UK personal finance articles in plain English — tax, mortgages, salaries, savings, energy and the headlines that affect your money. Every article is backed by one of our free calculators.
The 2025/26 personal allowance is £12,570 — but it tapers off above £100,000, varies if you claim Marriage Allowance, and behaves oddly with side income. Here's how it works.
Pension contributions, salary sacrifice, Marriage Allowance, ISAs and Gift Aid — the five most useful, fully legal ways to pay less UK income tax in the 2025/26 tax year, with worked examples.
What every line on a UK payslip actually means — gross pay, tax code, PAYE, NI, student loan, pension, taxable pay YTD, and the deductions that quietly cost you the most.
What happens after you submit your Self Assessment return — refunds, balancing payments, amendments, HMRC enquiries, the SA302 for mortgages, and the 5-year record-keeping rule
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD ITSA) starts April 2026 for £50k+ self-employed and landlords. Here's what it means, when it applies to you, the software requirements and how it changes Self Assessment forever.
How HMRC's payments-on-account system works, why your first January bill is bigger than expected, when to reduce them, and the trap of treating January and July as separate
How to declare capital gains on your Self Assessment. Shares, crypto, second properties, the £3,000 annual exemption, 60-day property reporting, pooling rules and worked examples for 2025/26.
What you can and can't deduct as a sole trader on your Self Assessment. Home office, mileage, phone, subsistence, professional fees, capital allowances and the £1,000 trading allowance — with worked examples.
Part 3 of our Self Assessment series — how to declare employment, self-employed, dividend, rental, foreign, savings, crypto and CGT income on your UK tax return. With the boxes to fill, evidence to keep, and common errors.
Step-by-step guide to registering for Self Assessment, getting your UTR (Unique Taxpayer Reference) number, setting up your HMRC Government Gateway account and what to do if things go wrong.
Most UK workers never need to do a Self Assessment. But about 12 million do. Here's the precise list of trigger conditions for 2024/25 and 2025/26 — and how to register if it turns out you do.
UK working-from-home tax relief is £6/week (£312/year) of tax-free expenses — but rules tightened after 2022. Here's who qualifies, how to claim, the self-employed alternative
The UK pension annual allowance is £60,000 but tapers to £10,000 for high earners over £260,000. Here's how the Annual Allowance Charge works, who pays, and the NHS scheme dilemma
UK VAT registration is mandatory above £90,000 turnover. Voluntary below. Here's the threshold, when to register, the Flat Rate Scheme, MTD VAT rules and how to deregister if turnover falls
UK dividend tax 2025/26 has a £500 allowance, then 8.75% basic rate, 33.75% higher rate, 39.35% additional rate. Here's how dividends stack with income, ISA shelter and director-owner tactics
An eight-part series taking you from "do I even need to file?" through registering for a UTR, declaring income, claiming expenses, paying on account and amending after submission.
A five-part breakdown of the Spring Budget 2026: what changed for income tax, NI, pensions & ISAs, housing, and the self-employed — with worked examples at common UK salary points.
What happens after you submit your Self Assessment return — refunds, balancing payments, amendments, HMRC enquiries, the SA302 for mortgages, and the 5-year record-keeping rule
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD ITSA) starts April 2026 for £50k+ self-employed and landlords. Here's what it means, when it applies to you, the software requirements and how it changes Self Assessment forever.
How HMRC's payments-on-account system works, why your first January bill is bigger than expected, when to reduce them, and the trap of treating January and July as separate
Selling a second home or BTL property in the UK? You pay CGT at 18% or 24% on the gain, after the £3,000 annual exemption. Plus the 60-day reporting rule. Worked examples
Buying a second home or buy-to-let in England or NI? You pay a 5% SDLT surcharge on top of standard rates (raised from 3% in October 2024). Worked examples on £200k-£500k properties
After Section 24, the 5% SDLT surcharge, higher mortgage rates and 18%/24% CGT, UK buy-to-let returns in 2026 look very different to 2010. Here's the honest profitability picture with worked numbers
On a £40,000 UK salary in 2025/26 you take home £32,290 net (£2,691/month). Income tax £5,486, NI £2,194. Full breakdown with pension and student loan variants
On a £100,000 UK salary you take home £67,803 net (£5,650/month). But every pound earned above £100k is hit by the 60% effective tax rate due to the personal allowance taper. Full breakdown
On Universal Credit, every £1 you earn above your work allowance reduces UC by 55p (the taper rate). Here's how the work allowance, taper rate and 2025/26 rates actually work, with worked examples
The UK pension annual allowance is £60,000 but tapers to £10,000 for high earners over £260,000. Here's how the Annual Allowance Charge works, who pays, and the NHS scheme dilemma
The UK Personal Savings Allowance is £1,000 for basic-rate taxpayers, £500 for higher-rate, £0 for additional-rate. Above PSA, savings interest is taxable. Here's how it works and what to do above it
UK auto-enrolment requires 8% total pension contributions (5% you, 3% employer) on qualifying earnings £6,240-£50,270. Here's how it works, why you shouldn't opt out, and how to boost above the minimum
What the A-H Council Tax bands mean, how the 1991 valuation still drives every UK household's bill, when you can challenge your band, and what councils typically charge each band in 2026.
The Ofgem energy price cap for April–June 2026 is set. Here's what it means for a typical UK household, how standing charges and unit rates break down by region, and the smart-meter tariffs that beat it.
London's ULEZ costs £12.50/day; Birmingham, Bristol, Sheffield and other UK Clean Air Zones charge £8-£10/day for non-compliant vehicles. Here's exactly which cars are exempt
An electric-car salary sacrifice scheme can deliver a 30–45% effective discount on monthly lease payments for a higher-rate taxpayer. Here's the full worked example on a £55,000 salary and a Tesla Model 3.
The triple lock will lift the State Pension in April 2026 by the highest of CPI, wage growth or 2.5%. Full forecast of the new weekly rate, annual uplift, and what it means for retirees.
The Bank of England's MPC has held the base rate at 4.25% in May 2026. Here's what it means for trackers, SVRs, fixed-rate remortgages, and savings — with numbers on a £200k mortgage.
The Chancellor's Spring Statement 2026 is a fiscal update rather than a full Budget — but several items affect take-home pay, ISAs and self-employed tax. Here's what changed and what didn't