News & Insights

Chancellor John Healey delivered his Autumn Budget on Wednesday 28 October 2026. There were no changes to the headline rates of income tax, National Insurance, corporation tax or VAT – but landlords, savers and anyone planning to sell a business will see real changes from April 2027. Here are the highlights from the Silver Throne tax team.

Below we take each area in turn, with the dates that matter and what you might want to do before they arrive.

Landlords and savers

The biggest change for many of our clients. From 6 April 2027, property income and savings income will be taxed at their own, higher rates instead of the normal income tax rates:

	Until 5 April 2027	From 6 April 2027
Basic rate	20%	24%
Higher rate	40%	44%
Additional rate	45%	49%

• Relief for mortgage interest and other finance costs for residential landlords will be given at the new 24% basic rate.
• The £1,000 and £500 Personal Savings Allowances and the £5,000 starting rate for savings are unchanged.
• Companies are not affected – property held in a limited company still pays corporation tax at 19% to 25%.

Business owners and company directors

Corporation tax and dividends

• Corporation tax stays at 25% (main rate) and 19% (small profits rate), with marginal relief between £50,000 and £250,000 of profits.
• Dividend tax rates stay at 10.75%, 35.75% and 39.35%, and the dividend allowance stays at £500.

Capital allowances

Allowance	Change	From
Main rate first-year allowance (new plant and machinery, not cars or second-hand assets)	40% → 50%	1 January 2027
Main pool writing-down allowance	14% → 12%	1 April 2027 (companies) / 6 April 2027 (individuals)
Annual Investment Allowance	Stays at £1 million	–
Full expensing for companies	Stays at 100%	–

Most small and medium-sized businesses spend under £1 million a year and will still get full relief up front through the Annual Investment Allowance. The lower 12% rate matters most for older pool balances and bigger spenders.

Selling or passing on your business

• Business Asset Disposal Relief (18% CGT rate) – the lifetime limit is cut from £1 million to £500,000 for disposals from 6 April 2027. Transitional rules apply.
• New Founders’ Relief – a 10% CGT rate on qualifying share disposals by founders, with a £10 million lifetime limit, from 6 April 2027. The conditions are stricter, and the government is consulting until 30 November 2026.
• Reforms to company distributions (share buybacks, capital reductions and demergers) are planned from April 2028.

Employers and payroll

• Employer National Insurance stays at 15%, and the Employment Allowance stays at £10,500. Most other National Insurance thresholds are frozen until 2030-31.
• From April 2027, company cars, vans, car and van fuel and medical benefits must be reported through payroll (other benefits from April 2028).
• The approved mileage rate for business journeys above 10,000 miles a year rises from 25p to 35p a mile from 6 April 2027.
• Employee share schemes become more generous from April 2027 – the CSOP limit doubles to £120,000 and the EMI exercise window after a disqualifying event extends to 180 days.
• Company car percentages for 2030-31 rise by one percentage point, including for electric cars.
• From April 2028, employees claiming more than £2,500 of work expenses will no longer need to file a Self Assessment return just for that claim.

Self-employed and sole traders

• The trading and miscellaneous income allowances rise from £1,000 to £3,000 from 6 April 2027, and so does the threshold for having to report trading income through Self Assessment.
• Making Tax Digital for Income Tax: no late submission penalty points for 2027-28 quarterly updates. The income threshold still falls to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028.
• Class 4 National Insurance stays at 6% and 2%. The Small Profits Threshold rises to £7,355.

Personal tax, pensions and inheritance tax

	2027-28
Personal allowance	£12,570 (frozen)
Higher rate threshold	£50,270 (frozen)
Capital gains tax rates	18% / 24% (annual exempt amount £3,000)
Inheritance tax nil-rate band / residence nil-rate band	£325,000 / £175,000 (frozen)
Pensions annual allowance	£60,000
ISA allowance	£20,000

• Unused pension funds and death benefits come into inheritance tax from 6 April 2027, as previously announced.
• A new Pensions Tax Allowance from 6 April 2027 means pensioners whose income is no more than the full new State Pension will not pay income tax on it. It tapers away above that level.
• The Lifetime ISA withdrawal charge for buying a home above the price cap falls from 25% to 20% from 29 October 2026. A new First Time Buyer ISA is planned from April 2029.
• A High Value Council Tax Surcharge applies to homes in England worth £2 million or more from April 2028.

VAT and indirect taxes

• VAT registration and deregistration thresholds are unchanged.
• Online marketplaces will have to account for VAT on sales by UK sellers to consumers from October 2027 (sellers with £90,000 or more of annual sales on a platform).
• Mandatory e-invoicing for VAT is coming from April 2029.
• The temporary 0% VAT on household electricity is extended to 30 June 2027. Public electric vehicle charging is standard-rated from 1 November 2026.
• The 5p fuel duty cut is extended to 30 June 2027.

HMRC: how you pay and report

• From April 2029, VAT and PAYE will have to be paid by Direct Debit, and Self Assessment will move towards more regular payments during the year.
• From 2029-30, HMRC will be able to recover smaller tax debts directly from bank accounts.
• A new general duty to correct errors in tax returns starts from 1 April 2028, and amended company tax returns must be filed online from the same date.

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Key dates

Date	What changes
29 October 2026	Lifetime ISA withdrawal charge falls to 20%
1 November 2026	VAT on public EV charging becomes standard-rated
1 January 2027	50% first-year allowance for new plant and machinery
1 April 2027	Writing-down allowance falls to 12% (companies); R&D claim notification form removed
6 April 2027	Property and savings income rates 24% / 44% / 49%; BADR limit £500,000; Founders’ Relief; trading allowance £3,000; payrolling of cars, vans and medical benefits; pensions into inheritance tax
April 2028	Payrolling of other benefits; duty to correct errors; High Value Council Tax Surcharge
April 2029	Mandatory e-invoicing; Direct Debit for VAT and PAYE

This summary is based on the Budget documents published by HM Treasury and HMRC on 28 October 2026, including the Overview of Tax Legislation and Rates. Many measures still need to be passed by Parliament and the details may change. It is general information, not advice for your circumstances – please speak to us before acting on it.