The Bank of England held interest rates at 4.25% but signalled that further cuts may be on the horizon. While this can present opportunities for those looking to refinance, borrow, or invest, getting the best deals is all about how prepared you are.

Credit Scores

Whether you’re applying for a personal loan, a business overdraft, or a mortgage, your credit score is key. A better credit profile often gives you access to lower interest rates, better terms, and higher borrowing limits.

It’s not just personal — businesses are being judged too. Especially if you’re running a small or cash-heavy business, you need to show the banks that your income is consistent and traceable. This means banking regularly. If you’re taking in cash, deposit it frequently. Banks and lenders want to see a clear money trail, and this trail heavily influences their decisions.

Identification

A number of people come to us facing delays simply because their names don’t match across official documents. Whether you’ve been married, divorced, or just changed your name, your passport, driving licence, utility bills, and bank statements should all align.

Why? Inconsistent ID records can drag down your credit score or delay financial approvals, especially when you're trying to refinance or borrow.

Budgeting

When it comes to credit scoring and financial health, the basics still matter. Set a budget, pay on time, and don’t miss repayments. These small, consistent habits are the biggest contributors to long-term financial strength.

Payback Criteria

Lenders are getting stricter. Working capital requirements have increased. Before, many banks were happy if you had 1.5 times your loan payment obligations in working capital. Now they want to see 2 times making it so much harder to obtain a loan.

For example, if your business has monthly loan and interest payments of £1,000, you now need at least £2,000 in working capital a month to be considered financially stable in their eyes.

This change is a big deal for small businesses or anyone looking to re-finance.

Plan Now to Take Advantage

• Review your credit score and dispute any error
• Align your ID documents (especially name consistency)
• Build your working capital reserves if you’re a business owner
• Start comparing re-mortgaging or refinancing options now
• Speak to a financial adviser or broker who can help position you before rates change
• Planning ahead is key

Being prepared isn’t just about having money, it’s about showing lenders that you manage it well. The most successful borrowers and businesses are the ones who plan ahead.

If you need help with your credit, your documentation, or just planning your next financial move, we’re here to support you every step of the way.

Hello and welcome to April — the start of a brand-new financial year! As always, this time of year brings fresh updates from the Government and one of the most notable changes on the horizon is HMRC’s ‘Making Tax Digital’ for Income Tax Self-Assessment which is coming into affect from April 2026.  This is directly affecting small businesses trading through self assessment, and property landlords.

What’s Changing?

If you’re used to submitting a Self-Assessment tax return once a year, things are about to change. HMRC is moving towards quarterly reporting, much like what VAT-registered businesses already do. This means instead of sending in your figures once a year, you’ll now be expected to submit updates every three months, using Accounting software compatible with HMRC, the spreadsheet will become a thing of the past.

Who Does This Affect?

This will roll out in phases:

• From April 2026: If your total self-employed or property turnover is over £50,000, you’ll be required to comply.
• From April 2027: The threshold lowers to £30,000.

This applies to landlords as well as sole traders, so even if you're just renting out property and not running a business, this could still apply to you.

What Should You Do?

If you're likely to be affected, don’t panic. We’ll be in touch with you individually to discuss the best approach and make sure you’re set up well in advance.

It’s worth noting that HMRC has already changed the start date a few times, so we are still in the early days of implementation. Information is a little light at the moment from HMRC side of things, but we’ll keep you updated as soon as we know more.

Here to Help

We know this might feel like a big shift, and it’s perfectly normal to feel unsure about how it will all work. If this news has left you with questions or concerns, please call or message us — we're here to help guide you through it all.

Let’s make this new tax year a smooth one!

Filing your tax return as early as possible comes with several advantages. It removes the stress of last-minute submissions, allowing you to focus entirely on running your business. The self-assessment deadline of 31st January remains unchanged every year, yet HMRC reported that 2.6 million people had not filed their tax returns just two days before the deadline last year.

Missing the deadline results in an automatic £100 fine, with additional penalties for further delays. If your return is more than three months late, daily fines of £10 start accumulating—leading to significant penalties you’ll want to avoid.

You can submit your tax return as soon as April 6th, and filing early comes with a major advantage: you don’t have to pay your tax bill immediately. The payment deadline remains in January, giving you plenty of time to budget for what you owe. Plus, if you’re due a tax refund, filing early ensures you receive it much sooner—unlike those who file in January, when HMRC experiences delays due to high demand.

