Tax Planning · South London
Tax planning in Riddlesdown
Most tax is saved by decisions made before the year end, not by clever filing after it. People in Riddlesdown use our planning reviews to find out, in writing and with numbers, what their options are: how to pay themselves, when to take dividends, whether a pension contribution beats a salary rise, how to use both spouses' allowances. Fixed fee, no schemes.
from £249 · fixed, per review
Next deadlines
- Online Self Assessment filing deadline and balancing payment due
- Tax year ends: last day for pension, ISA and dividend timing decisions
- Companies House accounts due 9 months after your year end (a 31 December year end files by 30 September)
- Corporation Tax payment, 9 months and 1 day after your year end (a 31 December year end pays by 1 October)
Who this is for
Tax Planning for Riddlesdown
Company directors in Riddlesdown deciding how to pay themselves, higher earners near the £100,000 personal allowance taper or the £125,140 additional rate, couples who could use both sets of allowances better, landlords and investors with gains to time, business owners approaching a year end with profit to deploy, and anyone whose affairs have grown more complicated than their current adviser has noticed.
What is included
Everything inside the fixed fee
- A review of your current position across income tax, National Insurance, dividends, Corporation Tax and capital gains as relevant
- Allowances and reliefs checked: personal allowance taper, marriage allowance, pension annual allowance, dividend and savings allowances, ISA use
- Director remuneration modelled: salary, dividends, pension contributions and benefits for the coming year
- Timing decisions quantified: dividends across tax years, capital expenditure before year end, pension contributions, disposals
- A written report with the recommendations, the saving from each and the actions in order
- A follow-up call to answer questions and agree what we implement for you
How it works
Tax Planning from Riddlesdown, step by step
Scope the job
We find out what you need filed, when it is due and what state the records are in, and tell you which fixed-fee package applies.
Agree the price
The fee is confirmed in writing. There is no hourly billing and nothing added for questions during the work.
Hand over the records
Photographs, PDFs, software access or a spreadsheet, sent however suits you. We confirm what we have and what is missing within two working days.
Approve, then we submit
You review the draft with our explanation, sign off, and we file. Receipts, copies and the next deadlines come back to you immediately.
Why IGI
The IGI way of working, in Riddlesdown
One fixed fee for tax planning in Riddlesdown, agreed in writing before any work starts and never changed part-way through the job, however long it takes us.
We work to the HMRC and Companies House calendar, not an appointment diary. Clients in Riddlesdown get reminders at 60, 30 and 7 days before each date that applies to tax planning.
We serve Riddlesdown remotely by design: records by WhatsApp or email, drafts back for approval, filing electronic. The saving on premises is passed to you in the fee for tax planning.
Continuity matters in tax planning: the person who prepared last year's work for your Riddlesdown business prepares this year's, and remembers what was agreed.
We explain tax planning in the words Riddlesdown business owners use, not in accountant's shorthand, and we show our working so you can check it.
You stay in control of tax planning: drafts go to Riddlesdown clients first, with the figures explained, and nothing leaves us until you say so.
Local facts
About Riddlesdown
Riddlesdown is in South London, within Croydon, in the CR8 postcode district, England. For businesses in England the tax rules are those set by the UK Parliament: the 20/40/45% income tax bands, Class 4 National Insurance for the self-employed at 6% and 2%, Corporation Tax at 19% to 25%, and Stamp Duty Land Tax on property. Business rates are set locally by the council.
| Place | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Kenley | 0.7 mi | S |
| Purley | 0.8 mi | NW |
| Purley Oaks | 1.0 mi | N |
| Sanderstead | 1.0 mi | E |
| Russell Hill | 1 mi | NW |
| Croham | 2 mi | N |
| Selsdon and Ballards | 2 mi | NE |
| Whyteleafe | 2 mi | S |
Worth knowing
Rules that come up in this work
Closing a company
Striking off a company is cheap but must be done in order: stop trading, file the final accounts and CT600, pay the tax, close VAT and PAYE, distribute the remaining assets, close the bank account, then apply. Anything left in the company at dissolution passes to the Crown. Distributions up to £25,000 are taxed as capital gains; above that a formal liquidation is usually needed to keep capital treatment.
