR if you develop your garden?
Land Remediation Relief (LRR)
What is Land Remediation Relief (LRR)? Who can claim LRR and what are the conditions? What happens if LRR creates or enhances a loss?
Guides & Updates
Self-employed
Website and e-commerce costs
What tax relief is there for the costs relating to designing, creating, and maintaining a website, software or e-commerce development?
Directors & Companies
Striking off a company: Step-by-step
What are the steps required to strike off a company? What are the tax implications?
Salary 2025/26 (interaction with NICs)
Is it still tax-efficient to pay a very low salary? Is it beneficial to pay a slightly higher salary to claim the Employment Allowance? What if the Employment Allowance is not available?
Employers
Assets made available without transfer
Special rules apply to calculate the taxable Benefit In Kind (BIK) when an asset is made available to a director or employee without transferring ownership to them.
Globally mobile employees: Short-Term Business Visitors
What is a Short-Term Business Visitor? What is an Appendix 4 agreement? What is an Appendix 8 agreement?
Private Client & Estate Planning
Business Asset Disposal Relief (Entrepreneurs's Relief): Disposal of a business
UPDATE: Entrepreneurs' Relief (ER) was renamed Business Asset Disposal Relief (BADR) by Finance Act 2020. When does BADR apply? What is the rate of BADR? How do you claim BADR? What BADR case law is there?
Investors' Relief
UPDATE: What is Investors' Relief? How does it differ from Business Asset Disposal Relief? Which disposals qualify? What are the conditions?
Capital Allowances
Annual Investment Allowance (AIA): Related companies
What restrictions to AIA apply to companies? What does common control mean? When are companies related?
Land & Property
SDLT: First-time buyers
What Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) relief is available to first-time buyers? What qualifying conditions must be met?
Replacement of Domestic Items Relief
What is Replacement of Domestic Items Relief? When can it apply and what conditions must be met?
Overseas & Residence
Transfer of Assets Abroad (ToAA)
What are the ToAA rules? When do they apply? How is the tax charge calculated? Is there any defence against the rules?
Penalties & Compliance
Closure notices
When does HMRC issue a Closure Notice? Can a taxpayer demand one? Are there appeal rights?
VAT
Business splitting and VAT (single business directions)
What measures can HMRC take when they identify that a business has been artificially split into two more entities to trade below the VAT registration threshold?
Tax Tools & Calculators
Tax tools & calculators
We have a suite of useful tax tools that help agents, business owners and sole traders calculate their taxes.
Calendar of tax deadlines and new tax measures
This is a freeview 'At a glance' rolling calendar of common recurring tax deadlines, new tax measures and other tax-significant events.
CPD
Recent webinars include:
- Monthly Tax Update - September 2025
- Practice Insight - September 2025 (free)
- Monthly Tax Update - July 2025
- Practice Insight - July 2025 (free)
- Making Tax Digital for Income Tax - Roadmap to April 2026
Need Tax Support?
Virtual Tax Partner© Support
Have a tax query? Need a second option? Open a ticket and ask a question. A team of tax experts with a wide range of expertise: covering direct and indirect tax, as well as accounting, reorganisations and much more.
Missed the Last Tax Update?
Ross Martin Tax: SME Tax News 28 August 2025
- Employer Bulletin: August 2025
- Agent Update 134: August 2025
- Advisory fuel rates from 1 September 2025
- One-to-many letters: Tracker
- Update to claiming personal pension relief via PAYE code
- What is the meaning of life?
- Former footballer taxable on income rights assigned to LLP
- Landlord’s failure to notify was deliberate
- Non-Domicile: Rules from 6 April 2025
- Globally mobile employees: Pension contributions relief for overseas employees NEW
- Freeports UPDATE
- Clothing and work wear ...More
Subscribe for news, guides, tools & CPD
Subscribe now and unlock the site. Subscriptions begin at £56 (+ VAT) per month. All subscriptions are for a 12-month term.
What do you get?
- A comprehensive practical tax database of guides, checklists, briefings and practice notes, and access to all our time-saving calculators and tax tools.
- 25% discount on Virtual Tax Partner services.
- Read everything in our comprehensive weekly SME tax news summary. We do the reading, then summarise legislation, HMRC guidance, analyse official reports and cherry-pick the best of the press and the rest.
- Commission guides and checklists for your own practice.