With a little organisation, you can get your paperwork sorted and your tax return submitted well in advance—leaving you free to enjoy the festive season stress-free. Filing correctly is crucial, as you don’t want to risk overpaying or underpaying your taxes. Seeking professional advice can help ensure accuracy and peace of mind.

Contact us on www.crossaccountingservice.co.uk if you have any concerns regarding your tax return as we are always here to help.

As we step closer to April 2025, change is on the horizon. This is when the new financial year starts and we discuss what could impact our business in the coming months. We’ll explore what is ahead and how to prepare effectively.

National Minimum Wage

The most notable one is the rise in National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage. We are probably familiar with this rising every April.

Take a look at the table below for the hourly rate changes.

The apprenticeship rate applies to apprentices under 19 or 19 and over in the first year of apprenticeship.

Personal Allowance

The freeze continues on personal tax thresholds. Your personal allowance is the amount you can earn until you start to pay income tax. The personal allowance is currently £12,570 and set to be until April 2028 where the government will look to review.

Employer’s NI

Employers NI is also set to rise from 1 April 2025. Currently employers pay NI on employees wages at 13.8% when it hits the threshold of £9,100 however, from April the rate increases to 15% and the threshold falls to £5,000.

 To combat against this, the government have increased the employment allowance. The employment allowance is a credit against the Employer’s NI. Currently it is £5,000 for the year and will increase to £10,500. Once you have used up your Employment Allowance, then you will start to pay Employer’s NI.

Corporation Tax

There are no changes in the rates of Corporation Tax. This means that, from April 2025, the small profits rate will stay at 19% and will be payable by companies with profits of £50,000 or less.

Companies with over £250,000 profit will pay corporation tax at 25%.

Companies with profits between £50,001 and £250,000 will pay tax at the main rate reduced by a marginal relief, providing a gradual increase in the effective Corporation Tax rate.

If you're concerned about budgeting for the latest tax changes, let us know! We are experts in managing budgets and identifying trends to help you make the most of your resources. We can work out whether the Employment Allowance is going to save you money, or cost you money and provide insights and solutions tailored to your needs. Additionally, if you require any extra services, don’t hesitate to reach out—we’re here to accommodate your requests and provide the best possible support. We’re always ready to assist in any way we can!

A couple of weeks ago we highlighted main aspects of the previous chancellors mini-budget. A lot has happened in the house of parliament recently and the new chancellor, Jeremy Hunt reverses most of the mini-budget tax cuts.

Below you can find the updated version from Jeremy Hunts statement.

National Insurance

One of the few things that is staying, is the reversal of the National Insurance social care levy. From 6^th November 2022, the extra 1.25% will no longer be added to National Insurance contributions. This means a saving of £330 per year for nearly 28 million people.

Originally the extra 1.25% was introduced to fund the NHS, however, this will now be funded through general taxation.

Income Tax

The biggest reversal is in the rates of income tax. The ex-chancellor said that income tax will be down to 19% from April 2023, however, this will now not go ahead. It will remain at 20% for now.

The abolition of the 45% higher rate income tax has also been reversed. The 45% higher rate income tax band now means that the higher rate earners will pay income tax on earnings over £150,000

Corporation Tax

The reversal on corporation tax for companies means that the increase from 19% to 25% will go ahead after all. This will come into action from April 2023. Only businesses with profits of £250,000 or greater will be taxed at the full 25% rate - about 10% of companies in the UK.

Any companies with profits of £50,000 or lower, will pay at the 19% rate

Benefits

Rules around the benefit system will remain and unchanged. Benefits can be reduced if people don’t actively search for job commitments. Around 120,000 more people on universal credit to be encouraged to actively seek more work, the over 50’s to be given extra time to work with coaches to help them in the return to work.

What else has been cancelled?

Other measures that have been cancelled include:

·         VAT-free shopping for overseas visitors,

• A freeze on alcohol duty. Planned increases in the duty rates for beer, cider, wine and spirits will now go ahead
• Cuts to the tax paid on shareholders' dividends - the increase introduced in April will now stay in place

Energy

A typical household using both gas and electricity would pay no more than £2,500 annually for two years the government said. However, the energy price guarantee now only covers this winter. It will be in place until April next year. A review will look at what measures should be put in place after this date.

Stamp Duty

Stamp duty will remain in place. In England, no stamp duty is paid on first £250,000 and for first time buyers, this is increased to £425,000. To check out Wales’ stamp duty rates, please click here

These rules seem like they will stay in place now but, as always, we will keep you up to date with the latest