Switching accountants
Changing accountant is simpler than most people fear. You authorise the new firm, which writes to the old one for professional clearance and your records; the outgoing accountant must hand over your own documents and usually does within two weeks. The new firm registers as your agent with HMRC and picks up the next filing. There is no need to wait for a year end.
Workplace pensions and auto-enrolment
Auto-enrolment duties begin the day you take on your first employee, not when the Pensions Regulator writes to you. Eligible staff must be enrolled, contributions paid every pay period and re-enrolment carried out every three years. Director-only companies without employment contracts are usually exempt. Fines for non-compliance are fixed and escalating.
Employer National Insurance
Since April 2025 employer National Insurance has been 15% on earnings above a £5,000 secondary threshold, a substantial increase for small employers. The Employment Allowance rose to £10,500 at the same time to soften it for the smallest businesses. Directors deciding their own salary weigh this cost against the Corporation Tax deduction a salary provides.
The trading and property allowances
The first £1,000 of trading income and, separately, the first £1,000 of property income each year is tax free under the trading and property allowances. Below those figures no return is needed for that income. Above them you can deduct the £1,000 allowance instead of actual expenses if that is better, which suits side businesses and single-room lets with few costs.
Dormant companies
Companies formed to protect a name or hold a future business are dormant but not exempt: Companies House still expects dormant accounts within nine months of the year end and a confirmation statement annually with its £50 fee, and HMRC must be told the company is dormant or it will demand Corporation Tax returns. The filings are short, but the penalties for missing them are the same as for a trading company.
The 60-day property CGT return
The 60-day Capital Gains Tax return on residential property is the deadline landlords most often miss, because it falls outside the Self Assessment cycle and runs from completion, not exchange. Private residence relief for periods you lived in the property, plus the final nine months, reduces the gain. Penalties for a late return mirror Self Assessment, starting at £100.
Questions
Tax Planning questions from Riddlesdown
How does pension planning fit in?
Pension contributions get relief at your marginal rate, employer contributions are deductible for Corporation Tax and free of National Insurance, and unused annual allowance from the previous three years can be carried forward. For directors it is usually the most efficient extraction route after a basic salary. We calculate your headroom and the saving.
What about the personal allowance taper and the £100,000 trap?
Between £100,000 and £125,140 of adjusted income the personal allowance is withdrawn at £1 for every £2, producing an effective marginal rate of 60%. Pension contributions and gift aid reduce adjusted income and are often the best use of money in that band. The review quantifies this precisely for your figures.
What is the pre-year-end planning session?
A £299 session two to three months before a company's year end, using management or draft figures to decide what to do before the date: capital expenditure to claim full expensing, employer pension contributions, bonus or dividend timing, bad debt provisions, and whether to change the accounting date. Decisions made after the year end are mostly too late.
When should I buy the combined review?
When the company and personal positions interact, which for most owner-managers they do. The £399 combined review covers both sides together: Corporation Tax planning, extraction strategy, capital expenditure timing, pension contributions as a company expense, and the personal position of each director or shareholder. It replaces the two separate reviews.
What does the director remuneration review cover?
For £249 we model the coming year's salary, dividends, employer pension contributions and any benefits against the company's expected profit and your other income, showing the total tax and National Insurance under each option and recommending a structure. It includes the use of a spouse's shareholding and allowances where relevant.
What does the £249 personal tax review cover?
Your income from all sources, the allowances and reliefs you are and are not using, pension contribution headroom, the personal allowance taper and High Income Child Benefit charge if relevant, savings and dividend allowances, ISA use, marriage allowance, gift aid and the timing of any disposals. You receive a written report with quantified recommendations.
How do I get started from Riddlesdown?
Message us on WhatsApp or email with a sentence about your business and what you need. We reply in working hours with any questions and a fixed fee for tax planning. Once you confirm, we tell you exactly which records to send and the work begins. Most Riddlesdown clients are set up within a day.
Which deadlines matter most for tax planning?
The next four dates that apply to tax planning are shown at the top of this page, calculated from today. For Riddlesdown clients we diarise every one of them from the day you join and send reminders before each, so the work is done in good time rather than in the last week before a penalty.
Fixed fees, filed on time, for Riddlesdown
Tell us what you need. You get one fixed fee in writing, and nothing is filed until you approve it.