We all want to pay as little tax as legally possible; such as having savings in a tax free cash ISA and getting tax relief on pension contributions.
Archive for the 'tax' Tag
Pathetic Rates on Cash ISAs for the New Tax Year
I’m searching for the best fixed rate Cash ISA savings account. The new tax year began on 6 April 2013 and the annual Cash ISA limit is now £5,760 per person. I can’t even find Cash ISA paying a rate of interest that is equal to the rate of inflation; RPI currently stands at 3.2%. [...]
Permit Transfer of Whole Income Tax Allowance Between Spouses/Civil Partners
The UK Government is talking about allowing married couples and civil partners to transfer £750 of their personal income tax allowance to their spouse/partner. I think that the Government should go further and allow the transfer of the whole personal allowance. From 6 April 2013, the basic income tax personal allowance will be £9,440, meaning [...]
Why Can’t Peer-to-Peer Lending Accounts Offer Cash ISAs?
With the current low rates of interest being paid on savings accounts at traditional institutions such as banks and building societies making it hard to even maintain the value of your savings, fixed rates of 3.55% for one year and 5.0% for three years with the peer-to-peer lending company RateSetter look pretty alluring. The highest [...]
Why Should I Pay Tax Twice on My Savings?
Now I believe that if you want to live in a country with decent public services, you should be willing to pay a reasonable amount of tax toward these services. I am eternally grateful to the NHS for the free at the point of use care that our twin sons received when they were born [...]
The Thorny Issue of a Fair Welfare State
The UK Conservative party have started talking about making more cuts to benefits paid by the Welfare State. Their current proposal is to stop paying housing benefit for the under 25s, which they reckon will save £2 billion a year. That sounds good for the tax payer, but I’m left wondering where on earth are [...]
Make Tax Free Cash ISAs Available in Any Savings Account
I’m frustrated that many bank and building society best paying accounts aren’t Cash ISA accounts. For example, Halifax are currently paying 3.2% on a standard 1 Year Fixed Online Saver but only 2.25% on their ISA Saver Fixed. How on earth can they justify this whopping 1% difference in returns between a standard and a [...]
Why the UK Personal Tax Allowance Should Be Much Higher – My Money Podcast #16
In the My Money Podcast #16 I explain why I think that the UK personal tax allowance should be much higher than the Goverment’s proposed figure of £10,000 by the tax year 2014 – 2015, with reference to the posts below. UK Tax Allowances – Why I think that the so called Granny Tax is [...]
Why I Think the Granny Tax is Fairer for Everyone
When the UK Chancellor announced that personal tax allowances for those aged 65+ will be frozen from April 2013, this move was dubbed the “Granny Tax“. However, as personal tax allowances for those under 65 are to rise by more than the rate of inflation, I think the new regime is fairer to all UK [...]
Are You Paying Tax on Your Savings? – My Money Podcast #15
The My Money Podcast #15 discusses using Cash ISAs to avoid paying tax on your savings with reference to the articles below: Santander Direct ISA Issue 9 – Currently paying 3.3% variable, accepts transfers in. Fixed versus Variable Rate Cash ISAs – Should you go for a higher fixed rate account which ties up your [...]
M&S Cash ISAs Offer Competitive Rates
Marks and Spencer Cash ISAs are offering some competitive interest rates. The instant access Advantage Cash ISA is currently (10 February 2012) paying 3.0% variable. The one year Fixed Rate Savings Account pays 3.25%. Both accounts accept transfers in from previous year’s Cash ISAs. If you’re not sure whether to go for a fixed versus [...]
